Town of Dayton, ME - Dayton History

The story of the early beginning of Dayton is closely interwoven with that of the two adjoining towns of Biddeford and Hollis". Capt. Richard Vines, trusted agent of Sir Ferdinand Gorges, came to Biddeford in 1630 and made the first permanent settlement there. His grant extended four miles on the ocean and reached back eight miles into the country.

He found the Sokokis or Saco Indians living' near the mouth of the Saco River, fishing there and hunting game in the nearby forests. Their Sagamore camped on Indian Island, now known as Factory Island, above the lower falls. They ranged up and down the river from Saco to Fryeburg. The Sokokis Trail or Highway Route 5, which passes through our town roughly, follows their paths.

The Indian wigwams stood neighbor to the whitemen's cabins and for forty-five years there was absolute peace between them. It was not until 1675 that Indian trouble began here. The Legend of Squando's Curse helps explain the hard feelings then. When once the hatchet had been raised, all the horrors and sufferings of savage warfare were experienced.

This first Indian War was the only one directly between the Indians and the early settlers. All the later wars were part of the European feuds between England and France. Also it was the only war concluded by a treaty, in 1678, in which all the settlers along the coast from Kittery to the Kennebec agreed to pay the Indians "One peck of corn annually for each family by way of acknowledgement to the Indians for the possession of their lands." Captain Richard Vines remained here for 15 years before moving to Barbados, West Indies back_to_top

It was not until 15 years later that another man came to Biddeford, to occupy as high a position in the community as Vines. This man was Major William Phillips, who in 1659 purchased the land formerly owned by Richard Vines. He moved here from Boston the next year. He was a man of wealth interested in the lumber industry, it being in great demand in England.

The good relations with the Indians established by Vines, continued for fifteen years after Major Phillips came. Although the settlement had been established for a generation, Phillips was careful to purchase from various Indian Chiefs all titles to the lands he desired to obtain.

Two of these tracts comprised what was first known as Little Falls Plantation. The second of them purchased in 1664 from Mogg Megone or Mogg Heigon, Sagamore of the Saco, contained roughly the present town of Dayton. The deed was witnessed by John and Mary Wakefield and may be seen at Alfred.

Before 1670, Major Phillips sold several large tracts lying within his patent. This second tract which was to become Dayton, was sold to three different men, namely: the southern most tract of 1,500 acres to Edward Tyng, next to this a lot of 2,000 acres was sold to Richard Russell of Charleston, adjoining this tract, an area three miles square was purchased by Major General John Leverett.

By a treaty with the Penobscot Indians in 1726, the Massachusetts government was given the right to build trading posts at convenient points for supplying the Indians with goods in exchange for furs. In 1728 the location of the trading house was moved from Biddeford to a half mile below Union Falls, near the bank of the river now owned by the Andersons.

It was placed here beyond the frontier to keep the Indians away from Biddeford. It was sometimes called the "Saco Truck House" or the "Saco Block House". The principal building, made of hewn logs, was enclosed by a strong picket wall with flankers, leaving sufficient space between the premises for a house to contain the stores and for a parade ground. Provisions for the fort were brought up the river from Saco in small boats.

When Indians were seen near the blockhouse, the neighboring planters assembled within its walls and cannons mounted in the upper story of the fort were fired off. The Indians greatly feared these "thunder guns" and there is no record of their trying to take the fort. A small garrison of men were there continually until the fall of Quebec in 1759.

Captain Thomas Smith, a merchant of Boston, supervised the building of the fortifications in 1735. He was appointed Truck Master in 1737. Captain Thomas Bradbury was in command of the fort in 1748-49. Captain Jonathan Bean of York succeeded him. This fort probably exercised a strong influence in promoting the safety of the inhabitants of this neighboring town of Buxton. When the soldiers were disbanded the several small cannons were removed to Castle William in Boston Harbor. No sign of the old fort remains today, but an old burying ground marks its general location. back_to_top

The first attempts to settle within the borders of Dayton were made in 1735 by John and Andrew Gordon, brothers. They were living with their parents in Biddeford when Little Falls Plantation was opened for settlement.

