Land Titles for Burnt Coat Group
As we have already seen, the
commonwealth of Massachusetts agreed to sell to James Swan the
twenty-five islands included in the Burnt Coat group, which were
estimated to contain 12,800 acres, at three shillings per acre,
which amounted to £1,920. This Swan paid on March 19, 1785, and
he was to receive a deed as soon as the islands could be
surveyed. By actual measurement this group was found to contain
only 9,623 acres, and the difference which Swan overpaid between
the estimated and real measure of this group was returned to him
January 19, 1789. The deed of this group was given to Swan by
the commonwealth on July 7, 1786. On October 28, 1790, James
Swan, late of Boston, by his attorneys, Henry Jackson and
Benjamin Hitchborn, sold to Joseph Prince, resident of Burn
Coat, for the sum of £300 "and divers other good causes" Burn
Coat Island and all other islands within three miles of said
Burn Coat. (128)1
After Prince's purchase he followed
Swan's agreement with the settlers, by giving a bond to each
occupant of the land that he would give him a deed 6f his
property at the end of seven years. To Joseph Toothaker he gave
a bond of $100 for the one hundred acres extending from the
Carrying Place around the Cove, dated April 26, 1792 (3-208),
and to Joshua Grindle for the same amount of land extending from
Moses Staples, to the Carrying Place, dated May 1, 1794 (3-245).
On June 29, 1795, Joseph Prince and wife Joanna sold to Henry
Jackson, of Boston, for £300, the same purchase; on July 16,
1795, (3-256) Jackson also bought of Bartolomy DeGregoire land
on Mt. Desert for which he paid £1,247. He also bought
Bartiett's island. Cranberry Island and Duck Island, and also a
tract near Stinson's Neck, Deer Isle.
On September 28, 1796, Henry Jackson
sold the Burnt Coat group back to Swan in consideration of the
sum of £300 (4-206). He also gave Swan a quitclaim deed of these
islands and improvements on the same; also land in Suffolk and
Norfolk counties for £5,000 (4-207). On December 6, 1796, Swan
mortgaged this property to Henry Jackson to secure the payment
of £2,333 (4-203). On July 13, 1798, Swan gave the same security
to Stephen Higginson and Samuel G. Perkins, of Boston, as
security for $30,000 (5-541). Swan mortgaged this property to
other parties at different times to secure payment of loans, all
of which were promptly paid.
On February 28, 1798, Swan gave to
Joseph Prince, of Swan's Island (formerly Burnt Coat), power of
attorney to sell and convey to the settlers the land which they
had occupied, and to such other fishermen as might settle, on
the conditions which are stated elsewhere. He also gave Prince
power to sell a lot of land on "Island of Holt" which Swan had
bought of Nathaniel Shelden in 1796. This power of attorney is
recorded in (5481) Hancock registry.
We find no further record that any
property here was bought or sold for some fifteen years. During
all this time the settlers selected whatever property they
choose, and no one disputed their claim. The agreement by which
Swan promised the settlers a deed of the property that they
occupied at the end of seven years was not carried out by him or
by the other parties into whose hands this property fell. It may
have been for the reason that when the seven years had expired
Swan was in France and had no one here to attend to his
business. So the failure may have been due to neglect, or
perhaps the settlers did not fulfill the conditions of the
contract. However, the settlers did not seem to care much about
the title to land that they possessed, which was of very little
value. Their log cabins and boats comprised the greater part of
their possessions, so if they were ousted their loss would not
be very great; besides they considered they had a moral right to
the land they occupied, according to Swan's agreement.
On October 3, 1812, "James Swan, of
Boston, at present residing in Paris, mortgaged to Michael
O'Maley, a merchant of Baltimore," a part of this group of
islands. Swan was indebted to O'Maley for the sum of 43,080
francs as appears by a bill of exchange drawn at Harve in 1808.
