built in 1798

Inhabited by the Wakanabi and other native tribes for thousands of years prior to the arrival of Europeans, the Commonwealth of Massachusetts (Maine did not become a state until 1820) sought to settle its northern woods and easternmost coast in the late 18th century by granting white “settlers” 100-acre parcels of land.

Maps reveal that these parcels were largely long, narrow strips that had shoreline at one end and high-ground woodland for pasture and woodlot at the other. As access was often easiest by water, particularly during mud season in the late winter and early spring, these cleared and cultivated lands came to be known as “saltwater farms.”