Boothbay, Boothbay Harbor, Southport, Edgecomb Vol. 124-No. 21 Lobster Cove Meadow, Part I Barbara M. Rumsely The Boothbay Region Land Trust has acquired the west side of Lobster Cove Meadow, at least most of that part of it between Lobster Cove Road and Route 96. I thought people might be interested in learning a little about the area's history. The south end of the meadow, where it meets Lobster Cove has been attractive to settlers since they started coming here, and no doubt the Indians found the area just as desirable. Mid-1600s Settler At Lobster Cove The Boothbay region mainland was first settled in the mid-1600s, and it was then called Winnegance, meaning "carrying place.'' The best known settler on the east side of the Boothbay peninsula, Henry Champnois, had a parcel seven miles long and about two miles wide. He owned from what is now Ocean Point up to Salt Marsh Cove in Edgecomb, and his land went west from the Damariscotta River to about the middle of present-day Boothbay. Champnois was free to choose any spot on all that land for his first homestead, and he chose Lobster Cove and its meadow. It was the most desirable piece of land in the region to him, and it would have been a prime choice for any settler. It had the necessary elements to start out. A large part of my next book will cover the attractions and historical significance of Lobster Cove and its meadow. Most early settlement sites were on fresh or salt marshes because of the instant benefits they conferred -wildlife and rich organic soil in a naturally-cleared setting. Some points I make in the book are, "Lobster Cove Meadow contained fresh water and a potential source of water power. The verges of the meadow, continually gathering silt, were prime farmland. If the drainage was improved, more field land would appear as the water retreated to the center, with no towering trees to clear. Waterfowl and animals frequented the area, with berries and usable plants, such as cattails, in abundance, as well as the edible grasses for livestock. Lobster Cove was a larder in itself, one of the most desirable places in Winnegance.'' Despite Lobster Cove's desirability, in about 1668 Champnois moved over to the mill pond area of East Boothbay. No matter how terrific Lobster Cove's natural gifts were, the mill pond was a superior mill site, and Champnois did build a grist mill there. However, he did not value Lobster Cove Meadow any less. In his will, he left nearly everything to his son Henry, "Excepting the meadow called the Lobster Cove Meadow and ye planting field Adjoyning to it I Give and bequeath to my Son William.'' Perhaps son William intended to take over the Lobster Cove house and have his homestead there. Though Champnois and his family, like all local English settlers, spent decades creating homesteads in this part of Maine, they were driven out temporarily during King Philip's War in the 1670s and were finally driven out for good in 1689 during King William's War. 1730s and Later Settlers At Lobster Cove Boothbay was permanently resettled in 1730 by a mostly Scotch-Irish little band of colonists. Can you guess which spot was most densely settled upon their arrival? Edmund Brown, David Bryant, John McFarland, and Samuel McCobb all lived near the outlet of Lobster Cove Meadow while everyone else was sparsely scattered along the shore from Oak Point on the west side of the peninsula to Barlows Hill on the east side of the peninsula. McFarland and McCobb were two leading men of the community and may have had first choice of the available sites. John McFarland settled in the area of Nola Herman's new house on the west side of the meadow, while Samuel McCobb was south of him, just a little way back off the water and northwest of Barrett Park. http://boothbayregister.maine.com/2000-05-25/our_past.html DENNY, Rachel (ME) Birth : 23 JUN 1752 Death : 18 SEP 1825 Probably Georgetown, Maine Gender: Female Parents: Father: DENNY, Samuel *(ME?) Mother: LORING or WHITE, Rachel *(ME?) Family: Marriage: 18 FEB 1768 in Georgetown, Bath County, Maine Spouse: MCCOBB, Samuel (ME) Birth : 20 NOV 1744 Georgetown, Bath County, Maine Death : 30 JUL 1791 Georgetown, Bath County, Maine Gender: Male Parents: Father: MCCOBB, James *(ME?) Mother: RODGERS, Beatrice *(ME?) Children: MCCOBB, Denny (ME) MCCOBB, Beatrice (ME) MCCOBB, Rachel Lorning (ME) MCCOBB, Nancy (ME) MCCOBB, John (ME) Birth : 9 FEB 1779 Maine Gender: Male MCCOBB, Jane (ME) MCCOBB, Sally (ME) Birth : 15 MAY 1783 Maine Gender: Female MCCOBB, Parker (ME) http://www.grotonresearch.org/html2/dat01/dat1961.html