CHAPTER II.
THE BEGINNINGS OF COLONIAL MAINE.
GOSNOLD AND PRING.
Thus, when the seventeenth century opened, England had made a beginning in the endeavor to secure a foothold upon the Atlantic coast of North America. Further endeavor in this direction, however, was preceded by an added effort to discover a more direct route to India than that hitherto followed by way the Cape of Good Hope. A northwest passage thitherward, as already indicated, had been the dream of English navigators in the preceding century. Such a route, if discoverable, would secure to England most desirable commercial advantages; and though the attempts already made by enterprising explorers had been attended by great hardships and ill success - the icy barriers of the north, closing as with adamant, the waterway - the possibilities of achievement, strangely enough, were still alluring.
GEORGE WAYMOUTH OF COCKINGTON, ENGLAND.
THE EAST INDIA COMPANY.
Among others, George Waymouth of Cockington, a small village, now a part of Torquay, on the southwest coast of England, not far from Plymouth, England, had caught the spirit of the new era, and was busy with considerations having reference to such an enterprise. In a communication, dated July 24, 1601, addressed to the "Worshipful Fellowship of the Merchants of London, trading into the East Indies,"
now familiarly known as the "East India Company", he presented his views with reference to an added search for such a route to the distant East.
QUEEN ELIZABETH.
His suggestions met with approval, and Waymouth was placed in command of an expedition for such added exploration. The interest of Queen Elizabeth was enlisted in the undertaking. Bearing a commendatory letter1
footnote
1. This letter, written upon vellum, with an illuminated border upon a red ground, and signed by Queen Elizabeth, was found in London, in the early part of the last century, in tearing away an old in a house in which repairs were in progress. January 28, 1841, Sir Henry Ellis laid the letter before the Society of Antiquaries in London, and the letter, with a facsimile of the the Queen's signature and also of the Seal attached, was printed in the proceedings of the Society's meeting. The original letter, unfortunately, has disappeared, but a reprint from the published copy will be found in Rosier's Relation of Waymouth's Voyage to the Coast of Maine, 1605 - printed by the Gorges Society, 17-20.
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THE BEGINNINGS OF COLONIAL MAINE.
addressed by her to the "Right High, Mighty and Invincible Emperor of Cathaye," Waymouth, with two vessels, sailed from the Thames River, May 2, 1602. In this quest, however, he was no more successful than his predecessors. Barriers of ice, in regions of intolerable cold, still closed the way; and though on his return to England, the Fellowship cleared him of all blame in connection with the expedition, and it was decided that he should be placed in command of a second venture, the proposed voyage was not made, and the Fellowship abandoned all further efforts in that direction.
But endeavors with reference to English colonization in the new world were not abandoned. Indeed, already, both in London and in seaport towns like Bristol and Plymouth, England, there were those who were thoughtfully pondering problems connected with American commercial and colonial enterprises. Spanish and French interests had long been permanently represented there. English fishermen, though not in large numbers, had verified the reports that reached them concerning the abundance of fish on the American coast; and English merchant adventurers were beginning to bestir themselves because of the prospect of the larger fish supplies their vessels could easily obtain in American waters.
Also, there were those who still were animated with the high hope that England would avail itself of rights secured by Cabot's discovery, and would seize, before it was too late, the vast empire to which the
American coast opened the way.
This awakening of new interest in American concerns was in evidence even before Waymouth set sail on his ill-fated expedition. Prominent among those who were busying themselves with
"A new England, across the sea."
Henry Wriothesley, Earl of Southampton, England.
CAPTAIN BARTHOLOMEW GOSNOLD &
CAPTAIN BARTHOLOMEW GILBERT,
SON OF sir Humphrey Gilbert.
Pg. 19
such concerns, was Henry Wriothesley, the Earl of Southampton.1 At that time, he was in prison for supposed connection with the conspiracy of Essex.2 He seems, however, to have been thinking not so much of affairs in England, as of a new England across the sea. As a result of his efforts largely, an expedition was made ready, having reference to the beginnings of a colonial enterprise on the American coast. Its command was given to Captain Bartholomew Gosnold, who is said to have seen service already with Sir Walter Ralegh, in one or more expeditions to American. With him, was associated Captain Bartholomew Gilbert, a son of Sir Humphrey Gilbert. Details with reference to the preparation and plans of the voyage are lacking. The small ship, named "The Concord."