Swan paid on this 6,663 francs with interest, leaving the
balance due O'Maley on September 1, 1813, of 36,417 francs. As
security Swan mortgaged to O'Maley thirteen islands of this
group, viz.: Swan's Island, Marshall's island, Black island, Hat
island, Great and Little Placentia islands, Long island "and
five others the name not recollected", "containing in all about
12,000 acres, together with the grist and the sawmills, farms,
stores, mansion house, timber lands, waters and fisheries ".
This mortgage was executed at Paris in the Greffe of the prison
of St. Pelagie, where Swan was then imprisoned, and acknowledged
before David Bailey Warden, United States consul at Paris,
October 3, 1812 (33-226). In this transfer it is noticed that
only thirteen of the twenty-five islands included in the Burnt
Coat group were conveyed. After this there seems to have been no
claimants for this property, either mortgagor or mortgagee,
until 1817. During all this time settlers continued to come in
and select whatever lots they choose to occupy, unmolested by
anyone.
On March 10, 181 7, Rufus B. Allyn, of
Belfast, as attorney for O'Maley, entered and took peaceable
possession of the premises named for the purpose of foreclosing
the mortgage. He notified the settlers that in O'Maley's name he
should take possession of all this property. He brought as
witnesses of this seizure Jesse Holbrook and Paul Giles.
On August 29, 1821, a power of attorney
was given by O'Maley to Daniel Webster to transact the business
connected with the thirteen islands of the Burnt Coat group, as
well as his other transactions with Swan. This was signed by
O'Maley in Boston. A power of attorney was given by Swan to
William Sullivan (son-in-law) to act jointly with Daniel
Webster, they to have the power of substitution, to sell all the
islands in this group and execute deeds in their names, and Swan
and O'Maley agreed to confirm all acts so transacted. This was
dated September 13, 1821.
On June 13, 1823, Daniel Webster,
attorney for O'Maley, and William Sullivan, attorney for Swan,
substituted Rufus B. Allyn to act jointly for both parties
(43-168), and whatever deeds were given afterwards were in Swan
and O'Maley's name. As to the mortgage of Swan to O'Maley, it is
believed that it was given to a friend to protect the property
from other debtors. Swan had considerable property in Boston and
vicinity which was conveyed in somewhat the same manner. It is
strange that if O'Maley claimed anything under this mortgage he
should have waited several years before asserting his claim.
The year after Allyn's appointment he
came to these islands and demanded payment of all the settlers
for the land which they occupied. He gave to each occupant a
deed of the property he occupied, and took a mortgage to secure
payment. Both the deeds and mortgages, which are recorded in
Hancock registry, were executed between the years 1823 and 1839.
The following were given at that time:
Moses Bridges, of Sedgwick, bought
Eastern Calf Island, containing 162 acres, for $400, May 24,
1823. Mortgage was paid December 5, 1839 (43-500).
Peter Powers bought Western Calf Island,
containing 256 acres, for $750, September 21, 1822 (43-521).
John Finney bought the place on which he
lives October I, 1823, for $147 (44-238).
Levi Torrey paid $160 for the land which
he occupied, on October 16, 1823. Deed was witnessed by John
Cook (44-239).
Ebenezer Joyce paid $130.27 for 68 acres
of land on which he lives, October 3, 1823.
Abel E. Staples paid $175 for land which
he occupied 1823.
James Joyce bought of Rufus B. Allyn the
place on which he lived for $146.51 on May 27, 1824.
Francis T. Gilley, of Placentia, paid
$237. This mortgage was paid December 25, 1839.
Robert Mitchell paid $210 for land on
Placentia May 24, 1824. This mortgage was paid October 27, 1828.
Benjamin Smith bought for $365.50 the
farm on which he lived, May 18, 1824.
Moses Staples' land amounted to $83.37.
Recorded May 20, 1824.
Benjamin Stinson's was valued at $200.
John Staples, a lot near Mackerel Cove,
for $60.75. May 17, 1824.
Benjamin F. Staples' lot valued at
$42.13. Deed given May 18, 1824.
