By Tim Badgley
U.S. Sen. Susan Collins meets brothers Benjamin (center) and Nicholas Hitchcock, sporting Monhegan Quadricentennial T-shirts, during the celebration Aug. 6. (Tim Badgley photo) |
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Bedecked in the theme colors of the Monhegan Quadricentennial, Heather and Jake Koerber Nunes, of Boston, watch the parade Aug. 6. (Tim Badgley photo) |
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U.S. Sen. Angus King speaks at the Monhegan Quadricentennial Aug 6. (Tim Badgley photo) |
Historians, musicians, and county, state, and federal elected officials participated in the final celebratory event of Monhegan Island’s three-day quadricentennial celebration
Aug. 6, recognizing the 1614 settlement of Monhegan when Captain John Smith landed on the island to establish a fishing colony.
A parade starting in Lobster Cove led a crowd of more than 400 to the island’s schoolhouse, where the concluding convocation was held.
Year-round residents, summer people and day trippers lined the length of Main Street with many sporting the theme colors of black, orange, and white.
Boston resident Jake Koerber Nunes wore a sport coat striped with the three colors that he had borrowed from his father.
“I don’t know why these colors were chosen for the quadricentennial,” Nunes said. “My dad wore this for his 50th class reunion at Princeton University.”
Standing a few feet away was internationally renowned artist Jamie Wyeth, decked out in knickerbockers and knee socks in a palate of his own choosing and talking
with Tom Chappell, Tom’s of Maine founder, about the festive ball held the previous evening on the lawn of the Monhegan House.
Chappell said he saw the dance floor collapse, but no one was injured. “They were stomping up and down so hard, the floor was moving like an accordion,” Chappell
said.
Wyeth said he did a painting of the island’s schoolhouse during Monhegan’s 350th anniversary. “I called it ‘Sesquicentennial.’ I was 18 then and I’m 68 now,” Wyeth
said.”Oddly enough I was in Beijing last year and they had it all over the place there.”
The parade route ended at the Monhegan library, adjacent to the school, where the postmasters of three towns were conducting a brisk business of hand-canceling
letters and postcards with a special quadricentennial postmark.
Stationed at the small rise between the library and school were Sen. Chris Johnson, D-Somerville, and Rep. Mick Devin, D-Newcastle, who, along with Senators Susan
Collins and Angus King, greeted and shook hands with parade goers as they filed onto the school grounds.
“The tremendous participation by the islanders in celebrating the 400th anniversary is really impressive. I think every single person on the island has played some
role in bringing this celebration to fruition,” Collins said. “One of the reasons our islands are such strong communities is shown by the level of participation in this event
today.”
Johnson said he and Devin together learned of the planned festivities during a visit to Monhegan more than a year ago.
“To me it’s not just a celebration of how long and storied the history of Monhegan is but how the island existence remains so special,” Johnson said. “They want it
to remain special for future generations.”
The convocation at the schoolhouse with keynote addresses by both Collins and King began at 2 p.m.
Collins said, just as foretold in Captain John Smith’s log, the people of Monhegan, in their superior judgment, courage, honesty, constancy, diligence, and industry
have enhanced the natural beauty of the island. “It represents something more profound than crashing surf on rocky shores,” Collins said.
King said Monhegan has been a haven for explorers, fishermen, and tourists and continues to attract artists and other visitors seeking to experience the island’s
magic for themselves.
“Monhegan is a true coastal treasure and I was honored to join the island community today in marking this historic occasion,” King said.
Historical perspectives of Monhegan were provided in presentations by Maine State Historian Earle G. Shettleworth Jr. and John Bear Mitchell, of the University of
Maine Wabanaki Center.
Shettleworth read, from his extensive collection of postcards a selection written from Monhegan a century ago in 1914.
A card written Aug. 5, 1914, referring to the tercentennial, read: “I am in bed it is so cold today. I can see the schoolhouse with the platform and the triumphal
arch and the flag flying in the wind. Tomorrow will be the great day.”
The Monhegan School school float in the Monhegan Quadricentennial parade Aug. 6. (Tim Badgley photo) |
Speaking in the ancient language of his own Penobscot ancestors, John Bear Mitchell, of the University of Maine Wabanaki Center, offered a prayer he then translated to English
that all assembled would keep sacred the shared journey of life.
“For the Wabanaki people – the Abenaki, the Passamoquoddy, the Penobscot, the Micmac, and the Maliseet – this is a day of reflection, not of negativity, but of
camaraderie and partnership,” Mitchell said. “I stand before you and ask for your assistance to make the next 100 years be productive in which we work together. Unity is as
necessary as the air we breathe.”
Mitchell said he was grateful the celebration allowed “the voice of the Wabanaki to once again echo on Monhegan Island.”
Sentiments of congratulation from the Lincoln County Commissioners were presented by Commissioners Hamilton Meserve and Mary Trescot. A similar presentation from the
Maine Legislature was presented by Johnson and Devin. Both were received by Monhegan Plantation First Assessor Tara Hire.
“Monhegan is a gem – ecologically, environmentally, historically, archaeologically, and, of course, culturally,” Devin said during the presentation.
Hire thanked the dignitaries for their messages. Following the ceremony, she credited fellow Quadricentennial Committee members Jen Pye, Emily Grey, and Monhegan
Museum Director Ed Deci for overseeing the event.
“These three really brought it all together,” Hire said. “Lots and lots of volunteers helped to pull it off. Everyone pitched in.”
The ceremony was brought to a close when U.S. Rep. Chellie Pingree unveiled the plaque marking the island’s 400th anniversary.
“It’s amazing to think of how many lives this island has touched and inspired leading up to today. Monhegan is truly an iconic Maine landmark and continues to
represent our state’s unique way of life,” Pingree said. “As an island dweller myself, I couldn’t be more pleased to be a part of this moment in its history.”
