Maine at War July 2022 blog posts

In July 2022 my Maine at War blog examined topics ranging from a popular rail trail that brushes against Civil War history to a 1st Maine Heavy Artillery veteran who did not let his bullet-shattered jaw silence him.

July 6, 2022: Maine rail trail brushes against a Civil War memory

The 29-mile Central Maine Adventure Trail follows an abandoned railroad corridor from Newport to Dover-Foxcroft in central Maine. While traveling the scenic trail, recreationists brush against Civil War history in Corinna on Corundel Lake.

July 13, 2022: George Burns, Bar Harbor, and the 1st Maine Heavy Artillery

Less than a half mile from the busy Route 3 traveled by millions of tourists visiting Acadia National Park on Mount Desert Island lies (or could lie) a young Eden soldier shot and killed at the battle of Harris Farm. He happens to share the same name as a famous 20th-century comedian.

July 20, 2022: Bullet-broken jaw did not silence a 1st Maine Heavy Artillery veteran

An 18-year-old farmer when he joined the 1st Maine Heavy Artillery Regiment, James Harvey Stinson caught a bullet through his teeth at the battle of Harris Farm. Besides shattering his jaw, the bullet nearly severed his tongue. The tough Stinson would not let the wound silence him.

July 27, 2022: Free chowder and summer lured thousands to Fort Popham in 1862

To celebrate the 255th anniversary of the founding of the Popham Colony on Maine’s Kennebec River, organizers held a big party at Fort Popham at the river’s entrance. The event featured a free chowder — and drew thousands more attendees than the organizers had planned!