John Gordon was 19 when he started work on his clearing, not far below Boiling Spring. He was a powerful raw boned man, six feet four inches tall, possessing great energy and courage. When another Indian War threatened he left his clearing and joined the Expedition to Canada (Louisburg).

Returning after the peace of 1759 to his clearing, he made one of the town's best farmers, living to the ripe old age of 94. His grave is on the land he once cleared near the Buzzell Road, formerly owned by a Mr. Moore, now owned by Carleton Waterhouse.

His brother, Andrew, settled on the land now owned by the Landrys on the Gordon Road. On November 16, 1770, John and his brother Andrew each received a tract of 160 acres of land by deed from their father. Both tracts had their first bounds on the Saco River and extended backwards. Andrew was killed by a falling tree in 1802.

John and Edward Smith settled near the Landing on the Russell Lot around 1760. A John Smith built the house previously owned by Onville Fogg, now owned by Clement Meserve, which tradition says is the oldest house in town.

Another John Smith of Biddeford, grandfather of Noah Smith, lived near the fort on the "Cook Right" in 1762. Nathaniel Buzzell settled on the Buzzell Road near Mr. Gordon's place. Robert Cleaves came with his family in 1795 and settled a mile south of Boiling Spring. His uncle, Israel Cleaves, had already settled half a mile south of Boiling Spring.

The first Goodwin's Mill was built in 1782 by Nathaniel Goodwin in a heavy growth of white pine on Swan Brook, where there was a falls of thirty-three feet. A few feet below this was a sixteen foot falls. Goodwin's Mills was the first and leading business place at the southern end of the Plantation. back_to_top

Settlers were early attracted to Little Falls Plantation, part of which later became Dayton, because of the abundance of fine timber that covered the area. Trees were cut and rolled down the banks of the Saco River, thence to Saco, or lumber was hauled by oxen to Portland and Kennebunk Landing after the roads were built.

When years of hard labor had been spent chopping and stumping the great trees, the clearings gradually emerged where fruit trees were planted and small patches of field crops were cultivated. Stones of many sizes were sometimes found scattered throughout the fields. The settlers soon found a good use for them, when they piled them up to make stone wall fences.

If stones were not plentiful, old stumps were sometimes set up with their roots clawing the air to keep the cattle within proper bounds. . But even the best made fences will sometimes fail, so that the Plantation meeting elected "Field Drivers" to round up the straying feet, a "Pound Keeper" to keep them confined until claimed by their owner, and "Fence Viewers" to settle disputes in regard to maintaining the fences properly.

Each family that could afford it, had a cow to supply the family with milk, cheese and butter. There was a "Tan House" at Union Falls and at Goodwin's Mills to prepare the hides for the "cow hide boots" and other articles made of leather. A small flock of sheep produced the wool to be spun on the old spinning wheels into yarn, to be knitted into socks and mittens for the whole family. The sheep also supplied tallow with which to make candles. Even the "homespun cloth" could be woven on the old looms. The pigs, in addition to the meat, supplied grease to make the soap. A flock of chickens or ducks could keep the eggs coming and occasionally make a good dinner when the minister came to call. Soft feather beds and pillows were also made at home. A yoke of oxen was indispensable to pioneers clearing the land and planting crops.

Indian maize, or corn, was one of the most important food crops of the early settlers. Most of their bread was made of corn meal, as were many other tasty dishes. Crows must have bothered the corn, as a bounty of twenty cents each was offered at one time.

In 1866 Sylvester Hill operated a grist mill, a threshing mill, and saw mill combined near Goodwin's Mills. The farmers brought their corn here to be ground into corn meal or pig meal. If for table use only, just the kernels were ground between the big mill stones. If for the pigs, the cobs were ground up with the kernels. Some came with high loads of oats to be threshed by the huge beaters propelled by the water wheel. The oat kernels were poured into sacks and the straw dumped back into the racks to be carried home for feed and bedding. back_to_top

Before the incorporation, the Plantation's taxes were paid in corn and a storehouse was opened by the collector to store the "Kind" brought in by the inhabitants, at Union Falls, once called Hopkinson's Mill. This was the seat of government for the town until roads were built.

