Ensign Ben Bunker, D-7, Mount Desert
And The Cranberry Isles
By T.L. Spurling Sr.
Benjamin Bunker [D-7] first came to this area about 1760. The French and Indian wars were over, and the large Maine district, still owned by Massachusetts, was open for settlement. Most of out early settlers here were form Massachusetts and New Hampshire and not directly form Europe. Before this time there was great fear of the Indian and French control over them.
To my many cousins of Bunker descent, I would like to explain briefly about this area and a bit of its history before Ben arrived.
The first Europeans to see this coast were probably the Norsemen. Some even say the Phoenicians. But one, of whom we have seen a definite record, is Estevan Gomes, a Portuguese in the service of Spain, who was sent along this coast in the year 1525.
Eighty years later, Samuel De Champlain, [the father of New France] came out as a pilot and guide to Sieur De Monts, a French gentleman, who had a grant from Henry IV, King of France, to much land in this part of the world. It was called by the French name, “La Cadie” or Acadia, which took in their claim to North America from latitude 40 degrees N. [Philadelphia] to 46 degrees N. [Montreal]. Champlain described the Island of Mount Desert as very high and cleft into sever or eight mountains all in a line. The summits of most of them bare of trees, [nothing but rock] which he named “L’Isle Des Monts Desert”.
If one looks on a map or chart, one will note that this island is about two thirds of the way up the Maine coast. It is very near to the mainland to the north and is nearly divided by Somes Sounds, said to be the only natural Fiord on our eastern seaboard. This body of water is named for Abraham Somes, the first permanent settler on the island in 1762. He settled the area at the northern end of the sound, now called Somesville. The five islands of the Cranberry group, Great Cranberry, Little Cranberry, Sutton, Baker and Bear, are just off the upper southern shore of Mount Desert and fit snugly under its shorter arm, into what is called “The Great Harbor”,
In 1613, a French Jesuit father, Pierre Biard, was placed in charge of a mission to come to America to convert the Indians. Their intended destination was a place up the Penobscot River near what is now the city of Bangor, but a change of plans brought them here. After crossing the Bay of Fundy, they ran into “Frenchman’s Bay” and anchored in a sheltered cove. This was now mid-June. There soon appeared a party of Indians, who made known to them that their chief “Asticou” was very sick and expected to die and wished to be baptized before he did. So they went to see him. Asticou, Sagamore of Kenduskeag, was an important chief of the Penobscot branch of the Abnaki Tribe, who belonged to the Algonkian language group. The Penobscot and Passamaquoddy [of the Abnaki] were the Indians encountered by the Europeans in this area. Chief Asticou had his summer encampment on what is now “Manchester Point”, at the entrance to Somes Sound. He persuaded the Jesuit group to set up their mission across from him, on the western shore, later known as “Fernald Point”. As it turned out, the chief had nothing worse than a bad cold; but having heard well of the French, he wanted them to settle nearby and they agreed. Two events combined to reduce sharply the population of the Indians on the Maine coast at about this time. In 1614 and 1615, the “Abnakis” of Maine fought a disastrous war with the “Mic Macs” to the northeast. Then a few years later, they suffered a severs smallpox epidemic that swept away thousands of them. This, in combination with their joining in war fare with the French against the English later, so decimated their numbers that little mention was made of them by the time Ben Bunker and other earlier settlers arrived here.
The littte Jesuit settlement was very short lived. An English warship happened to be cruising the coast nearby. Some friendly Indians boarded it innocently, assuming all white men were friendly, told them of the Jesuits and their location. The ship was the “treasurer” of fourteen guns, captained by Samuel Argall of the Virginia colony at Jamestown. That was the end of the French colony called “Saint Sauveur”. The Englishmen plundered but did nor kill the Jesuits. They were forced to leave, some by their own small boat, and others were taken to Virginia by Argall. The skirmish is regarded by many historians, as the first armed conflict in the new world, fought between the French and the English for possession of North America. It proliferated into larger fierce wars between the two nations that continued intermittently for nearly one hundred and fifty years more.
