A Brief History of Tremont
An Exerpt from The DesBarres Map of 1776
1761 � One of the two earliest
settlements on Mount Desert Island (MDI) was around the
shores of Bass Harbor in Tremont. The first settlers were
Stephen and Thomas Richardson and the Daniel Gott family.
The Richardson brothers married Elizabeth & Margaret
Gott, daughters of Daniel Gott.
1776 � March 30, The first meeting of Mount Desert
Plantation was held at the home of Stephen Richardson on
Crocket Point on the west side of Bass Harbor.
1789 - The town of Mount Desert, which included all of Mount
Desert Island, was incorporated. The area now Tremont
composed its western half.
1848 � Town of Tremont was incorporated; it included Southwest Harbor. The only two other towns on Mount Desert Island were Mount Desert and Eden (later Bar Harbor).
Set off initially on June 3, 1848
as the town of Mansell (named for Robert Manselle, one of
the patentees of Mount Desert in the 1620 grant from James 1st
to the Council of New England), the town was renamed Tremont
at the request of the townspeople by a legislative act on
August 8, 1848. The name Tremont it thought to derive from
the three mountain peaks in the Western Mountain chain �
Bernard, Mansel, Western. Original boundaries enclosed about
42 square miles, nearly one third of MDI.
1858 � Bass Harbor Head Light was established and built. A boathouse and boat slip
were added in 1894.
1885 � Steamboat
wharf was built at Bernard. Service was discontinued
in the early 1900s.
1905 � Town of Southwest Harbor was separated from Tremont.
Tremont has 5 villages � Bass
Harbor (named McKinley in 1901 for President McKinley and
renamed Bass Harbor, 1966), Bernard, West Tremont, Seal Cove
and Center.
1920 to mid 1900s � There was the Neptune movie theater over
H.G. Reed�s store in McKinley.
Industry
- early to mid 1800s: mostly
fishing, trying out oil from menhaden or porgies on Tryhouse
Point in Bernard
- late 1800s fishing, sardine and
clam canneries, including the Underwood sardine factory in
McKinley built in 1915, boat building, some �deep water� men
- Business activity gradually
moved from Center to
Seal Cove to Bernard
to Bass Harbor.
Rusticators
�
late
19th century early 20th: Boarding
houses � Davis House, McKinley; Gott�s, Bernard, Moore�s,
Gotts Island. Hotels � Tremont House, Bernard; Mariner,
McKinley.
1849 � Dr. William Spear had been
practicing for 9 years; he was the first doctor in Tremont.
1895 � there were 21 separate
schools in Tremont and Southwest Harbor; they included high
school students.
Churches
The first church on MDI was Mt
Desert Congregational in Southwest Harbor area of Tremont,
with 14 founders and Ebenezer Eaton as minister.
The first church building was the
Baptist church in Center (1799-1800).
Schools
1875 � there were two free high
schools with 100 students (Ellsworth American).
1894 - 16 school districts, 3 terms each and 3 terms of free
high school.
1900 � 13 schools, 3 terms each, plus single terms at 3
island locations and a free high school
1951 � Tremont consolidated school was built.
1905 � 16 schools at the secession of Southwest Harbor,
leaving 9 schools in Tremont
Post
Offices
Post offices after mail began to
come to individual villages included Southwest Harbor,
Seawall, McKinley (Bass Harbor), Bernard, W. Tremont, Seal
Cove, Center
Libraries
�
Bernard:
Bass Harbor Memorial Library, established in late 1800s,
still exists
�
West
Tremont: date established unknown; discontinued in mid 1900s
19th Century
Professionals
-
Doctors
o ~1841 � late 1800s � Dr. William
A. Spear � Bass Harbor �
o 1880 � R.J. Lemont � Southwest
Harbor
o ~1886 � Dr. H.E. Abbott (briefly)
o ~1886 � Dr. J. D. Phillips - practiced long
time � Claremont
o 1888 � Dr. Elias C. Neal �
practiced 10 years until death
o 1905 � 1937 & cont. � George
A. Neal (E.C.�s son)
o ~1900 � Dr. Eugene Tapley (short
time)
o ~1901 � Dr. Thomas Tapley
(brother) � long time (1941 at least)
-
Lawyers
o ~1883 � E. Webster French � Bass
Harbor, later Southwest Harbor for 15 years
o 1893 - George Fuller � Center,
later Southwest Harbor