Roosevelt Trail History Tour hits road for second year

By Erin Rose

Members of the public are welcome to journey through history during the Second Annual Roosevelt Trail Historical Tour from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. on Saturday, Sept. 12.

The public can tour the Raymond-Casco Historical Museum 
in Casco and other historical sites including some in
Windham during the Second Annual Roosevelt Trail 
Historical Tour running from Westbrook to Harrison
from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. on Saturday, Sept. 12.
COURTESY PHOTO  

A dozen different historical sites, from Westbrook to Harrison, will be open for visitors to tour at no charge. Refreshments will also be available at some locations.

“There are some new sites for this year,” said Bill Brennan from the Raymond-Casco Historical Society. “We had eight last year, and we have 12 now.”

One of the new additions had hoped to join last year but was unable to welcome visitors for last year’s tour after moving into a new location at 214 Main St. in Bridgton and is excited to join the trail historical tour this year.

“The Bridgton Historical Society had just taken over the Methodist Church on Main St.,” Brennan said. “They had to back out two or three weeks before because they weren’t going to be ready.”

Another new site for visitors is the Bridgton and Saco River Railroad Museum, located on the first floor of the Bridgton Historical Society. The group is working to preserve the two-foot narrow gauge railroad that once ran throughout the Lakes Region.

“That’s also an exciting addition,” Brennan said. “They want to do new things, like being able to show how they lay railroad track.”

The event provides a chance for locals who may frequently drive past the historic sites in their day-to-day lives, but who may not have taken a chance to stop in.

“I’ve heard it a dozen times this summer; ‘I’ve never been to the Raymond Casco Historical Society. I’ve seen it on the road and I’ve never dropped in.’,” Brennan said. “People just don’t stop.”

Brennan said that he’s guilty of the same, despite frequent visits to Bridgton.

“I’ve driven through Bridgton and have stopped at the Cool Moose but never stopped at the Rufus Porter Museum,” he said. “I stopped last year and will be doing some of the other sites out west before coming east on that Saturday, just so I can see the Harrison Historical Society.”

The Harrison site, located at 121 Haskell Hill Road, is a new addition to the trail and has new displays this year, including details on notable local businesses, farming equipment, and a replica of a canal boat.

All of the organizations that had previously participated in the tour returned for the second annual event, after seeing a great increase in attendance on the day last year.

“After the event last year, everybody has come back because they had some of their best turnouts,” Brennan said. “Sometimes you’ll get five or ten people showing up on a weekend. Some people had 40, 50, 60 that day.”

A returning site is the Scribners Mill and Homestead at 244 Scribners Hill Road in Harrison. They have recently opened the homestead to visitors who can see how the Scribner family lived when the mill was in operation, in addition to the sawmill.

Brennan said that a recent visit to a more modern milling facility helped show how technology has changed aspects of woodworking.

“My family and I went to Hancock Lumber last summer, and we got a two- or three-hour tour,” he explained. “When you compare what they do there to what Scribners Mill does, it’s exactly the same thing, just in a different era and different technology. Where a guy is looking at a computer screen now, at Scribners, you had a guy there shaping it, doing whatever he could as best as he could with what he had.”

The Raymond-Casco Historical Society Museum will also be participating in the day for the second year and will have a blacksmith operating the museum’s 19th century Watkins Blacksmith Shop. The property, which includes a one-room schoolhouse and 19th century barn in addition to the museum, is located at 1 Shadow Lane in Casco.

The Naples Historical Society and Museum, at 19 Village Green in Naples, will be highlighting their restored jail located on the site, while a guide will be on site at the Quaker Ridge Meeting House from 10 a.m. to 2:30 p.m., located at 141 Quaker Ridge Rd. in Casco. The meeting house, built in 1814, is the oldest such Quaker building in Maine that is still in use today.

The idea for the day was developed from a desire to find a unique way to draw new visitors to the different historical sites that dot the area.

“The Hawthorn Community Association, met with the Raymond-Casco Historical Society a day in March” last year, Brennan said. “We were all talking about how we could reinvigorate our museums and historical sites.”

“This idea popped up amongst us, as something we might try,” he added, noting that the group worked to find a date in the fall that would allow more residents to attend.

The different organizations all meet to develop ideas for each year’s event, and they all are hoping that this becomes a tradition in the vein of other community events.

“It’s a collective effort from all of us,” Brennan said. “We brainstorm together ideas and we’re all invested in this.”

“It’s the second annual and we’re proud of that,” he continued. “We want it to be like the Maple Syrup weekend or the Sebago Fishing Derby, where it gives our community the chance to come out and see us and experience the local history.”