Evidently they were not elaborate. A beginning, however, was to be made, and for this purpose, a small vessel, named the Concord, was secured for the purpose, and in it Gosnold sailed from Falmouth, England, on March 25, 1602. Thirty-two persons, eight of them mariners, constituted the whole company. Of this number, twelve purposed to return to England with the vessel, at the close of the intended exploration, and the rest were to remain in the country for "population."
The English voyagers of the preceding century made their way to the American coast, either by the islands of Newfoundland, and
footnotes:
1. Born October 6, 1573, he took his degree of bachelor of arts at Cambridge, England, in 1589 - he planned George Waymouth's voyage to the coast of Maine in 1605; in April, 1610, he aided in sending
Henry Hudson to the Northwest; in 1614, he subscribed �100 toward sending Harley to the New England coast; November 3, 1620, he became a member of the New England Council. He died November 10, 1624.
DEVEREUX.
2. The reference to Robert Devereux, the 2nd Earl of Essex. For many years he was a favorite of Queen Elizabeth, and he held high appointments, political and military, but his undertakings were not always successful.
As Lord Lieutenant of Ireland in 1599, he was severely criticised, and on his return, he was deprived of his dignities. His attempt to incite an insurrection in London, in the hope that as a result, the Queen would be compelled to take his part in his conflict with his enemies, led to his arrest, imprisonment and trial for high treason. He was condemned but Queen Elizabeth delayed to sign the death warrant, in the hope that he would ask for pardon. He did not, and he was beheaded on February 25, 1601.
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THE BEGINNINGS OF COLONIAL MAINE.
BRERETON.
Forty-three degrees latitude - The southern coast of Maine.
Cape Breton, or by those of the West Indies. Gosnold, avoiding Cabot's course, and also that of the Ralegh expeditions to "Virginia", aimed by a more direct route to reach "the north part of Virginia". In the early days of the voyage, the wind was unfavorable for his purpose, but he succeeded in reaching the American coast on May 14th. Brereton, who was one of the company, and who wrote a narrative of the expedition,1 has little to say concerning the landfall, but he states the important fact that it was "in the latitude of forty-three degrees", accordingly at some point on the southern coast of Maine.
THE SOUTHERN COAST OF MAINE.
"North Land, Maine."
"Savage Rock, Maine"
Archer, who also accompanied the expedition, and published a relation concerning it,2 describes briefly the scene that met the eyes of Gosnold and his associates as they approached the coast:
"The fourteenth (day) about six in the morning, we descried land that lay north (etc) - the northerly part, we called North Land, which to another rock upon the same, lying twelve leagues West, that we called "Savage Rock" (because the savages first showed themselves there)."
Or, Cape Porpoise and Cape Neddock.
By some, the "North Land" and "Savage Rock" of Archer's narrative, have been identified with Cape Porpoise and Cape Neddock.
WHAT THEY DISCOVERED BECAME PORTLAND AND KITTERY, MAINE.
And this identification, as exceedingly probable, has received very general support. But identification from such meagre details is exceedingly difficult. It is enough, perhaps, to know that the fair prospect which burst upon Gosnold and his fellow voyagers as they caught their first glimpses of the American coast, and were thrilled with excited interest - was some part of Maine territory between what became Portland and Kittery, Maine.
CAPE COD.
Proceeding southward along the coast, Gosnold passed Cape Cod, taking there, "great store of cod-fish"2, says Archer, "for
footnotes:
1. Brereton's narrative is the earliest printed work relating to New England. Two editions of it were published in 1602, the first containing twenty-four pages and the second containing forty-eight pages. The first of these editions will be found in "Early English and French Voyages, 329-340. The other is in the third series of the Massachusetts Historical Society's Collection, VIII, 83-103, and in the Winship's "Sailors Narratives of New England Voyages."
