As it turns out, I did eventually make it onto the top of the granite plug. I walked a bit from its highest point down its saddle towards the marsh, as you can see in the video. The rock formation continues to diminish in elevation as it nears the marsh. At that point, the rock wall begins a run of approximately 20 more yards to the very edge of the marsh - nothing significant was seen there. So is this granite plug the landmark the John Parker III was referring to in his 1684 Gift Deed? Here is the full description of the parcel: ...and by me all ready layd out to them all that my tract, or parcell of Land, scituate, lying, and being in Kennebeck abovesaid beginning at a Point of Land lying to the Northward, of Captain Syllvanus Davis his house, on the North side of the Brooke, and up along the Westerly side of the Salt Marsh Creeck, that runneth up towards Laitons, so far as to the Rock, commonly called Stovers Rock, and from thence running along the Cart way over to Winnegense Marshes, and round the North east head of sd Marshes, to a Point of Upland running in to sd Marshes, and from sd Point of Upland upon a straight line over a Cove of Marsh TO THE TOP OF A GREAT ROCK A LITTLE ROCK LYING IN THE SADDLE OF SAID GREAT ROCK, and from sd Rock along the Marsh side Westernly, to the westward end of sd Marshes. In my mind I had expected, and was programmed to look for, a boulder on the very edge of the marsh that had a medium size rock nestled in its center. It wasnt there. So I started thinking about John Parker III and how he described the parcel outline in the deed. He was mentally walking the boundary of the parcel. Like all his other deeds, he was using natural geographical landmarks. As he mentally reached the western edge of that Cove of Marsh situated on the Point of Upland he used his minds eye to describe what could be seen on the opposite side. In other words, John Parker III was recounting that large plug of granite that tailed off (along the saddle, or ridge) that had a distinctive smaller rock formation nestled in its lower elevation reaches. We found the landmark from the 1684 Gift Deed. Today, if one were to stand on that same spot that John Parker III once stood upon and looked across the Cove of Marsh, we would not see the granite plug, for the area is now overgrown with trees. Which means (possibly) that in JP IIIs lifetime there were no trees obstructing his view. We know that this area of the Winnegance Marshes was situated close to the Winnegance Creek to Casco Bay portage - a portage that was used for centuries, if not millenia, by Native Americans. There was also a signifcant Native American camping area nearby (as the old histories recollect and some deeds refer to). Could it be that the trees were cleared because they had girdled them and allowed them to fall? We might not ever know THAT answer, but it seems to ring true that when John Parker III created that 1684 deed he was recounting looking straight upon that granite plug that had no trees obstructing it.
Posted on: Thu, 18 Sep 2014 11:03:18 +0000
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