A Trip to "The County" = Great Finds!

I wish every one of you could have been with Harv and I when we spent a week in "The County" last week. We hiked Baxter, fished, explored lots of back country, read and relaxed. But you KNOW I could not have gone up there without doing some family history trekking! We found some new and interesting information that some of you may have interest in. There were three highlights:



I discovered that Rev. George E. Potter (my g-g grandfather) is buried in the same cemetery as the Nason's and Cowperthwaite's (my in-laws). I had NO IDEA until this week that was the case! Rev. George Potter was a Civil War veteran but there is NO inscription indicating that on his gravestone, so the town did not know that. Consequently there had never been a flag placed on his grave. We visited the town office and the sexton made a point of going back with us to place the CW marker and flag on his grave. Such an honor for me to place the flag myself! 
 



We decided to drive home through Drew Plantation where Rev. George Potter raised his family and where my / our g-grandfather Laurin F. Potter (Uncle Buster's namesake) was born. Rev. George's father, James Potter, migrated there (from Whitefield then Perry) between 1850-60. I saw "Potter Hill" on the map which intrigued me even more! Not expecting to find anyone or anything there (the population was 50 on the 2010 US Census) we headed out - at the very least we figured we would see some pretty country coming on down route 2A through the Haynesville Woods!

 

We stopped at the local cemetery to look for James Potter (my ggg-grandfather) having tromped FIVE cemeteries in Limestone two days earlier with no luck! A man drove in right behind us and I asked him "are you James Potter?" Yep - he says, "What's left of him" - and HE WAS, James Potter! We share the same grandfather and he also shares his name. He was born and raised on Potter Hill and lives on a piece of the original Potter land. He took Harv and I to his home and we had the nicest visit! Among other things he told us where his grandfather's farm used to be on Potter Hill so we took a jaunt up there. AND - we found James and Mary (Goulding) Potter in the local cemetery besides! A grand finale to a grand week!

 

 

James Potter was an adventurer and pioneer from all indications. He was born in Whitefield, ME and migrated to Perry as a young man - sometime before March 29, 1828 when he petitioned for the building of the First Parish House in that community. He remained there until sometime between 1850-1860 when he moved his family to Drew Plantation. There are several Baptist ministers in our family and I have wondered if James and his son Rev. George were Baptist missionaries - which took them into these areas of the state (Washington, Penobscot and Aroostook Counties). This is another leg of our journey yet to be seen... Stay tuned...