Colonel Eben Webster of Orono, Maine

Today's focus is a fourth great grand uncle as his name surfaces in an 1882 book History of Penobscot County, Maine, With Illustrations and Biographical Sketches. One has to be cautious of material presented in these types of volumes, as biographical information submitted by individuals or their descendants may be a bit exaggerated.  That said, it can provide some great leads and insights.

Eben[ezer] Webster was a son of Andrew and Martha (Crane) Webster, born 3 October 1780 in Bangor.  The family lived in the waterfront neighborhood near the intersection of Maine and Water Streets, moving to Orono about 1795.  Eben married Lucy Dudley, a daughter of Paul and Martha (Foster) Dudley, on 5 September 1805. Together they had 9 children.

According to the History, Colonel Webster was "a man of great enterprise and public spirit, and for more than half a century was one of the most active business men in the county. He spotted and cut the military road from Mattawamkeag to Haynesville, through a vast forest for thirty miles. Judge T. H. Allen was accustomed to say that he was by nature the most perfect gentlemen he had ever known.  In an obituary notice of him published in one of the Bangor papers it was said: 'He will long be remembered by the community in which he lived for his enterprise and perseverance as a business man, but longer and better for the rare and generous qualities developed in his social and family relations, and which formed so prominent a part of his character and stamped him one of nature's noblemen.'" His lumber business was located in the City of Old Town, Maine, where he first settled.  E. & E. Webster purchased the double saw mill of William Dale of that town, expanding his operation in 1817 by building another mill. He operated these mills until 1823 when he sold out and moved to Orono.

Webster Lake and Webster Brook, located primarily in Baxter State Park, Piscataquis County, Maine, were named for him.

The family of Eben and Lucy (Dudley) Webster were:

1. Martha, b. 17 Aug 1806, m. Joseph Treat of Orono.
2. Alexander, b. 5 Jun 1808, d. 22 Oct 1809.
3. Lucy, b. abt 1810, m. Josiah Bennoch of Orono.
4. Ebenezer, b. 21 May 1812, m. 1st. Martha A. Trafton of Bangor, 2nd Polly S. Crowell of Orono.
5. Paul Dudley, b. 3 Sep 1814, m. Lucina M. Crowell of Orono.
6. Ann B., b. 17 Jul 1816, m. William H. Allen of Orono.
7. Susan H., b. 1 Jan 1819, m. William Averill of Orono.
8. Catherine B., b. 7 Mar 1821, m. Nathan Weston Jr. of Orono.
9. Mary Maud, b. 24 Jul 1824, m. Israel Washburn Jr. of Orono (Governor of Maine 1861-1863).

Eben died 16 August 1855 in Orono and Lucy died 28 Mary 1859.  They are buried in Mount Hope Cemetery in Bangor, Maine.

Ebenezer Webster Plot at Mount Hope Cemetery, Bangor, Maine

Our nearest common ancestors are Andrew and Martha (Crane) Webster, with Eben being a younger brother of my fourth great-grandmother Prudence (Webster) Hasey.  My line of descent is: [1] Andrew Webster, [2] Prudence (Webster) Hasey, [3] Martha (Hasey) Gibbs, [4] Betsey (Gibbs) Vickery, [5] Stephen Thayer Vickery, [6] Edward William Vickery, [7] Harriet Elizabeth (Vickery) Mower, [8] Frank Edward Mower, [9] Dale Walter Mower.

Selected Sources:

• History of Penobscot County, Maine, with Illustrations and Biographical Sketches (Cleveland, Ohio: Williams, Chase & Co., 1882), p. 835, digital images, Google Books (http://books.Google.com: accessed 27 July 2018)
• Gray, Ruth, editor. Maine Families in 1790, vol. 1 (Rockport, Maine: Picton Press, 1988), p. 284.
• Porter, Joseph W., editor. The Bangor Historical Society later The Maine Historical Magazine 1885-1894, vol. 4-6 (Camden, Maine: Picton Press, 1993), pp. 847-8

John Ham Hasey, Innkeeper

The oldest of six children born to Andrew Webster and Nancy (Johnson) Hasey, John Ham Hasey was born 1 November 1822 in Bangor, Maine.  On 30 Apr 1849, in Bangor, Mary Jane Mower.  The Rev. Nathan D. George uniting the couple in matrimony.  Mary Jane was the daughter of Martin and Mary (Underhill) Mower.  The couple had no children.  Sadly, John died young at the age of 42, on 9 April 1865 in Glenburn, Maine.