One local organization praised Brennan and the Raymond-Casco Historical Society for their drive to make the event a reality.

“Their society was an integral part in getting this idea off the ground,” said Susan Simonson, President of Windham Historical Society. “Windham Historical Society is pleased to be a part of this unique idea.” For more information on the day and the different sites open for visitors, visit www.raymondcascohistoricalsociety.org <

Local Revolutionary War patriots subject of historical presentation

By Ed Pierce

As the nation celebrates its 250th birthday this weekend, contributions made by Raymond and Casco patriots to the cause of liberty are easily overlooked. But thanks to a new presentation being offered by the Raymond-Casco Historical Society, the bravery of Revolutionary War patriots living in Raymond and Casco will not be forgotten.

Sue Pride of Raymond will highlight the lives and
service of 28 Revolutionary Way patriots during a 
free program at 6:30 p.m. Monday, July 6 at the
Raymond-Casco Historical Museum, 1 Shadow
Lane in Casco. SUBMITTED PHOTO  

Sue Pride, the Collections Manager for the Raymond-Casco Historical Society Museum, will discuss and highlight the lives and service of 28 Revolutionary War patriots from the area during a free public program at 6:30 p.m. Monday, July 6 at the museum, 1 Shadow Lane in Casco.

Her presentation includes a richly illustrated PowerPoint talk focusing on the remarkable stories of early local settlers who answered the call to defend America long before Maine became a state.

Pride was inspired to create the presentation while sorting through the historical society’s collections to organize them. It prompted her to research how Revolutionary War veterans ended their journeys in Raymond and Casco.

“This year is the 250th birthday of the United States, and I thought the museum should do something to bring Raymond and Casco into it. I thought we must have some veterans.”

In conducting research, Pride found that some patriots were living in Massachusetts on April 19, 1775, and responded immediately to the alarm of the Lexington and Concord opening of the American Revolution. Others were already living in the district that would become Maine, and they enlisted shortly afterward and marched to Cambridge to join American troops during the Siege of Boston.

When the Revolutionary War for American independence from Great Britain erupted, Raymondtown, now known as the towns of Raymond and Casco after the communities split in 1841, was part of the Cumberland County Militia territory, with its members serving under the command of early settler Captain Joseph Dingley of Raymondtown. Their membership roll was used as a recruitment tool for soldiers to join the Continental Army once it was founded and placed under the leadership of the Continental Army’s General George Washington in June 1775.

“Before the army, it was just the militias fighting,” Pride said. “Lexington and Concord were fought by the militia.”

The area’s sparse population at the time meant that not many men from Raymond enlisted and Pride’s research found four residents who had traveled south to fight. However, she has discovered at least 28 Revolutionary War veterans are buried around Raymond and Casco, which shows the influx of former soldiers locally after the war ended.

“Many of the 28 patriots later served under Capt. Richard Mayberry, taking part in the Saratoga Campaign, a turning point in the war, and enduring the harsh winter encamped at Valley Forge alongside General George Washington’s troops,” Pride said.

Her new program will also touch on the broader story of Maine during the Revolutionary War, including the Battle of Machias, which is often called the first naval battle of the war, and the devastating burning of what is now known as Portland in 1775.

“I found one veteran who only served three days and never served again, but he was at Lexington and Concord, so it was a pivotal three days,” Pride said. “I think there were four who were living in Massachusetts and marched to Lexington and Concord.”

She also found a story of one soldier who was captured by the British and then held in the notorious prison ships afloat in the harbor of New York City, which were decommissioned or damaged ships that were used to hold prisoners in overcrowded conditions, where many died due to illness or malnutrition. He survived to be discharged from the army six months after his service was meant to have ended. Pride also discovered two men buried locally that died while serving. One drowned after falling from a floating bridge and the other died of fever.

Both Dingley and his son Samuel volunteered for military service at the start of the Revolutionary War in the company of men from Raymond and Windham and returned to the fast-growing Raymondtown as Captains, a title that Joseph retained for the rest of his life, even though he later held the rank of Colonel in the militia.

The 28 patriots highlighted in Pride’s presentation came to reside locally and helped to build and shape the community’s legacy.

“As the nation marks its 250th birthday, the Raymond-Casco Historical Society emphasizes the importance of honoring their service and recognizing their influence on the region’s early growth,” Pride said.

To learn more about Raymond and Casco’s role in the Revolutionary War, visit www.raymondcascohistoricalsociety.org or find them on Facebook. <