John Marsh, Jr., Owner of the Orono Island That Bears His Name Vol 2, page 202 SPRAGUE'S JOURNAL OF MAINE HISTORY John Marsh, Jr., Owner of the Orono Island That Bears His Name (Wayfarer's Notes.) John Marsh, Jr., of Orono, was born in Bellingham, Mass., July 24, 1751. He first went to what is now Orono with Jeremiah Colburn in 1774. He took possession of Arumsunkhungan (now Marsh) Island, Nov. 27, I777. He married Sarah, daughter of Jeremiah Colburn in 1778, and tradition says built a log house in which his oldest son, Samuel, was born, in I779. Marsh was an active patriot in the Revolutionary war. He ac- quired the Indian language and spoke it with great fluency and upon several important occasions acted as interpreter between the Indians and the English. He was at Auk-paque, St. John river, N. B., June 9, 1777. Col. John Allen employed him to carry expresses on the St. John river and to Machias after provisions and men, and as a messenger up and down the St. John river, and also as a pilot to Machias. He was a bearer of despatches from Col. John Allen, the commander of our troops in the eastern part of the state, to the general court. He came by way of Schoodic lakes, thence down the Passadumkeag river and the Penobscot to Penobscot falls. About 1779 the British influence becoming strong on Penobscot river Mr. Marsh took his wife and son and went to Camden where his second son Benjamin was born, Oct. 29, 1780. He returned to Orono in 1783, and July 8 bought Marsh Island of the Indians for 30 bushels of good corn. In 1784 he agreed with other men to build a saw mill, the first in the town and the first on the river above Bangor. In 1787 Jeremiah Colburn have his deposition relating to the mill, a copy of which I give: "COMMMONWEALTH OF MASSACHUSETTS, PENOBSCOT April 23, 1787. The Deposition of Jeremiah Colburn of Penobscot River in the County of Lincoln, Gentleman, on oath testified and saith, that on or about the 28th day of November, I777, John Marsh of Penobscot, in the County aforesaid, Entered on an Island called and known here by the name of Marsh's Island and took up and settled on a Certain Lot of Land for A Farm for himself; JOHN MARSH, JR., OWNER OF ORONO ISLAND 203 which lot included a mill Privilege. That on or about the last of May, I784, Messrs. Levy Bradley, Joseph Moore, and Daniel Jemison, all of Penobscot in said County; Did then and there agree with the said John Marsh to Build a Saw mill upon the said Priviliege included in within the Lot which the said John had Settle as aforesaid. And the said Levy, Joseph and Daniel, Did also agree with the said Marsh to Relinquish to him one Quarter Part of one saw, immediately after finished in the mill which they so built, upon Conditions that the said Marsh should Relinquish 10 Acres of Land included within said Lot so as to include said mill Privilege and upon tile former conditions being fulfilled upon the said Levy, Joseph and Daniel's Part. Then the said Marsh was to give A Deed of said 10 acres as soon as he obtained a Deed from Government. JEREMIAH COLBURN. Lincoln, ss.-Penobscot, April 23, I787. Then Jererniah Colburn Personally Appeared and made oath to the above Deposition. Before me, JONATHAN EDDY, justice of the Peace." ATTEMPTS TO Get ISLAND From Him. Several attempts were made to dispossess him of the island on the ground that he cheated the Indians, but I do not see from reading all the evidence that such was the fact. In 1793 he sent the following petition to the general court: The Honorable the Senate and House of Representatives in General Court Assembled: The Petition of John Marsh, I Humbly showeth, That your late Petitioner for a Number of Years Resided and Hunted with tile Penobscot Tribe of Indians and by that means become perfectly acquainted with their Language previous to the late war with Great Briton, and had left said Tribe and settled on the River Sheadore in the Province of Canada, in a very comfortable and advantageous way of Trade; and that on the arrival of the American Army under 'the Command of Gen. Arnold your Petitioner Compeled from a regard to his Country and the Solicitation and even Command of said General, to again Quit a Regular life and business and take upon him the disagreeable way of savage living to serve as a linguister during the Blockade of the City of Quebec, by which means your Petitioner was obliged to quit the Country and intended, and in fact had again be,-tin in Business at St. Johns, but the said Indian agent perswaided him to Quit that place for an Island situate and lying in the River Penobscot and adjacent to the Penobscot Old Town Island and in the year 1777 Your Petitioner took possession of said Island and in the year one thousand seven hundred and eighty three actually received a Deed 204 SPRAGUE'S JOURNAL OF MAINE HISTORY :thereof from the Chief of said Tribe, not in the least doubting their right of conveyance, where your Petitioner has resided to the Present day. But instead of enjoying in Quietude his possession your