The Pine Cone, Summer 1953

25 CENTS • W e l l s A nd T he K e n n e b u n k s • A D r iv e D o w n ea st • G r e e n v il l e , M ain e * (A privately supported, state-wide, non-partisan, non-profit organization for the promotion and development of Maine's agricultural, industrial and recreational resources.) 1 ® 5 3 N I M M K K I 7 !“ <=A Page Wells and the Kennebunks .... Richard A. Hebert 3 A Profile of the Region Stock Car Racing in Ma in e ...........Victor A. Schlich 10 Thrills and Chills on the Speedivay Why Maine Attracts Summer Visitors Adrian H. Scolten, M.D. 15 Maine Has Interesting People Betty Curtis’ Look-alike Do l l s .................................... 16 A Hobby That Paid Off T he Town that Lived for the Outdoors Edmund Ware Smith 18 Greenville, Maine A Drive Do w n ea st.................................... Ruth Harvey 22 From Portland to Calais This Summer in Ma in e .................................................. 29 1953 Calendar of Events Around the Cracker Barrel ........................................ 34 Minstrelsy of Ma i n e ...............Edited by Dan Kelly 39 Maine’s Sea Lex in g to n ........................Janie Michaels 43 August............................ Addison Liberman Back Cover THE PIN E CONE SUMMER, 1953 VOL. 9, NO. 2 Published Quartrely by THE STATE OF MAINE PUBLICITY BUREAU PORTLAND - AUGUSTA - KITTERY - BANGOR - NEW YORK Ma n n Offic e: 3 St. J ohn S t., P ortland 4, Maine GUY P. BUTLER WILLIAM A. HATCH Executive Manager Editorial Manager PINE CONE SUBSCRIPTION: $1 A YEAR (Printed in Maine on Maine-made Paper) 300 Years After: Wells and The Kennebunks This Summer, the York County coastal towns of Wells and Kennehunkport celebrate the 300th anniversary of their founding as Maine’s third and fifth incorporated townships, respectively. Appropriate celebrations are planned. Herewith, an up-to-date profile of the region. By Richard A. Hebert Community Promotion Manager he three towns of Wells, Ken- months, quickly burgeon into a bus T nebunk and Kennebunkport, in tling, albeit decorous, area filled with the center of the York County beach vacationers, artists, writers, yachts area, have a combined population of men and hotel guests. Having been 8,116 residents. developing the resort business for This Summer, and every Summer more than 75 years, the area can take nowadays, an estimated five times th a t the annual influx of visitors and vet number will throng to this coastal eran summer residents in stride. Most area to occupy its several score hotels important physical attraction of the and inns and the hundreds of sum three towns and chiefly responsible mer cottages for seaside vacations. for the concentration of resort activity Many thousands more will visit the is the nearly 20 miles of fine sand beaches, or make day motor trips beaches, interlaced with river inlets along the towns’ scenic by-ways on and bold headlands, stretching from sparkling summer days. Perkins Cove to Hoyt Neck. Tens of thousands of other travel The rivers, all of which have pic lers to Vacationland will pass through turesque tidal inlets, are the Josias, the townships via U. S. Route One, Ogunquit, Webhannet, M e r r i 1 a n d, One-A and the Maine Turnpike, en Mousam, Kennebunk, Batson and Lit route to vacation destinations further tle. Named beach areas include Ogun north and east in the Pine Tree State. quit, Moody, Wells, Crescent, Kenne From normally quiet Maine coastal bunk and Goose Rocks. communities for nine months of the Back from these beach areas an year, the three towns, in the summer average of five to eight miles are roll- SUMMER, 1953 3 Nearly twenty miles of fine sand beaches are interlaced with bold headlands such as this scene along the Kennebunkport shoreline. ing farm and forest lands, criss ing and fishing playgrounds. Families crossed with highways and rural that have held property in the area roads, making as eye-pleasing a pros for more than 200 yea?s, as well as pect as can be imagined. newcomers established there for only a few seasons, sense the “charm” with Before the white man set eyes on which the region holds its residents. this region, it was a favorite of Maine Even though the word itself is Indians. They, too, made summer en wholly inadequate, this “charm” has campments along the river inlets and found expression everywhere through beaches. Their relics have been found out the region, in prose, poetry, paint at many places in the area. Their ing, photography, architecture and fondness for this summer playground wood carving. It is even the source probably contributed to the fierceness of the area’s strongest economic im with which they eventually sought to petus today, for much of this Vaca- expel the first settlers as “intruders.” tionland’s economic strength is based From a distance of three hundred on the “repeat business,” which