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Author: Cindy_Beane
Surnames:
Classification: queries
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http://boards.rootsweb.com/surnames.carver/519.537.545.611.2/mb.ashx
Message Board Post:
I recently came across this small article in the Rockland, Maine Courier-Gazette
archives:
From the Rockland Courier-Gazette of July 7, 1885:
The Tramp (name of the column)
"The venerable Reuben Carver of Vinalhaven, nearly 88 years of age, is one of those
few gentlemen who remember distinctly events of years ago and is able to tell them in an
entertaining and lucid manner. Mr. Carver has retained all his faculties in a remarkable
state of perfection. He recently discoursed pleasantly as follows concerning old times at
Vinalhaven Harbor, as it was originally called:
"In 1766 my father, Thaddeus Carver, then a lad of sixteen, came with his father and
older brother in a sloop from Marshfield, Mass., and landed on what is now
Calderwood's Neck. Israel and Amos Carver came at the same time. Israel settled
where we landed, on the north side of the Neck, built him a house and brought up his
family there. James Calderwood now owns the farm, and has built his house on the site of
the old one.
"My father lived here until he became of age, and then hired out to Capt. Waterman of
North Haven at four dollars per month, afterwards coming back to the island. About the
time father became of age a man named Cogswell came from Ipswich and built two mills on
the stream, where the polishing mill now stands. Father worked with him awhile and in
1774 bought the mill and privilege together with eight hundred acres of land. About 1780
the mill was carried away by a freshet. The stream lay idle from that time until I built
a mill. I put up a saw, shingle, lath and grist mill and ran it about thirty-five years.
"In 1826 I commenced building vessels at the head of this dock on the beach. I
constructed thirteen in all. My first vessel was the Plymouth Rock. She was a schooner
of 140 tons and was built for Boston parties. This schooner, the first one built on the
island, carried the first cargo of granite ever taken from the island. She was called a
large vessel in those days. The last one I built was schooner Island Home, a little over
200 tons. She was launched in 1866 or somewhere in that vicinity.
'In 1830 there was one house in sight from where my house now stands. This one lone
house was on Lane's Island, then called Griffin's Island. My father used to speak
of the frequent visits of British shaving mills during the troublesome-revolutionary
times. They would come to here on foraging expeditions."
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