Exploring Portland, Maine #2: Maine Historical Society: When Maine became a state

In Part 2 of our exploration of Portland, Maine, we're taking you to the Maine Historical Society, located in the downtown area and right next to the Poet Henry Wadsworth Longfellow's home (that you read about yesterday). In today's blog you'll learn about Maine's history and see a Revolutionary war cannon.

WHAT WAS MAINE KNOWN AS BEFORE IT BECAME A STATE? 

Before becoming a state, Maine was known as the District of Maine, functioning as an overseas territory and later an annexed territory of the Commonwealth of Massachusetts. Following the initial 17th-century European explorations, the territory went through several name changes before its annexation by Massachusetts in the 1650s:  

* Acadia: The first colonies were established by French settlers in 1604 led by du Guast and Samuel de Champlain. They called the colony Acadia, and the land claimed for France stretched from northern Maine to what is now lower Quebec, Canada.  

* Province of Maine: The official name given by early English land patents (first recorded in 1622) granted to Sir Ferdinando Gorges. 

* New Somersetshire: A short-lived territory created north of the Piscataqua River in the 1630s  

(During this time: By 1634, the first saw mills were established and wood would be the major contributor to the economy for the next 200 years. Everyone needed lumber, from homesteads and towns to shipyards. Potatoes were the next boost to Maine’s economy. 

*Massachusetts Bay Colony of England - In 1652, Maine was included as part of the Massachusetts Bay Colony of England. There were many battles for control between France and Britain over the years. But England remained in control for almost 170 years.

WHEN MAINE BECAME A STATE -Maine officially became a state on March 15, 1820, entering the Union as the 23rd state.Prior to this date, Maine was a district that belonged to the Commonwealth of Massachusetts. Its separation and admission to the Union were made possible as part of the Missouri Compromise, which allowed Maine to enter as a free state while maintaining the balance of power between free and slave states.

CANNON FROM THE USS WARREN SHIP - USS Warren was a 32-gun frigate of the Continental Navy. She was one of the thirteen frigates authorized by the Continental Congress on December 13, 1775. 

With half her main armament being 18-pounders, Warren was more heavily armed than a typical 32-gun frigate of the period. She was named for Joseph Warren on June 6, 1776. 

The USS Warren was burned to prevent capture in the ill-fated Penobscot Expedition in 1779.

THE SIX-POUNDER CANNON - The cannon in the museum was recovered in the Penobscot River near the hull of the sunken USS Warren. The cannon bears the Massachusetss seal, which depicts an Indigenous person holding a bow and arrow. Although the cannor's caster is unrecorded, it's attributed to Boston's Paul Revere (the midnight rider who shouted "the British are coming!").

The cannon is called the "six-pounder" because of it's 6 pund cannonball. The cannon on display in the museum was mounted on a reproduction of a 2-wheeled carriage (because the original would have fallen apart under water)

IN TOMORROW'S BLOG- Visiting the Portland Head Light (Lighthouse)