The War That Made Maine a State-- Part 1

From the Portland (Maine) Press Herald "The war that made Maine a state: The British occupation of eastern Maine in the War of 1812 prompted a split from Massachusetts" by Colin Woodard.

I was completely unaware of the Massachusetts "ownership" of Maine before the war.

Before July 18, 1814, the fifty American soldiers at Fort Sullivan, guarding the town of Eastport on the promontory behind what is now Shead High School had little to do except watch the little boats plying across the waters of Passamaquoddy Bay, many carrying contraband.

But then, this day, they spotted a 74-gun British ship of the line bearing doen on them along with three other warships and transports carrying 1000 British troops.  They readied the fort's six cannons, but resistance was really out of the question and the fort's commander Major Perley Putnam surrendered.

This was part of a bigger British operation which, within just a few weeks, put all of eastern Maine under their control.

Maine had been ruled as an internal colony of Massachusetts ever since the 1650s, when their support for the British Crown in the English Civil War versus Parliament allowed the more populous colony to take Maine over.  Bostonians even referred to Maine as the Eastern Territory.

For the past century, there had beed an insurrection against Massachusetts control, led mostly by backcountry towns like Whitefield, Jefferson and Liberty.  Wealthy port towns like Portland, Wiscasset and Castine were against independence for trade reasons.

More to Come.  --Brock-Perry