2. Archer's relatiion is reprinted in the Massachusetts Historical Society's Collection, VIII, 72-81.
3. Brereton, in his narrative, says concerning the abundance of fish upon the American coast: "We had pestered our ships so with cod fish that we....(continued bottom of p. 21 below)
Pg. 21
GOSNOLD AND PRING.
MARTHA'S VINEYARD.
which we altered the name and called it "Cape Cod." At length, the voyagers came to an island which Gosnold named "Martha's Vineyard".
CUTTYHUNK.
Here, turning in toward the mainland, he brought the voyage to an end, at an island which, in honor of the Queen, he named it Elizabeth's Isle. This is the present Cuttyhunk - the earlier name having become the designation of the group of islands to which Cuttyhunk belongs. Here preparations for a permanent colony were made by the erection of a storehouse and a fort.
SASSAFRAS.
For the homeward voyage of the ship, Concord - such commodities were secured as sassafras1, cedar and furs obtained by traffic with the Indians. But when these new-world products had been secured and were onboard, and the vessel was ready to sail, those of the little company who had agreed to remain in the country as colonists, refused to stay; and the settlement which had been so happily founded, and represented on the part of Gosnold and some of his associates so much of heartfelt desire and hope, was reluctantly abandoned. This was the one great disappointment of the voyage.
Gosnold reached Exmouth, England on July 23. His failure to plant a colony at Elizabeth's Isle he keenly felt; but the reports he brought conerning the country and the great value of its coast fisheries furnished the needed proof that the new world only awaited colonization in order to add to England's commercial
footnotes continued - threw numbers of them over-board again; and surely, I am persuaded, that in the months of March, April and May, there is upon this coast, better fishing, and in as great plenty, as is in Newfoundland; for thesculles of mackeral, herring, cod and other fish that we daily saw as we went and came from the shore, were wonderful; and besides, the places where we took these cods (and might in a few days have laden our ship) were in seven fathom of water, and within less than a degree of the shore, where, in Newfoundland, they fish in forty or fifty fathom of water, and far off."
SASSAFRAS.
footnote
1. At that time sassafras was highly valued for its medicinal qualities. "The powder of sassafras, in twelve
hours cured one of our company that had taken a great surfeit."Archer's Relation of Gosnold's Voyage - Massachusetts Historical Society Collection, 3rd Series, VII, 77, 78. This new world "commodity" now placed upon the market in such large quantity, greatly lowered its price. Hitherto, it had sold in London as high as 20 shillings per pound.
Pg. 22
THE BEGINNINGS OF COLONIAL MAINE.
activity and wealth. The relations of Brereton and Archer, recording events connected with the expediton, were published soon after Gosnold's return. These narratives, with their interesting details, were eagerly caught up and widely read. Hakluyt,1 a prebendary of St. Augustine's Cathedral Church at Bristol, England, was so strongly impressed in reading these glowing descriptions of new-world experiences, that he called the attention of the principal merchants of Bristol to the "many profitable and reasonable inducements" which America offered to English trade and colonization; and so by his own noble spirit, led the way to new and larger endeavors in which Bristol was to have a most honorable part.
This was not the first time in which Hakluyt had conferred with Bristol merchants concerning American interests. In 15822, Walsingham, Queen Elizabeth's efficient Secretary of State, wrote to Thomas Aldworth,2 then the Mayor of Bristol, England, informing him of Sir
footnote.1 Hakluyt was born in 1552 or 1553 and was educated at Westminster School and Christ Church, Oxford, where he took his degree of A. B., in 1574. His interest in maritime enterprises was manifested early in his career. He published his "Divers Voyages" in 1582. In the following year he was made Chaplain of the English Ambassador at Paris, France. His Discourse on Western Planting, was written in 1584 at the request of Sir Walter Raleigh, but was first printed in 1877 as the 2nd volume of the Maine Historical Society's Documentary History of Maine. His great work, The Principall Navigations, Voyages and Discoveries of the English Nation, etc., was published in 1589, and an enlarged edition in three volumes in 1598-1600. He became the Prebendary of Bristol Cathedral, England, in 1585 and Prebendary of Westminster in 1605. He died at Eaton in Herefordshire, England on November 23, 1616, and was buried in Westminster Abbey on November 26, 1616.
