Hobbstown Township

Spencer or Hardscrabble Mountain from Spencer Road in Hobbstown Township (2016)

This township (T4 R6 BKP  WKR) in Somerset County contains most of Spencer Lake, along with the 2400-foot Spencer Mountain west of the Lake, and the 2300-foot Hardscrabble Mountain east of the Lake. With no village settlement, it is primarily an area of woods and woods roads. In the early 20th century, Spencer Lake Camps…

Prisoners of War in Maine

The Spencer Lake camp was built to accommodate 250 prisoners, though it later had to handle 310 men.  Schoolchildren from Forest Hills School 8th Grade Class of 2007 for their service learning project in nearby Jackman have placed a plaque marking the spot near an apparent cooking structure. (See photo above.) Maine’s forest and potato…

Houlton

In 1828 a military post was established and the military road to supply the post was completed in 1832. The garrison stayed until the Webster-Ashburton treaty was completed in 1842. See photos. Served by the New Brunswick and Canada Railway as late as 1886. By 1894 the new Bangor and Aroostook Railroad connected the town to central Maine. The “Houlton Band” of the Maliseet Indians has its tribal offices near the Canadian border.