King James I, of England, granted this region to an admiral of the Royal Navy, Robert Mansell, and changed the name from Mount Desert to Mount Mansell. But Admiral Robert did nothing about it and the French name held.
The great importance of this island for many years, was the prominence as a land mark for sea-faring men; as its highest peak can be seen sixty miles away on a clear day. The Indian name for this island is “Pemetic”. Admiral Morison, in his excellent book on Mount Desert Island, writes as follows: “In 1688 a self made gentleman from France, named Antione Laumet, received a grant from the governor of Quebec for a piece of this region, including Mount Desert Island and the Cranberry Isles. Laumet had changed his name to “La Mothe Sieur De Cadillac”. He and his bride spent only part of one summer here and then left. He later went to Montreal, entered the fur trade and founded Detroit [hence, the Cadillac car] and ended his days as governor of French Louisiana. Our Highest mountain on the island is named for him. For a while, Frenchman Bay became a stronghold for French warships preparing to fight the English. English warships also used the island to replenish food and water supplies”.
In 1713, Louis XIV ceded all of Arcadia, except for Cape Breton Island and its fortress of Louisburg to England. But the warfare went on until the final capture of Louisburg in 1758 and the fall of Quebec in 1759. It wasn’t until after this that the first permanent settlers arrived in this area.
Sir Francis Bernard, the last royal governor of the providence of the Massachusetts Bay, obtained permission from King George III, to acquire Mount Desert, and he became its sole proprietor in 1764. Before this time, however, the governor had cruised down east to have a look at his expected grant. The French and Indian wars were over and he was anxious to start a settlement. A few settlers were found to be living already on the Cranberry Isles… among them, Ben Bunker on Great Cranberry Island and Job Stanwood on Little Cranberry. But—the American Revolution came along before Governor Bernard could really get going with his plans and his property was confiscated by the New Republic.
Captain William Owen, Royal Navy, who was a founder of the settlement on Campobello Island, New Brunswick, wrote of a cruise to these waters in 1770. His schooner was piloted by Aaron Bunker, of Cranberry Island, one of Ben’s sons. It was said then, that Aaron’s parents were living on Duck Island, his brother John, on Little Cranberry, and others of his family on Great Cranberry
The Bunker name is on many places in our area: Bunker’s Head on Great Cranberry, with South Bunker’s Ledge nearby, while on Little Cranberry we have Bunker’s Neck and Cove with East Bunker’s Ledge between them and Mount Desert.
When Ben and his family first came to these islands, the conditions were harsh - very much different than they are today with so many modern conveniences that we take for granted. In many places the trees grew right down to the water’s edge and clearings had to be made for the hay fields, gardens and their homes, These, latter were at first made of logs, chinked with moss and banked high with brush during the winter. Fishing, trading and lumbering were the first occupations. Fish could be had in great quantity near the shore for most of the year. They were salted or smoked and thus could be kept for some time, as well as eaten fresh. An old Indian jingle goes thus: “Salt fish and potatoes, the fat of the land, if you don’t like this, then starve and be damned”! They were also used in trade with passing vessels. Cod and Mackerel were the fish most and herring. Halibut were of no value then, nor the tuna, known a “horse mackerel”. Living by the sea, the settlers were much better off than the inland fanner. Lobsters were so plentiful in those days that an indentured servant considered himself lucky if his contract stated he would not have to be served them more than twice a week. Sea birds were in great variety and abundance and were prized, not only for their meat, but for their feathers as well. These were used in bedding and pillow and for trading. Clams could always be found and dug at the right tides. Many early sea coast familys have been kept alive by this means. Some have subsisted on just clams and potatoes for a good part of the winter. Their vegetable gardens, of course, were planted as soon as possible, especially rows of potatoes. The islands also yielded wild berries that were eaten in season and also made into jams and jellies; raspberries, blackberries, blueberries, and the abundant cranberry. The sea faring men used to take barrels of the cranberries with them on long voyages, as they were a good combatant of scurvy. It was said that the Cranberry Isles first got their name from Governor Bernard when he noted the growth of these berries here. The earliest of our settlers came “down to Maine”, mostly in small open sailing boats, referred to as “Chebacco Boats”. A few did come by larger craft such as brigs and schooners, as there was coasting [freighting by boat] by these islands during this time, en route to points east and Canada and to our larger settlements to the west. Goldsboro, to the east was settled early and Ellsworth, north of Mount Desert, up the Union River, was later to become one of the larger lumbering centers of the state.