re years, many of today’s residents of turns year after year, held by the the area will admit they can under spell of natural beauty combined with stand the resentment of the Indians deep-rooted historic associations. Even over the encroachment of the white so, modern techniques of communica man on one of their favorite hunt tion and promotion are not neglected 4 THE PINE CONE to attract a constantly increasing stream of new vacationers each year. Many years ago, Maine people learned that the vacationer of today very often becomes the permanent resident of tomorrow. As in many other towns throughout the State, the advent of the automobile and the building of paved roads during the past thirty years has made possible a pleasant, graceful living in small com munities, with satisfying employment in small industries located anywhere in the nearby area. Daily commut ing of up to 25 miles is considered almost insignificant today. While Wells and Kennebunkport re Turbat’s Creek, Kennebunkport, main essentially residential and vaca tion communities, Kennebunk, the most populated town of the trio, in re cent years has attracted medium- size textile and shoe plants. These tributive and service trades. The are by far the largest single employ three towns also contain a higher than ers among more than a score of small average number of economically in er plants and shops in the three dependent retired persons, as might towns, nearly all of which employ be expected from the naturally pleas less than 25 workers. Lumber, wood ant environment. products, boxes, boats, cabinet work, All three towns have their quota shoe parts, and printing make up of historic houses, many of which are other principal products. open for visit, especially on “Open With agriculture and sea and shore House Days,” held annually. Prob fisheries, along with manufacturing ably the most famous of these is the and the vacation-travel industry, mak “Wedding Cake House” in Kennebunk, ing up the basic economic components constructed by a ship’s carpenter in of the area, a reasonably balanced the early Nineteenth Century. Its or economy is evident, supporting nearly nate scrollwork and “gingerbread” 100 business establishments in the dis- typify the almost forgotten exterior house decorations of that era. Many of the historic mansions, especially in Kennebunk and Kennebunkport, Many thousands visit the beaches. were built by prosperous sea captains, with interiors and furnishings of pe riod elegance. Their owners were the builders and sailors of world-famous vessels which journeyed to the Seven Seas and brought back to Maine Oriental and European articles and ornaments. These helped to establish a peculiarly international flavor to the area, which lingers to this day. A lthough settled a few years later than Kennebunkport, then known as Cape Porpoise, the Town of Wells ranks as third incorporated town in Maine. U ntil 1820, it included the area of the present Town of Kenne- 5 Kennebunkport Cape Porpoise 6 THE PINE CONE Perkins Cove, Ogunquit Wells Beach SUMMER, 1953 7 lage was separately incorporated by the Legislature in 1913 as a relatively autonomous village area within the township. Wells will celebrate its 300th An niversary with a special program on August 29, 30 and 31. A parade of historical floats, exhibitions of an tiques, curios and old houses, colonial church services, field day and barbe cue, plays, clambakes and street danc ing will be among the features. Wedding Cake House, Kennebunk. Kennebunkport, or “Cape Porpus,” had been visited by fishermen as early as 1602 and by Samuel de Champlain in 1604. He gave it the name of Port aux Isles. Captain John Smith named it “Porkpiscis,” a mixture of English bunk, which became Maine’s 238th and Latin, from the many porpoises town. A part of Kennebunk was set he observed there. The native pro off again to Wells in 1868. nunciation of “Cape Porpus,” under Wells was founded by the Rev. John which it was incorporated in 1653, Wheelwright and a group of Puritan lasted for nearly 60 years, before the dissenters from Massachusetts. In the spelling “Porpoise” appeared on offi early Colonial period, it was the ro cial records. mantic setting for Indian warfare, In 1719, the town’s name was witchcraft and maritime activities. changed to “Arundel,” after the town For three hundred years it has re had been resettled following devasta mained a town untouched by indus tion by Indian raids between 1689 and try, with only a few lumber and boat 1713. The present name of Kenne building activities, yet it enjoys an in bunkport was adopted in 1821 and in ternational fame for its sandy beach 1915 a portion of the township was es, scenic walks and drives, surf fish set off to form the Town of North ing, art colonies and summer theater.

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