footnote2. Thomas Aldworth was Mayor of Bristol, England in 1582, and again in 1592. He was one of the leading merchants of Bristol and he took an active part in whatever concerned the prosperity of the community and of the nation. He died February 25, 1598 and was buried in St. Mark's, or the Lord Mayor's Chapel, originally the Chapel of Gaunt's Hospital, founded about 1325. The Chapel contains a carved freestone Gothic arched tomb and monument to the memory of Thomas Aldworth and his son John Aldworth, the two being represented in effigy, kneeling, the son behind the father, their hands uplited in the attitude of devotion. Both are in the costume of the period, Thomas Aldworth in an alderman's gown. John Aldworth died December 18th, 1615, aged fifty-one years. That part of the chapel was in process of restoration in 1912, and was visited by the writer.
Thomas Aldworth was the father of Robert Aldworth, who, with Giles Elbridge, was an early owner of Monhegan and secured large territorial interests on the mainland.
Pg. 23
GOSNOLD AND PRING.
Humphrey Gilbert's proposed expedition to the American coast, and suggesting Bristol's co-operation in an enterprise that promised so much with reference to national expansion and national glory. He also suggested that Aldworth should consult with Hakluyt, already well-known on account of his deep, enthusiastic interest in western planting, and who was familiar with Gilbert's plans. Aldworth at once acted upon Walsingham's suggestion.
Hakluyt's assistance was secured and with his aid, Aldworth obtained the approval of the merchants of Bristol in the proposed undertaking. In his reply to Walsingham, Aldworth wrote:
"There was eftsoons set down by men's own hands, then present, one thousand marks and upward, which seem if it should not suffice, we doubt not but otherwise to furnish out for this western discovery, a ship of three score and a bark of forty tons to be left in the country."
Gilbert's failure at Newfoundland, and later the failure of Sir Walter Ralegh at Roanoke Island, lessened greatly, if they did not for the time entirely destroy, the interest of the merchant venturers of Bristol, in American enterprises. But the return of the ship, Concord, with its cargo of merchantable commodities and the enthusiastic reports made by Gosnold and his companions concerning fishery interests in American waters, evidently awakened in these businessmen of Bristol, England, new hopes concerning the advantages for commercial enterprise which the new world offered; and Hakluyt succeeded in his effort to induce his Bristol friends to become "the chief furtherers" in a new expedition in which because of lessons learned from the failures of the past, it might reasonably be expected that better results would follow.
For some reason unknown, the command of the expedition was not given to Gosnold. It is certain, however, that it was not because of any dissatisfaction with him on the part of the chief
ROBERT ALDWORTH & GILES ALDWORTH EARLY OWNERS OF MONHEGAN, MAINE.
footnote: That part of the Chapel was in the process of restoration in 1912, but was visited by the writer. Thomas Aldworth was the father of Robert Aldworth, who, with Giles Elbridge, was an early owner of Monhegan, Maine, and secured large interests on the mainland.
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THE BEGINNINGS OF COLONIAL MAINE.
CAPTAIN MARTIN PRING.
promoters of the venture. Gosnold's subsequent career furnishes the strongest possible evidence with reference to his fitness for important commands. But a competent navigator for the expedition was found in Captain Martin Pring, who was born in 1580, probably near Awliscombe, Deveon, England and who, at the time, accordingly, was only 23 years of age. Concerning Pring's earlier career, we have no information; but the fact that at this early age he was regarded by the merchants of Bristol, England, as "a man very sufficient for the place" is ample proof that already, he had exhibited qualities as a seaman that attested his fitness for such service.
ROBERT SALTERNE.
Robert Salterne, who, as pilot, accompanied Gosnold in the successful voyage of 1602, was made Pring's assistant.
John Whitson, Mayor of Bristol, England.