Petitioner is interupted by others coming on in open defiance of an Authority or the Title of your Petitioner. And whereas Your Petitioner was ever a loyal subject and ever exerted himself to the best of his abilities in his capacity for the benefit of the Commonwealth and during the said war performed divers services for which he never received any compensation, and even to the present day is frequently called from place to place to interprt for them and likewise continually trouble with them at his own House on every occasion when they think themselves injured or want to make any Bargain with the settlers on said River without any fee or reward. Your Petitioner therefore Hum- bly prays your Honors to take his circumstances into your Wise considera- tion and confirm him in his title to said island (accompanying this Petition) or other way releave Your Petitioner as in your Wisdom may seem Meet, as in Duty Bound will ever Pray. (signed) JOHN MARSH. Penobscot, Oct. 20, I793. Note on the back of the original document. "2,000 Acres of land containing in Marsh Island. Most of the land of ordinary Quality." In I795 the court passed a resolve in his favor: "Resolve grant- ing an Island in Maine to John Marsh, passed June 24, I795." "On the Petition of John Marsh, of Marsh Island, in the County of Hancock, praying for compensation of said Island; Resolved, that all the right, title, interest, claim and estate which this com- monwealth now have in an,d to the island aforesaid, encompassed by Penobscot River and its branches, near Indian Old Town, being the same island on which the said John Marsh now dwells, which contains about two thousand acres, be the same more or less, be and hereby is remissed, released and forever quit claimed to the said John Marsh and to his heirs and assigns forever." The island contained about 5,000 acres and comprised Great Works and the major part of the city of Old Town. SOLD A PART IN 1796. June 4, 1796, Marsh sold a part of the island for $1,1O0 to Dr. Elihu Dwight of South Hadley, Mass., described in the deed as follows: "Part of the land I now live on beginning and bounding as follows: at a stake and stone on the east side of the Marsh Island JOHN MARSH, JR., OWNER OF ORONO ISLAND 205 and the most northerly part of the land which I now improve; then run a due west line across said Island to the river; thence north- westerly on the bank of the river to the most northwardly part of said Island; thence southwardly as the river runs on, the east side of said Island to the first mentioned bounds."-Hancock Records, vol. 4, P. II2. His wife Sarah signed the deed. This sale took about all of Marsh Island except the homestead and farm of Mr. Marsh. When Old Town was set off from Orono in 184o the north line of the Marsh place or farm was probably the south line of Old Town, the Marsh tract remaining in Orono. Mr. Marsh married Sarah, daughter of Jeremiah Colburn, 1778. She was born Oct. I, 1795. He died on the Vinal farm, 1814. The widow -died May 26, 1841. Their children were, probably:- 1. Samuel, married Jane Oliver of Orono. He died 1810. They had four daughters. 2. Benjamin, born in Camden, Oct. 29, 178o; unmarried; died in Orono. 1863. 3. Ziba, m. Sarah, daughter of Benjamin Colburn, of Pittston. They had 12 Children. He died in 1843. 4. John H., m. Bertha Freese, of Sunkhaize in 1813. He died in 1852. They had five daughters and seven sons. 5. William, born 1789; Methodist clergyman; married and bad five chil- dren. Died in Canada in 1865. 6. Jeremiah, born March 15, 1791; Methodist clergyman; married and had eleven children. 7. Polly, married Matthew Oliver of Orono; published Feb. 11, 1811. They had nine children. 8. Sarah, married Samuel Stevens, of Sunkhaize, 1816. 9. Aigial, married Phineas Vinal; published Sept. 22, i8i5. They had eight sons and three daughters. 10. Elijah, born March A, 1801 ; married Mary Wiley, and had nine chil- dren. II. Elizabeth, married Stephen Bussell. They had six children. Our country-whether bounded by the St. John's and the Sabine, or however otherwise bounded of described, and be the measure- ments more or less;-still our country, to be cherished in all our hearts, and to be defended by all our hands. ROBT. C. WINTHROP. Toast at Faneuil Hall. July 4, 1845. (c) 1998 Courtesy of the Androscoggin Historical Society ************************************************* * * * * NOTICE: Printing the files within by non-commercial individuals and libraries is encouraged, as long as all notices and submitter information is included. Any other use, including copying files to other sites requires permission from the submitters PRIOR to uploading to any other sites. We encourage links to the state and county table of contents. * * * * The USGenWeb Project makes no claims or estimates of the validity of the information submitted and reminds you that each new piece of information must be researched and proved or disproved by weight of evidence. It is always best to consult the original material for verification.