Moses Staples, jr., bought his lot for
$158.16 May 17, 1824.
Daniel Hamblen, for part of Placentia,
$140.30, 93 acres, 1825.
Israel B. Lunt, unincorporated place
called Long island. His tract of land contained 1,132 acres, for
which he was to pay $600. Date of mortgage June 30, 1835.
O'Maley at present in Paris, kingdom of
France, sold to Thomas Colomey for $200 a lot near Seal Cove,
executed by Rufus B. Allyn on July i, 1835 (60-424).
Scarcely anything was paid on the above
mortgages, but no action seems to have been taken by Allyn to
enforce payment. Afterwards ex-Governor Edward Kent was said to
have been employed by O'Maley to bring suit against the settlers
to recover possession of the islands, and to have prosecuted
these claims for several years. Some of the settlers paid
something, as we have noticed above, while others absolutely
refused to pay. In the end Governor Kent could not find his
clients and returned to the islanders what money he had
collected from them. It is probable that Swan's heirs took this
method to get something out of the islands, but, finding the
matter likely to be hotly contested, gave up the contest.
No further claim was ever made by
O'Maley or his heirs. Nothing more was done until after Col.
Swan's death, when Charles J. Abbott, of Castine, was appointed
administrator of the estate of James Swan, late of France, in
April, 1837. Swan's just debts were $142,995.49. There not being
personal property enough to pay, some of these islands were
appraised by Thomas Cobb, John B, Redman and Benjamin Rea in
December, 1837, as follows:
Island |
Acres |
Amount |
Little
Marshall |
42 |
$63 |
W |
10 |
10 |
A |
21 |
21 |
B |
4 |
4 |
C |
44 |
66 |
D |
16 |
80 |
F |
20 |
30 |
G |
33 |
49 |
K |
5 |
6 |
N |
23 |
46 |
P |
16 |
16 |
I |
6 |
5 |
John's |
20 |
50 |
U |
17 |
17 |
V |
3 |
3 |
Total |
|
$466 |
This took in the islands that had few or
no settlers. How Mr. Abbott settled with the Swan heirs I do not
know. He afterwards claimed title to some of the islands.
Up to 1834 the settlers on Swan's Island
had no title to their lands except such as they could hold by
possession. Neither O'Maley nor Swan ever made any claim after
Mr. Abbott sold the outlying islands. We do not know what became
of O'Maley. He was last heard from in Paris in 1837, where it is
said that he died. A diligent search of the records of Baltimore
reveals no account of him or his heirs.
In 1834 Swan's Island was organized as a
plantation, when all the property was taxed. In the plantation
records of 1839 we find the following land taxed to Michael
O'Maley: Seven hundred acres in the southeastern part of the
island, and one lot of one hundred and fifty acres bounded by
the land of Benjamin Stinson and Benjamin Smith. O'Maley's tax
remained unpaid, and in Hancock registry' (8-533) is the
following: Benjamin F. Staples, treasurer of plantation of
Swan's Island, hereby certifies that real estate assessed in the
year 1843 to Michael O'Maley, or unknown, on which a tax of
$13.44 remains unpaid at the end of five years, said property
was taken possession of by said plantation; dated July 7, 1848.
In the year 1847 John Dodge made a
survey of all un-appropriated lands on Swan's Island, and it was
divided into lots of fifty acres each, which were numbered and
divided into first, second and third class, according to their
value. Some of the better lots were sold at public auction.
Many of the other lots, which were of no
income to the plantation, were given to settlers. They would
choose what land they wished to own, make a record of the
boundaries in the book of the plantation clerk, and pay the
taxes on the land so occupied. I do not know that the plantation
ever gave a deed to the occupants of these lots; all of them
have now become the property of private individuals.
Footnotes:
1.
The figures refer to Hancock registry, volume and page, where
these records were obtained.
Source: A History of Swan's Island,
Maine, by H.W. Small, MD, Ellsworth Me, Hancock County
Publishing Company, Printers, 1808
Index
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