At first, before the people of the Cranberries became better settled and organized and had built a method of trade and transportation, they used more home made and home grown products, such as growing flax for linen to make sails for their vessels. All boots, as well as shoes were made of leather; no rubber boots [that we take for granted]. No one working around the water in those days could expect to have dry feet. As soon as possible, livestock were brought on, sheep being a very important animal, both for its meat and its wool used for home spun clothing. There were a few cows and oxen for plowing and hauling, but no horses, at first.
These islands at the time of our early settlers were more coveted than the mainland. They were easier for the keeping of livestock, in many cases no fences were needed as they couldn’t stray too far. Of course, all the important trading, freight and transportation was by water; the ocean a very effective moat, so to speak. It kept the desired elements on and the undesirable off. These islands were a snug, self sustaining ample area, sometimes referred to as “The ship that would not sink”. You were also nearer the fishing grounds. When nets were needed, these were oft times knit by the women folk. Most of the ladies had herb gardens also and were very adept in time of sickness. No medicine then, was of much help in the epidemics of smallpox, typhoid, cholera ect, that could frequently ravish a community. Much of this unwittingly brought on by the crews of visiting vessels. Before the pioneers had been here very long, a saw mill and grist mill were built and in operation at Somesville, at the head of Somes Sound. Now better homes could be built of sawn lumber and their grain could be ground. Large families were the thing to help the parents in their many chores about the house, grounds and boats, for in those days the worry of raising cash for college of education was not in the reckoning…there were no such schools at first. Usually there was someone in the settlement who could teach the children to read, write and cipher. Sometimes, their parents could. It wasn’t until the early 1800′s that the Cranberry Isles voted for a school district to be laid off. Religious services were held in houses and on good days later, excursions would be made by boat to Mount Desert to attend church. Town meetings were also organized. In 1789, the town of Mount Desert was formed, which included most of the islands in this area. It was not until 1830 that the town of Cranberry Isles came into being, as a town separate from Mount Desert. Even though the settlers were better established, money was still scarce. Most of their local necessities were achieved by their own efforts, swapping with their neighbors and trading with passing vessels that would bring and deliver letters for them and also such goods as they could not produce. Ever settler tried his best to get enough land for his house, garden, a hay field, and a woodlot. Later, he might add an apple orchard and a rhubarb patch. These early islanders balanced their hard life with frequent recreation, visiting back and forth with neighbors, as well as nearby islands. Dances were held in larger buildings; also spring festivals and dancing around an island maypole with skating and sliding in the winter time. There was a semi-“work-playtime”, when a house or bam was raised, or a pile of wood needed to be chopped, for someone who had no able men-folk. The ladies had quilting bees. Boating made good sport for the young men, who became skilled at an early age. Gunning for sea birds and an occasional deer on the larger islands, made these island men superior marksmen. The Revolutionary War came along with it, English men O’ War began to harass and pillage the coastal settlements. Ben Bunker had taken a part in the capture of Louisburg in the earlier French War, as had his island neighbor, Job Stanwood, on Little Cranberry, who had lost an arm in this battle. Ben’s son, John, [known as Capt. Jack] cut out a British supply ship down the coast at Wiscasset, during the Revolution and sailed home, where its cargo helped feed his hungry relatives and neighbors. He sailed it “Down East” to hide it in a safe spot, said to be at Roque Island, where today there is still, on the charts a Bunker Harbor. Another of Ben’s children was Comfort Bunker, who married John Manchester, a Revolutionary War soldier of Mount Desert. He happened to be away one day, when a British landing party made a visit to his home on Manchester Point. They killed all the family’s livestock for shipboard rations, took all the winter supplies and shoved off. Luckily, John had his musket with him and soon after his return, he and Comfort spied a moose swimming across the sound. They were able to row out to it, shoot it and tow it ashore. This with what few supplies they were able to beg and borrow from their neighbors got them through to better times. These were some of the hardships these people put up with in those days in addition to their regular pioneer life.