The first Plantation Meeting of which records have been fond, was held at the house of Captain John Smith in 1781 near the old fort. Measures were enacted for building roads. It was voted that a day's wages for a man and a yoke of oxen on the highway should be four shillings silver currency. Prices were set on shingles, clapboards, and staves.

1,516 pounds of beef were purchased for the Plantation. The beef tax and the Plantation tax was to be paid in lumber. A committe to take care of the fishery was elected each year from 1789 to 1797. The following officers were elected at the Plantation meeting: Joseph Chadbourn, Moderator, Zebulon Gordon, Clerk, Joseph Chadbourne, George Hooper, Moses Wadlin or Moses, Jr„ Assessors, John Smith, Treasurer, Thomas Cluff, Surveyor of Highways, Moses Wadlin, Jr, Surveyor of Highways, Thomas Young, Collector. back_to_top

Land in the vicinity of Union Falls was deeded by the Commonwealth of Massachusetts to Allison Smith, grandfather of Rufus Smith, in 1798, and he sold a portion of this tract, which probably covers the location of Union Falls, to his daughter, Sarah Bettes in 1817. On June 1821, she deeded same to Thomas Carrl, who later disposed of it to various parties.

Stephen Hopkinson, Nathaniel Dunn, and Nathaniel Came erected the first mill here in 1806. This mill privilige was purchased from John Smith, 2nd., in 1804. The first dam was built at Union Falls in 1807. This first mill was a sawmill with an old "up and down" saw and a grist mill combined. It stood on the bank of the river very near the site of the power station that the Clark Power Co. had there later, and for a while was operated by Jesse Harmon, who lived on the Buxton side of the river. It was abandoned in 1888 and removed about 1890. One of the old grinding stones still lay beside the road in 1925. Several sawmills were operated there previous to the freshet in 1837, when they were all swept away as were all the bridges across the Saco River.

At one time as many as 20 buildings, including mills, stores, schoolhouses and homes clustered around Union Falls. Probably around 1845, a tannery run by William Perry was situated on Runnell's Brook. In 1861, Jesse Harmon had a store located at the end of the old covered bridge. Later he built a new store on the road leading to the brick schoolhouse. He also had a blacksmith shop near his store. Samuel Babb did business in this store in 1866, followed by William Patterson, who had the last store there, about 1890. At one time, William Knights, a shoemaker, was also a resident of this community, so it seems it could boast of several industries. Mr. Jesse Harmon also served as postmaster for several years around 1872. The Biddeford and Saco Water Co. purchased the water privilege in 1856. Once there were several houses and a schoolhouse on the road that went across Runnell's Brook to High Landing and came out behind Andersen's farm. This road was inundated when the Skelton Dam was built. back_to_top

In 1860, after becoming a town by itself, Dayton voted to build a covered bridge across the Saco River at Union Falls, providing it could be built for $1,000, the cost to be shared equally with Buxton paying $500.00 the same as Dayton.

The Covered Bridge was constructed at the narrowest point in the river a short distance below the dam. It was 112 feet long and 18 feet wide of the suspension type of construction on two stone abutments. During the winter someone was hired to spread snow inside the bridge to make it easier for the horses to pull the sleds and sleighs.

This picturesque old bridge was used for many years until the two span iron bridge was built in 1917-18, a little way down stream by the Clark Power Co. It was voted that the town contribute $1,500 towards its construction.

The Old Covered Bridge was blown up in 1921 by the Clark Power Co. in keeping with plans for power development in that area. Representatives of the old Pine Tree Moving Picture Corporation of Portland, with which former Governor Carl E. Milliken was associated, were on hand to film the event in connection with a film then being prepared. The heroine galloped across the bridge on a beautiful white horse with the villain in pursuit with a horse and buggy. Soon after she had reached safety on the other side, the bridge was blown up. When the dynamite and powder exploded, the bridge rose a foot or so in the air and then dropped into the water below. Gasoline and tarpaper were spread on the remains and then set afire. By 3:00 P.M. the bridge was all but a memory, having been well consumed by the flames.

