This is a continuation of the transcription of the recording of the October 21, 1980 meeting of the Alexander-Crawford Historical Society. The speakers during this part of the meeting were Ellen Fenlason, and Jack Dudley. The microfilm of the Alexander Town Records can be rented at the Family History Center - Film #0010465. I have used this film and it is a wonderful record of marriages, births and some deaths. Ellen Fenlason continued and said that it says in the town records that Ruben Tuttle Fenlason "died in an attempt to rescue Joel Gooch from a well." After a little more discussion, the tape stopped and then started again with the following. "This is Jack Dudley talking. At the meetings of the Alexander Historical Society the question of the story of the drowning that took place in a well on Breakneck back 150 years or so ago was discussed a number of times. Various people gave different accounts as they had been handed down over the many years. Harold and Ellen Fenlason of Danforth, Maine did some research on this matter. The following account which I am about to read was found by Mr. and Mrs. Fenlason. This article comes from the Calais Advertiser. The date is August 12, 1852. I will now read the article. ‘Fatal occurrence from inhaling noxious vapor in a well. On Tuesday last an inquest was held by coroner, D. K. Chase upon view of the bodies of John S. Philips, Joel Gooch, and R. T. Fenlason of Alexander which were taken lifeless from the bottom of the well near the dwelling of Mr. Philips. We are indebted to the coroner for the following statement which is the substance of the testimony taken at the inquest. On Monday the 9th, instant, Mr. Philips had the water all bailed out of his well which was about 30 feet deep and had not been used for a year or more, and he went down into the well and cleaned it and put fire to a handful of straw and threw it down to burn up, as he said, the unpleasant smell. On Tuesday morning he went down into the well to get a few pieces of boards which were left in the day before. When he had descended nearly to the bottom, his feet slipped from the rocks and he pitched forward and sunk down into a kind of sitting posture, his head and shoulders resting against the wall. His son, a lad about 12 years old who had watched his father, ran to the house and told his mother that there was trouble with his father in the well. Mrs. P., knowing that Mr. P. had formerly been troubled with fits supposed he was then in one. She went in one direction and sent the boy in another for help. Mr. Joel Gooch, the nearest neighbor, arrived at the well first and went down to assist Mr. Philips. He reached the bottom, took hold of Mr. P., raised him up a little and spoke to him. He then looked up and hallooed to those looking down. Can you hear me? And, repeated the same three times, then uttered a faint groan and sank down powerless. Mr. John Gooch, brother of Joel, arrived next and immediately descended to help his brother. He took hold of him and spoke to him, but found he was just breathing his last, and feeling himself much exhausted, he made haste to get out, and his strength barely supported him until he reached the surface where he fell prostrate on the ground, and was for a time completely exhausted. Mr. Ruben T. Fenlason, nephew of Gooch, came to the spot soon after John had got out and though warned of the danger, he insisted on going down and taking the end of a long rope he went rapidly down stepping on the rocks on each side of the well, made the rope secure around his uncle's body and then began to falter, but was aroused by those at the mouth of the well, and he made an effort to ascend, but his strength failing him when about two thirds of the way up, he pitched forward and fell head downward to the bottom. No hope was now left of getting either of them out alive and no other attempt was made to go down into the well. The body of Gooch was drawn out by the rope which Fenlason had put around him and a grapple was made of an old pitch fork with which the bodies were laid out. A lighted candle was lowered down the well and would burn dimly seven feet down but would go out at nine feet. The jury was composed of John Springer, James S. Bush, Luke Stephenson, J. Stephenson, John Perkins, Robert L. Tyler, and their verdict was that the deceased came to their deaths by inhaling the gas or noxious vapor which had accumulated in the well. Each of the deceased had left a wife and children and many friends to mourn their loss.' The following week this appeared in the Advertiser, Calais Advertiser. ‘In the account we gave of the fatal occurrence in Alexander last week, it was stated that the water in the well had not been used for over a year which was not the fact, as it had been constantly used up to the time they undertook to clean it, and over 20 pailfuls of water had been taken out of it a few minutes before Mr. Philips went down into it.'" (Does anyone know who the J. Stephenson was who served on the jury? There were three J. Stephensons in Alexander at the time, Jesse Stephenson, Sr. and his sons, Jesse, Jr., born in 1821 and James, born in 1828. Luke Stephenson was born in 1825, so any of the three J's might have served.)

Hello, Listers-- I've been wondering if my Machias ancestors (FLANNERY/CROWLEY family) might have emigrated from Ireland (Galway) to Canada before finally settling in Machias. I cannot find any US port passenger lists recording Edward Flannery's passage. We only know he was in Machias by 1848. It has been suggested that he might have come into a Canadian port and found his way down to Maine. Has anyone found a pattern of Irish emigrants who came to a Canadian port (which one(s)?) first and then settled in Machias? I know of the St. Albans Records, but they start much later in the 1800s than I need. I also wonder if anyone doing Machias-related Irish genealogy has family lines that also came from Galway. I understand most emigrants moved to places where there were either friends or family already there before them. Perhaps some other Irish emigrants who settled in Machias came from the same town in Galway as my Edward did. That is my main goal at the present--to find that Galway town. Any help would be much appreciated. Judy W.