A few of the earliest settlers received land agreements from Governor Bernard, but after the Revolution their grants were lost. Two new applicants applied for land claims, these were his son, John; and a French woman, Madam Barthelmy De Gregoire; granddaughter of Sieur De Cadillac, who had a French claim much earlier. Sir John Bernard had sided with the colonists, while his father remained loyal to the crown; so the American Congress gave him the western half of Mount Desert and De Gregoire the eastern half including the Cranberry Isles. The division was made down along Somes Sound and was known by the older people as “The French Line”.
Madame De Gregoire soon sold much of her land to the early settlers and squatters; 100 acres for five Spanish milled dollars. Several years later, during the “War of 1812″, the British sloop of war “Tenedos” appeared between the islands one day in August 1814. Its Captain was looking for Yankee shipping and had heard that Benjamin Spurling and Joseph Bunker had vessels hidden in nearby Norwood’s Cove on Mount Desert. This is an interesting story in itself, that might be related to another time. Anyway, the islanders were able to drive the English away from the cove and save the vessels. Joseph, was one of Ben Bunker’s grandsons and a son of Capt. Jack. Now, as time moved on, living was gradually easier for the island people. Coastal shipping was now at its peak and lasted well through the 19th century. By 1870, almost every bit of land that could be improved for corn field, hay field or pasture and every site for a new gristmill on Mount Desert Island had been taken up. Lumbering, ship building and coastal transportation lasted until nearly the end of the 19th century, but the days when the islanders main livelihood depended on the forest and sea was coming to an end. The coming of steamboats and the summer residents were changing things. Very few larger sailing crafts were being built now. Many island people worked for the “summer people” at least part of the time. This changed their kind of livelihood to a great extent. Of all their former ways of earning a living, only fishing could be counted on for sure and some local boat building. By the 20th century the gas engined boat was starting to come into use thus putting an end to commercial sail. Soon after, the automobile, likewise, was putting an end to the steamboats. Finally, electricity came to the two larger Cranberry Isles in 1928.
Two world wars have greatly changed life on our islands. Many young men have gone into lobster fishing, as have others from away, who have made the islands their home. Some of the older ones, who first came as summer visitors have bought property and retired here, “Where it s quieter and more peaceful”, they say, “Without the pressure, smog and rat race”. Transportation by boat is much better and more dependable now that in past years. The mail and ferryboats of Beal and Bunker Inc., do a good business. For many years Elisha Bunker owned and operated a boat yard on Great Cranberry and his nephew, Raymond, of Mount Desert; is nationally known for his excellently built work and pleasure boats. These Bunker men are descendents of the old Ben Bunker, listed as Ensign in our Maine family archives, said to have reached the age of 108. Most of us native island people here today also claim Ensign Ben, as our ancestor. Some descending through his son, Capt. Jack and others through his daughter, Comfort Bunker Manchester and some, like myself, through both. There are many other mainland Bunkers living nearby who also descend from two more of his children, Silas and Isaac.
This is my story of our area and a courageous ancestor, who came here many years ago and played an important role in colonizing these island frontiers.
Source:Brent Bunker