The Central Maine Power Co. had decided as early as 1916 to build a dam at this site at Union Falls in order to produce more power, but many citizens of the neighborhood, notably Kate Douglas Wiggin, the famous writer, opposed the idea. They argued that it would destroy the natural beauty of the river and gorge, which it did when built in 1951.

The deep scenic gorge between Salmon Falls and Union Falls, where the current hurled itself against the opposing ledges and rushed on past the Devil's Eel Pot and Indian Cellar with such torrential force, has given way to a tranquil stream, taking its time now, to reach its predestined rendezvous with the wheels of industry, and hiding from human eyes the grandeur that was below Salmon Falls on the Saco. back_to_top

In 1797, a petition was made by the settlers that lived in the southern part of Little Falls Plantation, asking that the part south of Cook's Brook be set apart as a separate plantation. This petition was denied. The following year, in 1798, the whole area was incorporated as the town of Phillipsburg, in honor of its first white proprietor, Major William Phillips of Biddeford.

To be eligible to vote in the town meetings a person had to be a male inhabitant of the town for one year, have a freehold estate, with an annual income of three pounds, or have any estate to the value of sixty pounds. The town meetings were at Stephen Hopkinson's house until he moved out of the town. From 1799-1808 most of the town meetings were held at John Dennett's home. back_to_top

The early settlers seemed to take an active interest in the education of their children. One of the first matters attended to in the new town was the vote taken to raise $200.00 for the support of the schools.

The earliest school was probably the one on the Buck farm near the turn in the road winch leads to Roy Meserve's. The building was abandoned about 1810. The school was built for joint use of school and church meetings. Half of the seats were high, old-fashioned, boxed in pews. A large open fireplace extended across one end of the old frame building. Other old schoolhouses were on the High Landing Road above Union Falls, on the Hight Road at the left of the road that came by Clark School. The ledge there is said to have formed the back of the building.

The town was divided into districts and the schools had to be in walking distance of the homes. The old schoolhouses were replaced by five others, the Brick Schoolhouse on Peavy's Hill. where Eukitis' shop now stands, the Dow School at the corner of the Murch Road and the Buzzell Road, the brick school at Union Falls, the Gould School on the Gould Road and the Clark School on Route 35. These were all in use in 1856.

The school year consisted of two parts, the Summer School, usually taught by women and attended by the smaller children and girls, who were not needed for the farm work, and the Winter Term, when the big boys attended with the younger ones.

A man teacher was usually needed to handle these older boys and to teach such advanced subjects as French, Algebra, Latin, Astronomy, Natural Philosophy, and Chemistry. If eager to learn, a young person could master the equivalent of a high school education, with the help of an efficient teacher, in these one-room schools.

Each district chose its own agent, whose duty it was to hire competent teachers, make needed repairs, and see to the construction of new schoolhouses. The School Committee was elected at town meetings. Its job was to visit each school at the beginning of the term and again near its close to check the accomplishments of all, usually by oral examinations, and to make a written report to the townspeople at the end of the year.

The Dow School House was built in 1873. The Lincoln SchoolHouse at Clay Brook was built in 1883. In 1922 a new Union SchoolHouse was built at Pike's Corner to replace the old brick one sold to Clark Power Co., in 1917. The Clark School had been closed a short time because of the small number of pupils, when destroyed by the forest fire in 1947. back_to_top

The first minister in town, Rev. Somon Locke, came in 1782, but because of the sparseness of the settlement, left to become pastor of a church in Lyman. The first meetings were probably held in the schoolhouse previously mentioned on the Buck place. After a number of years it was replaced by Rev. Timothy Hodgdon's Lower MeetingHouse.

The town purchased the land and the meetinghouse was built by subscription and sale of pews, in 1802-03. It was located on what is now Route 5, below the place presently owned by Mr. Robert Taylor. Rev. Timothy Hodgdon lived in a two-story house that was opposite the Onville Fogg house. Each year $200 was raised in town meeting to pay Rev. Hodgdon until his death in 1821.