From Salterne's brief narration of the voyage1 we learn that Hakluyt's "inducements and persuasions" in
connection with the new undertaking, were influential with John Whitson, Mayor of Bristol, who, with the assistance of the aldermen and "most of the merchants of the city," raised the one thousand pounds required for the equipment of the expedition.
SHIPS:
THE SPEEDWELL AND THE DISCOVERER.
Two vessels were made ready for Pring's use, the Speedwell of about fifty tons, and the Discoverer of twenty-six tons. forty-three men and boys made up the ship's company. The vessels were loaded with "light merchandise thought fit to trade with the people of the country", and on April 10, 1603, Pring set
sail from Milford Haven, England. His course across the Atlantic was probably suggested by Gosnold, and Pring's landfall in latitude 43, according to the narrative which Hakluyt secured from Pring, could not have been far from that of his immediate predessor on the American
Footnote.
1. This narrative, Captain John Smith, inserted in his True Travels, Adventures and Observations, reprinted in 1819 from the London edition of 1629, I, 108, 109.
2. It is thought that the ship, Speedwell, may have been included in Drake's fleet in 1588, inasmuch as a vessel of the same name, and having the same tonnage, had a part in the fight in the harbor of Cadiz in 1587, and also in the conflict with the Spanish Armada in 1588. Many merchant vessels were in the national service at that time.
3. A haven on the southwestern part of the coast of Wales.
Pg. 25
GOSNOLD AND PRING.
PENOBSCOT BAY
coast. In that narrative mention is made of islands in connection with the landfall, and the relation adds: "One of them we named Fox Island, because we found those kind of beasts thereon." As the islands east of the southern part of Penobscot Bay have long been known as the Fox Islands, it has been inferred that Pring's landfall is to be found at this part of the Maine coast.
The latitude of the landfall, however, is not favorable to this inference; but inasmuch as Pring, after proceeding in toward the mainland, ranged to the northward as far as latitude 43-1/2, it is probable that Pring passed up the coast as far as the Fox Islands. Certainly he must have sailed along a large part of the coast of Maine. Not finding sassafras in his northward progress Pring turned about and shaped his course for Savage Rock "discovered the year before by Captain Gosnold", and later, bearing into the great "Gulf" which "Gosnold over-shot the year before", he landed in a certain bay which he named "Whitson Bay"1 in honor of the Mayor of Bristol, England. The Simancas map of 1610,2 which indicates a large part of the North American Atlantic coast line, attaches the designation "Whitson's Bay" to what is now known as Massachusetts Bay, and gives to the northernmost part of Cape Cod the designation "Whitson's Head".3 Not far from his land-
Footnotes.
1. Early English and French Voyages, 345.
2. This map, which has a place in Alexander Brown's Genesis of the United States (I, facing 456), is said to have been prepared by a surveyor whom King James I sent to Virginia for this purpose in 1610. It evidently embodies the English maps of White, Gosnold, Pring, Waymouth and others. Brown thinks it was compiled and drawn either by Robert Tyndall or by Captain Powell. It was discovered in the library at Simancas, Spain, by Dr. J. L.M. Curry, while he was Envoy Extraordinary and the Minister plenipotentiary of the United Statesd at the Court of Spain, 1885-1888. The map had disappeared in England, and, as Mr. Brown says, "It is curious that it should be first published in the strange country which it attempted to delineate". The historical value of this map is very great.
3. John Whitson was worthy of this recognition by Pring and his associates. He was not only one of the most proinent of the merchants of Bristol, England, but exerted a strong influence in civic relations. He became the Mayor of Bristol, England in 1603 and held that office also in 1615. He was a member of Parliament from Bristol in 1605-1611, 1616 and 1625. He died at Bristol, England and was buried March 9, 1628 in the crypt of St. Nicholas Church. On his monument in this church, is the following inscription: "In Memory of that great benefactor, to this city, John Whitson, merchant, twice Mayor and Alderman, and four times member of Parliament for this city; who died in the 72nd year of his age, A.D., 1629. A worthy pattern to all that come after him." Bancroft, in his History of the United States, following Belknap, identifies Whitson's Bay with the harobr of Edgartown, Martha's Vineyard, having regard to the
latitude mentioned in the narrative of the voyage. The narrative implies, however, that the Bay is to be found in the southern part of the "great Gulf which Captain Gosnold over-shot the year before". Dr. B. F. DeCosta (Magazine of American History, VIII, 807-819, accordingly identified Whitson's Bay with the harbor of Plymouth, into which the ship, Mayflower brought the Pilgrims in 1620. This identification seems best to meet the requirments of the narrative.
