A portion of Fort Fairfield's commercial district, bridge crossing the Aroostook River, and eastern side of the town (1893 map by George E. Norris, Brockton, Mass.) Number 50 shows the location of Arthur P. Libby's horse, carriage, and livestock business.
From time to time, the lower end is also inhabited by beavers. A dam is built, a mud and stick lodge constructed, and a lovely, wild pond is maintained for the equally wild trout. Then after a few years, the beavers leave and sometime later another family shows up to start the process all over again.
Arthur Preston Libby was known for his warm humor and quick deal-making. A livestock trader, carriage and sleigh dealer, town selectman, and creamery owner, he teamed up with grocer Miles F. Dorsey in 1896 to form the Fort Fairfield Water Company, a company in direct competition with the town’s Frontier Water Company.
On the Center Limestone Road, Dorsey and Libby acquired the rights to build and maintain a dam on Charles Knight's land, excavate and construct a reservoir on the Hacker or so-called Weston Brook, which ran through Knight's property, and flood up to two acres.
The businessmen also obtained permission to build a fence around the reservoir and pipe water across several other properties including Calvin S. Rich’s farm and the William Fisher farm that bordered the Aroostook River.
Portion of the town from the 1980s.
The Aroostook River, looking east towards Canada. Commercial district of Fort Fairfield, right; East Riverside Avenue, left. Around the bend is where Hacker Brook enters the river.
In February 16, 1899, the Northern Leader broke with the news that “a movement is on foot” to give the town an additional water supply. A company had been formed, the water supply “fixed,” and the rights to build a dam and lay pipes had been obtained. The only thing in the way was getting state approval for a charter.
Frontier, it was reported, opposed the new venture.
The Leader explained that the resources of Frontier were not adequate. “Across the Aroostook River there is no water furnished either for household or fire and yet these people are taxed and are within the corporation limits.” Frontier serviced the more populated portion of the township, separated by the river from the more sparsely settled area near Hacker.
Some citizens felt that the town should own its own water system, which eventually did happen some years later. But not in the 1890s or early 1900s. “Next to public ownership comes the advantage of competition and this should be encouraged,” the newspaper stated. “The charter would allow a private corporation to tax people.”
A few days later, the state’s Committee on Legal Affairs in Augusta concluded that “An Act to Incorporate the Fort Fairfield Water Company” should not and would not pass. No reasons for the denial were published.
The relationship between Libby and Hacker Brook, however, did not end there. The following year, Charles Knight sold Libby 22 acres of his lot on the south end where Hacker ran along and then flowed under the road and beyond. Forever the businessman, Libby no doubt had some indication that the land and Hacker Brook might yet turn into a profit.
He didn’t have long to wait.
Hacker Brook, next to a road culvert.
During the summer of 1903 there was a severe drought in northern Maine, and Frontier’s system was examined by civil engineer W.H. Whitcomb of Philadelphia, the firm’s then primary owner. Under contract with the town to furnish water for both domestic and fire use, Frontier’s supply was “hardly sufficient and water has been pumped into the main from one of the mill ponds to help out,” according to the Fort Fairfield Review. The mill water was thought by some to be “impure.”
By Aug. 26 of that year, Whitcomb decided to enlarge the water system by pumping in water from Hacker Brook, with pipe to be installed across the river to near the railroad station. The pipe would be ordered for the following spring, after the ground had thawed.
“With this proposed extension…there will be all the water necessary for all purposes for many years to come,” the Review promised.
Libby stood to gain from his land purchase from Knight. But did he already have the reservoir dug—the reservoir intended for his first venture?
Part of Center Limestone Road and the former Libby lot, left of the road. Nearest tree line hides Hacker Brook.
Even today, a sharp dip in Libby’s former land can be seen. It could easily have been filled with water from Hacker Brook. Whether this formation was made naturally or from human hands, no one knows, and no mention of a reservoir for the Frontier proposal was mentioned in the Review.
In 1904, Frontier Water changed plans. The owners decided to acquire additional water from Pattee Brook and not from Hacker. Pattee is located on the other side of the river, near the downtown area. Perhaps the shorter distance from Pattee to Main Street was cheaper to complete, or maybe something didn’t turn out right with Libby.
At any rate, in 1909 Libby sold his Hacker land to Jarvis Parks, the town veterinary, who then sold it to the farmer across the road. Part of the steep, oddly shaped lot is still under cultivation today, and the lower section is partially filled with trees and wild roses, nearest the brook.
Proving, in a way, that Arthur Libby’s adventurous water ideas may not have been all that far off.
No comments:
Post a Comment