Perhaps you are wondering why the laws of Massachusetts were governing the Province of Maine at that time. This is how it came about. After several attempts to get control of the Province of Maine by various interpretations of their charter, and by other means, Massachusetts purchased the claims of Sir Ferdinand Gorges' heirs in 1677 for 1,200 pounds. After that the Province of Maine remained under the authority of Massachusetts until it became a state.

As time passed new religious denominations came into being. Residents of the town sometimes wished to join them. A law permitted them to "poll off" from the regular parish and be recorded on the town records, thereby relieving themselves of the support of any other church than their own.

Rev. John Hubbard and Rev. Mr. Chadbourne were later pastors of the Lower MeetingHouse. After a temporary suspension of religious services, the church was sold for $67.00 at auction although the building was still sound.

The Advent Christian Church of 19 members was founded in 1884 with Jeremiah Hill as pastor. In 1891, the present building was erected in Dayton, at Goodwin's Mills. The Advent Christian Church purchased the adjoining mill property and water rights in 1949.

In former days besides a saw mill and grist mill, there had been a stave mill, shingle and clapboard mill also near this site. A recent owner of the property was Ben Lunt who built a cement dam and reconstructed the mill as a sawmill only. He enlarged the threshing mill for a box shop, which apparently was never used.

The L. L. Clark Co. used the mill for the last time to saw burned logs from the forest fire of 1947. When the Mill was purchased by the Church, it was remodeled into an attractive social house. back_to_top

For twelve years 1798-1810, the town developed under the name of Phillipsburg. The inhabitants came to consider the name a stumbling block, saying it was "too long to write and too hard for the young ones to pronounce." A committee brought forward the name of "Hollis" for the town, which was accepted by the people.

One of the recurring questions that had to be decided annually, pertained to the "poor" of the town. Until 1851, the "poor" were "set up at auction and struck off to the lowest bidders". In that year a town farm was purchased on which the "poor" were to be supported. It was located in the upper part of the town.

When the first settlers came into the Plantation wilderness to live, there were paths and spotted trees for the course of travel. Their provisions were brought on horseback or up the river by boat. They tried to build their homes near a spring or brook to insure a good water supply. Therefore some of the oldest homes were quite a distance from the roads laid out when the country became settled. But the town was not stingy with the highways and eventually the road came to each of them. When the Gordon Road was opened in 1816, it was voted that the Selectmen furnish the rum at the town's expense.

The first tax mentioned in the early plantation meetings was for the "High way". Each man in a highway district had the privilege of working out his tax on the roads. In 1797, men were allowed 67 cents a day. For a yoke of oxen 60 cents was paid. In 1867, a yoke of oxen and cart were paid $1.50. A horse and cart were given $1.00 a day. A plough earned 50 cents.

If the landowner was anxious to have a road go over his land, he would sometimes donate the land for it. If not, the town had to pay damages for the land. Some of the original deeds contained a "Reserve" for roads in them. In that case the town would not have to pay for the road going through.

Down through the years much money has been laid out on highways. Some of the first roads made have long since been discontinued, and their courses forgotten by the present generation. Others have had the low places filled, the hills have been lowered, and the crooked places made straight in the cause of safety.

The roads are still a large item in the town's expenses. Each year more are improved and hard surfaces applied. Good highways are needed to carry the farmer's produce to market and also to provide a safe means of transportation for those who work in nearby cities, and for the School Bus as well.

In historical accounts of our town, we find several references to a "landing on the Saco River." The "Atlas of York County" says, "The landing originally called the Russell Lot was settled by John and Edward Smith about 1760." "The History of Yok County says, "Previous to the War of 1812, Little Falls Landing, about a mile from the Biddeford line, was the center of a thriving lumber trade, supporting four or five stores."

The "Town Register 1905" says, "The first town meeting was held in the Brick School House near Goodwin's Landing." The preceding generation knew of it as Hight's Landing or the Town Landing. This generation in a large part does not know of its existence.