John Hasey was my first cousin 4 times removed, our most common ancestors being William and Prudence (Webster) Hasey.  And yes, if you were wondering, his wife Mary Jane is my second great grandaunt.  It's fun when ancestral families link together.

As an adult, John lived in Glenburn, Maine, where he is found on the 1850 Federal Census as an Innkeeper. (In 1860, he is listed as a Landlord).  It is apparent that he was also involved in farming as he is included on the agricultural schedules for both the 1850 and 1860 Federal Census.  He owned 112 acres of "improved" land with a value in 1860 of $4,000.  I believe his farm was located on the Pushaw Road near the intersection of Hudson Road.

His primary occupation though was Innkeeper.  In an 1851 advertisement in the Bangor Daily Whig and Courier, he is connected with the Massasoit House on the Borders of Pushaw Lake. Interestingly, in the book The Story of a Town: Glenburn, Maine 1822-1972, there is a discussion of four hotels near Pushaw Lake, however no mention of Massasoit House.  There is a reference to the Perch House, the authors noting that it was "built by a Hasey" and passed through a few hands until it burned in the early 1900s.  The Perch house was famous for its perch dinner and is mentioned in the Ben Ames Williams’ novel Strange Woman.  It is my current thinking is that the Massasoit House and the more familiarly named Perch House were one and the same.  This is further supported by a listing in A Business Directory of the Subscribers to the New Map of Maine (which is undated but appears to be from about 1861) shows J. H. Hasey with occupation of “Perch House.”

The old advertisement reads: 

Bangor Daily Whig and Courier

Friday, 25 July 185

MASSASOIT HOUSE ON THE BORDERS OF PUSHAW LAKE

JOHN H. HASEY
    Has erected a new, large and convenient Hotel on the borders of PUSHAW LAKE, one of the most desirable watering places in the State of Maine, for the accommodation of travelers, parties of pleasure, invalids, and permanent boarders. The house has been built with special reference to this business, contains a large hall, and is thorough finished and amply furnished.
    The distance from the City Hall of Bangor is seven miles over a good road. The house commands a splendid view of Pushaw Lake, with its beautiful green islands and its shores studded with the dark forest.
    Safe and swift sail-boats for the accommodation of large parties, with experienced boatmen, are connected with the house, and are furnished with all necessary fishing apparatus for taking the White Perch, Pickerel, and other lake fish, which are abundant in the waters of the lake.

    Every attention will be paid to the wants, wishes, and comfort of visitors, and parties may be assured of receiving full accommodations at any hour.

    There are very few pleasure resorts from the city of Bangor, and it is the determination of the Proprietor of the Massasoit House that the excellence of his accommodations and the variety of his means of promoting the pleasures and diversions of his guests shall compensate for variety elsewhere.

JOHN H. HASEY

Glenburn, July 16, 1851

Selected Sources

• “The Massasoit House on the Borders of Pushaw Lake,” advertisement, Bangor (Maine) Daily Whig and Courier, 25 July 1851, p. 3, col. 1.
• Berry, Clyde G. and Naida J. Gallant,The Story of a Town: Glenburn, Maine 1822-1972 (Privately Printed for Glenburn Sesquicentennial Celebration, 1972), 102.
• A Business Directory of the Subscribers to the New Map of Maine, With a Brief History and Description of the State, Prepared by William Willis; also, Valuable Statistics and Advertisements (Portland: J. Chace, Jr. & Co., n.d.), 105.