"A Down-East Yankee from the District of Maine," 
relating the life story of John Neal

Sprague Journal of Maine History
Vol. VIII
Aug., Sept., Oct., 1920
No. 2
page 126


One of the finest and most important things in a literary line
which has been produced by the Maine Centennial this year is the
neat little, well illustrated brochure by Windsor Daggett entitled
"A Down-East Yankee from the District of Maine," which relates
the life-story of John Neal. It is a valuable historical sketch of
an important character in the early days of Maine's statehood.
Mr. Daggett, whose home is now in New York, was formerly of
the faculty of the University of Maine. He is a facile and enter-
taining writer, and in this work has done a great service to the
literature and history of Maine.

It has always seemed to the writer that for some reason, or per-
haps unintentionally, the historical writers of Portland have neg-
lected due and proper reference to John Neal, one of the ablest
and most notable of any of Maine's early writers. He was a
native of that city, his birthplace being on Free street. He came
from venerable Quaker stock. When Maine became a state he
was 27 years old, and was then beginning to write both prose and,
poetry  Professor Daggett says that he was " the first writer
to represent the United States of North America in the British 
quarterlies." John Neal was also as a writer and lecturer one of
the pioneers in the advocacy of woman's suffrage.

In the same book he also tells In a delightful manner the story
of Thomas Shaw of Standish, Maine. He was one of the old
time writers of broadside poetry. He was born in 1753, was in
the Continental Army, and died October 20, 1838.
 
(c) 1998
Courtesy of the Androscoggin Historical Society
<http://www.rootsweb.com/~meandrhs>  
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