Formerly a part of the Elisha Hight property, a piece 24 rods wide facing the river was given the town by Mr. Hight. Logs that the residents cut during the winter were piled up there. When the high waters of spring came, they floated down to market at Biddeford and Saco. There was a log wharf at the Landing. Levi Cousins was the last man to run a scow boat from Hight's Landing down to Biddeford for John M. Goodwin, who used to keep the "Old Store" above Peavy's Hill.

The road that leads down to the Landing was laid out in 1824. It goes from the Hollis Road beside Gordon Maddix's house to the river. Once there were two other houses on the road one of which belonged to David Brown, and the other to Abraham Dow.

As the population of Hollis increased, the interests of the upper part of the town were often different than those of the lower part. Also the town stretched over quite an area containing 45 highway districts, 23 school districts and calling for the choosing of 45 Surveyors of Highways, 56 Surveyors of Wood, Bark, and Lumber, 3 Pound Keepers, 37 Field Drivers, and 3 Fence Viewers in addition to the regular town officers that we have today.

As the town government became more and more unwieldy, people in the lower part of Hollis began to think again of separating and becoming a town by themselves, even though they had failed in two previous attempts.

Finally, on April 7, 1854, an act of the State Legislature set off that part of Hollis south of Cook's Brook, as a town by itself. The new town was called "Dayton" in honor of Thomas Day, an associate and friend of John M. Goodwin.

Mr. Day married Eliza Locke of Hollis and in 1856 was living a few houses below the Biddeford line. He owned a field in the lower part of what is now Dayton presently belonging to the Landrys. Thomas Day helped bring a petition before the State Senate in 1854 that probably led to the incorporation of this town. The Act of Incorporation went into effect May 2, 1854.

The thanks of the town were voted to John M. Goodwin for his untiring efforts in getting the town incorporated. John Murch was elected Town Clerk. It was voted to have the next meeting at the Gould SchoolHouse.

Dayton is bounded on the North by Cook's Brook and Hollis. On the East by the Saco River and Buxton. On the South by Biddeford and North Kennebunkport. On the West by Lyman. For years there was uncertainty about the boundary lines between Coxhall, (Lyman) and Little Falls, (Dayton). In 1788 committees were chosen from both towns to meet at the dwelling of Nathaniel Goodwin to agree upon some method to settle taxes for 1780 and 1781 which were claimed by both towns. It was agreed that Little Falls should pay Coxhall 8 pounds, 5 shillings worth of boards at Kennebunk Landing.

Boiling Spring, an early landmark near the center of the town, is quite a curiosity. It is several rods in circumference with a bottom of quicksand. Through this the water boils ceaselessly, first in one place, then in another. The period of greatest activity seems to be around noon. It is situated on the farm of Ernest R. Hill. The early settlers visited Boiling Spring often and used its squeaking sands to scour their floors. Hill's Brook, its outlet, flows south and finally empties into Swan Pond Creek in Biddeford.

There were four water privileges listed on Hill's Brook. At one of these, a dam was built and a grist mill with a water wheel did business for a number of years until washed away by a freshet. In 1847 John B. Hill owned the mill.

The people of Dayton furnished their quota of men and means for the War of the Rebellion. The Army paid $12-$14 per month to the soldiers. In 1863 it was voted to pay each person drafted or his substitute, if he could hire someone to go in his place, a bounty of $300 when he mustered in. In 1864 it was voted to raise $400 for the support of soldier's families.

Dayton Post Office was established in 1878 with Mrs. Fannie Rumery as Postmistress. It was in the tavern owned by George Rumery situated near the junction of Route 35 and 5 where Inmans now live. He had rooms for travelers and a hall on the second floor where square dances were sometimes held. Travelers used to stop and water their horses at the well across the road.

In 1878 the hall was leased for 10 years at $5.00 per year for all town purposes, to be lighted when needed. The first meeting held there was in 1879, but before the ten years had passed fire had leveled the building. It burned one night when the Salvation Army was holding a meeting in the upstairs hall and the people there had a difficult time getting out. This was around 1885.