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THE BEGINNINGS OF COLONIAL MAINE.
ing in Whitson's Bay, Pring and his companions in their exploration came to "a pleasant hill thereunto adjoining; we called it Mount Aldworth for Master Robert Aldworth's sake, a chief furtherer of the voyage, as well with his purse as with his travail."
This is an early mention of one who, at a later period, became closely connected with the beginnings of Colonial Maine.
At his landing in Whitson's Bay, Pring, by the end of July, had secured as much sassafras as would "give some speedy contentment" to the Bristol adventurers; and the Discoverer, laden largely with this commodity, sailed homeward, leaving Pring to follow in the Speedwell, when the other objects of the expedition, such as conditions with reference to trade and colonization, had received that careful consideration which the promotors of the expedition desired. These final preparations for the return voyage of the Speedwell were completed about August 8, or 9th and Pring arrived in England October 2nd (footnote 2)
The arrival of the ship, Discoverer had already furnished general information concerning the success of Pring's expediton.
Pg. 27
THE BEGINNINGS OF COLONIAL MAINE.
GOSNOLD AND PRING.
The gardens of the Maine Indians.
Concerning the fertility of the country, this was said:1 "Passing up the river we saw certain cottages (wigwams) together, abandoned by the savages, and not far off we beheld their gardens and one among the rest, of an acre of ground, and in the same was some tobacco, pumpkins, cucumbers and such like; and some of the people had maize, or Indian wheat among them. In the fields, wild peas, strawberries very fair and big, gooseberries, rasberries, hurts and other wild fruits. We pared and digged up the earth with shovels and sowed wheat, barley, oats and peas and sundry sorts of garden seed, which for the time of our abode there, being about seven weeks, although they were late sown, came up very well, giving certain testimony of the goodness of the climate and of the soil.
And it seemeth that oats, hemp, flax and such like, which require a rich and fat ground, would prosper excellently in these parts. For in divers places here, we found grass above knee deep."
Mention also was made of the trees of the country, with many of which Pring and his companions were familiar in their English homes; but there were "divers other sorts of trees" that to them were unknown. References also were made to fur-bearing animals, such as beavers, otters, wolves, bears, foxes, etc., whose skins could be secured by exchange with the Indians, yielding "no small gain" to the trader because of the great profit which the exchange afforded. But this was not all, and the new-world voyagers, having in mind a large Bristol industry, did not fail to call attention to the immense value of the fisheries on the American coast; and they closed their encouraging report with reference to the qualities of the soil and its products with these words:
The lands of Maine.
Oysters with pearls.
"And as the land is full of God's good blessings, so is the sea replenished with great abundance of excellent fish, or cod sufficient to laden many ships, which we found upon the coast in the month of June. Seals to make oil withal, mullets, turbots, mackerel, herring, crabs, lobsters (and oh those Maine lobsters!) oysters and muscles with ragged pearls in them."
THE BEGINNINGS OF COLONIAL MAINE.
Pg. 28
The report was certainly a most welcome one. It not only confirmed the reports made by Gosnold and his associates the year before, but it presented interesting details with reference to the products of the country, and emphasized most strongly the opportunity that the new world afforded for profitable trade relations with the Indians.
Such a report could hardly have failed to make a favorable impression upon the enterprising merchant venturers of Bristol, England, as well as upon all others interested in the results of Pring's voyage and exploration. No expedition, however, designed to secure immediate further advancement of English interests in this vicinity, sailed from Bristol, or any other port in England, in the year 1604; and Pring, who doubtless could have been secured for added service in yet other explorations here, was employed that season as Master of the ship Phoenix, in Captain Charles Leigh's ill-fated expedition to Guiana.
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