Campobello: An Historical Sketch

In Short

This book serves as both a detailed regional chronicle and a nostalgic portrait of Campobello Island. It tracks the island’s evolution from its early discovery by French explorers to its period under the eccentric, quasi-feudal governance of Admiral William Fitz-William Owen. By weaving together archival records, local folklore, and personal observations, the narrative documents the shift from a primitive fishing economy to a seasonal sanctuary for wealthy city dwellers. It remains a valuable record of how remote landscapes are shaped by colonial ambition, personal eccentricity, and the eventual encroachment of tourism.

The Story

The history of Campobello begins in the mist of the early seventeenth century, when French explorers under Sieur De Monts claimed the surrounding waters, leaving the island itself largely untouched by formal civilization for over a century. Aside from the occasional moose and wandering indigenous hunters, the land remained wild until the arrival of two early settlers, Hunt and Flagg, who introduced apple trees and the beginnings of a modest trade economy. However, the true transformation of the island began with the arrival of William Fitz-William Owen, a British naval officer whose military career in the East Indies left him physically scarred and seeking a place to establish his own small-scale dominion.

The island became intimately tied to the Owen family through royal grant. Admiral Owen, a man of rigid class consciousness and intense religious fervor, arrived on the island and immediately set about imposing an orderly, if somewhat bizarre, social structure. He established a private bank, issued his own currency, and acted as a magistrate over both the human inhabitants and the trespassing livestock. His household became a center of colonial ceremony, featuring silver service and candlelight dinners that stood in stark contrast to the rough, perilous lives of the local fishermen.

As the years passed, the Admiral’s grand dreams for the island—which included ambitious manufacturing companies and mills—often collided with the harsh realities of maritime isolation. Despite his efforts, the economy remained volatile, heavily dependent on the bounty of the sea and the precarious cycles of the fish market. The narrative follows the island through various domestic trials, from the struggles of pioneer women facing illness to the periodic tensions brought on by smugglers and the threat of political upheaval, such as the Fenian raids.

The latter portion of the book marks a transition as the original, insular life of the island gives way to a new era. The Admiral’s descendants and the local residents witness the arrival of visitors from Boston and New York, who begin to view the island not as a place for industrial development, but as a picturesque summer sojourn. The narrative concludes with the return of a young descendant of the Admiral, an event that serves as a poignant bridge between the island’s storied past and its future. As the grand hotels and summer cottages rise, the book reflects on the changing character of the shore, moving from a self-contained, feudal-like kingdom into a refined, accessible landscape, while carefully preserving the memory of the eccentric figures—and the legendary stone statues of the Friar—that once defined its identity.

How It Unfolds

The colonial foundation The narrative opens with the early French explorations and the initial, sparse settlement by pioneers who first cleared the land. It establishes the island's isolation and its historical role in the boundary disputes between British and American territories.

The era of the Admiral The focus shifts to the arrival of William Fitz-William Owen, a naval veteran who transforms the island into his own private fiefdom. This section details his efforts to impose hierarchy, manage trade, and enforce a unique, stern brand of religious and social order.

The daily struggle The narrative then captures the gritty, often harsh realities of the fishing community, detailing the perils of the sea and the resourcefulness of those living in extreme isolation. It portrays a society shaped by the cycle of the tides, local politics, and the influence of the church.

The age of tourism The final beats describe the decline of the Admiral's industrial dreams and the arrival of summer residents who seek the island for its climate and scenery. It portrays the quiet blend of old-world legacy and modern, leisure-focused development that defines the island’s late-nineteenth-century character.

The People

Admiral William Fitz-William Owen serves as the book's central, magnetic figure. A decorated naval officer who lost an arm in the service of the East India Company, he arrives at Campobello seeking both a refuge and a domain to rule. He is defined by his "feudal loyalty" and his desire to impose order, as evidenced by his attempts to run the island as a paternalistic state. His rigid, sometimes absurd, insistence on ceremony and his deeply personalized version of the Anglican faith set the tone for the island’s social life.

Opposing him, in a sense, are the local residents—the fishermen and their families—whose lives are dictated by the sea rather than the Admiral’s decrees. They are depicted as resilient and patient, enduring harsh winters and the "meek despair" of illnesses with a quiet dignity that earns the narrator’s admiration. Among them is a nameless young girl who rose to prominence as a skilled nurse, embodying the island’s spirit of self-reliance.

Benedict Arnold appears as a historical curiosity, a figure whose brief, troubled presence on the island provides a sharp contrast to the Admiral’s perceived honor. Finally, the Admiral’s great-grandson emerges in the closing chapters as the symbol of the new era. His return to the island connects the residents to their past, representing a graceful reconciliation between the old, aristocratic ways and the modern, more accessible world of the summer visitors.

In Its Own Voice

The mysterious charms of ancestry and yellow parchment, of petitions to the admiralty and royal grants of land, of wild scenery and feudal loyalty, of rough living and knightly etiquette, have long clustered round a little island off the coast of Maine.

This passage serves as the author’s opening invitation, framing the island as a place where history and myth collide.

The Admiral’s three chosen intimates were designated Academicus, Rusticus, and Theophilus.

This sentence highlights the Admiral’s penchant for intellectual posturing and the somewhat detached, scholarly atmosphere he attempted to cultivate in his remote home.

The dried foliage and the dripping seaweed clinging to them give a ghastly beauty to this living mausoleum of the herring.

The author uses this vivid description to characterize the fishing weirs that define the island’s coastline and its reliance on the sea.

What It's Really About

The book explores the tension between civilization and the wilderness, and the human compulsion to impose order upon a landscape that resists control. It asks what happens when a singular, forceful personality—in this case, Admiral Owen—attempts to construct a private utopia in a place defined by its remoteness. Beyond the local history, the work examines the transitory nature of influence and the inevitable shift from a productive, self-sufficient society to one defined by leisure and aesthetics. It is a meditation on how history is written, preserved through relics, and slowly softened by time, ultimately questioning what survives when the original purpose of a community is replaced by the needs of summer residents.

Why Read It Today

Readers who enjoy micro-histories and the quiet, observant tone of nineteenth-century travel writing will find this book deeply rewarding. It reads like a long, reflective conversation with a well-read local historian who is equally comfortable describing the architecture of a stone wall as they are recounting a piece of folklore. The prose is precise and evocative, capturing the "mysterious charms" of the Maine coast with a sense of place that remains potent even a century later.

However, readers should be prepared for the book's specific limitations. The author displays the period-typical attitudes of her class, often viewing the local fishing population with a mix of affection and condescension. The structure can feel episodic, moving between administrative details of the Admiral’s bank and the legendary tales of stone-turned Indians, which may frustrate those looking for a traditional, linear narrative. Furthermore, the reliance on dense, archaic accounts—such as long lists of town officers—requires a patient reader. Yet, for those who value the preservation of a vanishing way of life and the quirks of an eccentric, colonial past, the book offers a rare, textured glimpse into a world where the sea was the only master and the tides dictated the rhythm of existence.