Dayton Post Office was again established in 1896, at the home of Samuel Hill, with J. Burton Roberts the Postmaster. The Post office remained there until the R.F.D. No. 4 Route was started with Daniel Clough, mailcarrier, who did the job faithfully for nearly thirty years. Since that time, 1933, Weston Goldthwaite has been our rural mail carrier.

When Dayton became incorporated, the town government had to return again to the Brick SchoolHouse on the hill. The next move was to hire W. Henry Dow's hall for town meetings, in 1836, with a room for the Selectmen and a janitor to keep the hall warm for $15.00 a year. This was situated on the other side of the road from the Brick SchoolHouse, near Mr. Dow's house.

This yellow two and a half story building was quite old. It was built with a piazza on the front, held up by wide pillars. For years previously it had been owned by Col. John M. Goodwin. He conducted a general store there and used it as the headquarters of a shirt factory, being agent for a Boston firm, at times furnishing employment for as many as 600 women.

The so-called "Sale work" was cut and passed around to the women of the town who sewed them in their homes and were paid by the piece. During the Civil War they made blue woolen Army shirts for the Union soldiers.

After Col. Goodwin sold his place in Dayton, he lived on Wentworth Street in Biddeford and did auctioneering. While living in Dayton, he was always ready to give of his time and effort in furthering any cause that he believed to be of benefit to the town. He served in nearly every town office while residing here.

Mr. W. Henry Dow took the stairs that ran through the middle of the hall and put them to one side so the young people could dance on both sides of the lower hall. At one time he had an orchestra made up of a piano played by Mrs. Herbert Smith, a cornet played by Howard Sawyer, a bass viol played by James Staples, and a fiddle played by Henry Dow. This hall was a sort of social center where everybody had a grand time. The hall as later used by Percy Dow as a shop. It was destroyed in May 18, 1939, by fire of undetermined origin.

The old burying grounds are nearly as numerous as the first families, each one burying upon its homestead. There is one with 24 graves whose headstones are uncut, as they were taken from the field. Only two stones have any letters on them to indicate who is buried there. One with a faint Z. D. which indicates the resting place of Zebulon Drew. It is across the road from the Mullett farm on Route 35. When the burying ground was started there was cleared pasture around it. There was a cattle pass that went under the road to the pasture.

It would indicate a commendable feeling of respect for the early settlers and former citizens of our town, if each one who has an old burying ground on his land would keep the fence repaired and the stones from being destroyed or in any way help preserve these memorials.

In 1909 it was voted to accept a trust fund of $300.00 from Caroline Goodwin, to be deposited in the bank and the interest to be used in keeping the burying ground repaired and in good condition on the homestead farm of the late Joseph Whitten, her father. back_to_top

Mr. Cecil Clark leased the water power rights including the dam from Saco Water Power Company in 1910, and in 1912 received permission to erect and maintain poles and wires for electricity through Dayton. He built a 650 kilowatt power station at Union Falls.

In 1936, spring brought another freshet in the Saco River. The flooding waters swept away the power station at Union Falls. The two span iron bridge believed to have been built too high for any water to touch, was broken up by the huge cakes of ice that swept across it and washed it from its foundations.

Since 1934 Dayton has had the protection of the Goodwins Mills Fire Department, which was made up of volunteers from Lyman and Dayton. The Goodwins Mills Volunteer Fire Department was incorporated June 7, 1949. A fire house was erected in 1951 at Goodwins Mills with the expenses shared by the two towns. In 1953 a new fire truck was also purchased jointly.

In October 1947, after a very dry summer, a forest fire swept down on the town destroying about two thirds of the community. At least 27 farm homes, 4 single barns, the Town Hall, The Clark School House, 2 garages, the Walters truck recently bought by the town for snow removal, and many thousands of excellent timber, some of which had been growing for two generations, were destroyed.

The chief industry of the people of Dayton is dairy farming. The Cole Farm Dairy and Landry's Dairy help supply the neighboring cities with dairy products. A good number of the inhabitants work in Biddeford or Saco. There are two filling stations in town. Tourist cabins and a lunch counter are owned by Percy Belanger.

