General Samuel Veazie (1787-1868) was born in Portland. After trying several ventures, including being a sailor, then owning a ship, he moved to Topsham. While there he purchased the “Androscoggin boom,” a system of guiding and sorting logs floated down the river.
Veazie participated in the War of 1812, reaching the rank of General. After the war he began purchasing mills in the Bangor-Old Town area. He owned the saw mills and most of the property in the town that bears his name: Veazie. The General also owned several railroads in the area and established the Veazie Bank in 1834.
A pioneer railroad operator, he purchased the narrow gauge Bangor, Milford, and Old Town Railroad in 1854, later known as the Veazie Railroad Company.
In 1866 the federal government passed an act taxing currency issued by state banks. Veazie refused to pay, but in the U.S. Supreme Court case Veazie Banks v. Fenno, Congress’s authority was sustained and the power of state banks to issue currency essentially ended.
The General died in Veazie on March 12, 1868.
Additional resources
Chadbourne, Ava Harriet. Maine Place Names and The Peopling of its Towns
Hamilton, Jean. History of Veazie, Maine. 1978? http://www.veazie.net/Public_Documents/VeazieME_WebDocs/HistoryofVeazie.pdf (accessed April 18, 2012)
Isaacson, Dorris. Maine:A Guide Downeast.