The first unit was placed on the line December 30, 1948, and the second unit March 18, 1949. The station replaced a former 650 kilowatt station built in 1912 by the Clark Power Co. The dam holds back 975 million cubic feet of water on the Saco River and delivers 75 million kilowatt hours of electricity in southern Maine yearly.

Being again without a Town Hall after the forest fire, the town meetings were held at Lincoln school. Nearly everyone recognized the need for an up-to-date school and everyone knew that we needed a Town Hall, so it was voted to borrow the money on a long term loan to build a consolidated school and Town Hall combined. The following citizens were chosen to serve on the Building Committee: Robert Cole, Joseph Mullett, Robert Anderson, Dorothy Hill and Marjorie Proctor Pierce. The building was completed in November 1950 costing around $65,000.

The opening of the new Dayton Consolidated School was an important milestone in the educational progress of the town. The new building provides four classrooms, a kitchen where hot lunches are served, a teacher's room, Selectmen's office, and auditorium or Town Hall.

The old schoolhouses have been disposed of as follows: Union School was sold, Lincoln School reverted to the Huston heirs, Franklin School was transferred to the local American Legion Post for a nominal sum.

On January 9, 1951, the Community Club was organized. It is so named because anyone in the community who is interested in helping the school promoting good relations between home and school, and improving conditions in the community, are invited to join. The Club is assisting in the hot lunch program, bought the stage curtain, provided blackout curtains for the auditorium, and completed other smaller projects.

Upon learning that this year marks the 100th anniversary of the incorporation of our town, the Community Club felt that the date should not pass unnoticed, so decided to sponsor a celebration of the event on July 31.

As a part of the celebration the Club has financed, with the help of neighboring businessmen, the printing of our town's history, and the erecting of signs designating the roads in town named for the early settlers, thus trying to perpetuate their memory for years to come. back_to_top

The first Dayton Post Office was located near the junction of 5 and 35. This land was owned by the Inmans in 1954. It is now owned by Louis Roberge. Dayton residents now have their mail routed either through the Biddeford or Hollis Post Offices.

The legend of Squando's Curse - In the late 1600s there was an Indian chief whose settlement was on the Saco River near the Saco Island area. The chief's name was Squando. Chief Squando got along well with the white men until an incident happened involving the chief's squaw and one of his children. During that period, the white men believed that Indian offspring were natural swimmers from birth. One day a group of white men decided to test this belief and tipped over a canoe carrying Squando's wife and child. The child sank. Although the mother then rescued her child, the child later died and Chief Squando held the white men responsible. Legend has it that he then put a curse on the Saco River claiming it would take the lives of three white men every year thereafter. No one knows if the curse story is true because there are no written records about the curse until well after 100 years of the incident. Some historians believe the curse story was thought up by an imaginative writer more than a century later.

The Dayton Community Club was organized in 1951 to help the school promote good relations between the home and school, and to improve conditions in the community. Today, that is still our goal. We are a fundraising group to help provide a few little extras for students and the community. One of the major accomplishments of the Community Club in recent years has been the start up of a library within the school. Our most enjoyed ongoing tradition is the Christmas Craft Fair. We provide scholarship money for Dayton students to continue their education. We also provide bus money for a biannual trip to Boston for the fifth and sixth grades. This booklet is being reprinted through the Community Club because we felt that the subject held a lot of interest for families that have been here for generations as well as families whom have recently chosen Dayton as a place to live.

In 1954 the chief industry of the people of Dayton was dairy farming. That is no longer true. Dayton has become a residential town for people working in Biddeford, Saco, Portland and other areas. Cole Farm Dairy went out of business in 1981. Landry's dairy went out of business in 1972. Co-Hen Egg and Dayton Sand and Gravel are now the two largest employers in town.

The population of Dayton, along with the rest of Southern Maine, has grown rapidly since the early 1980's. We find more and more farmland sub-divided into housing lots every day. There is no end in sight back_to_top