Kennebec Martyr Father Rasle and the Norridgewock tribe

Kennebec Martyr

Father Rasle and the Norridgewock tribe

by Charles Francis T he upper reaches of the Kennebec River are a mecca for white water enthusiasts. Every spring and summer canoeists, kayakers and rafters travel here to challenge the many rapids and falls. There are, however, stretches of smooth quiet water. One of these is at Old Point near where the Sandy River joins the Kennebec in the town of Madison. Here, close to a picnic area surrounded by tall pines stands the tall shaft of a monument bearing an iron cross. The monument is a memorial to Sabastian Rasle, a Jesuit priest who was killed here more than 250 years ago. The monument also stands on the site of Narantsouak, the last stronghold of the Norridgwog (Norridgewock) tribe of the Kennebec Indians, the Indians to which Father Rasle ministered to for almost thirty-five years.

Sebastian Rasle was a symbol and a victim of the times in which he lived. The Indians that he served from 1691 to 1724 considered him a saint. The Indians respected him, and he respected them. He worked beside them in the fields, in the forest, and on the river. He made bayberry candles for their chapel, led a choir of over forty of their young people, and compiled a dictionary of their language. For the English settlers of Maine, however, Father Rasle was a devil. He was French. He was Catholic, and he consorted with the Indians.

The Indians Father Rasle served

at Narantsouak were a semi-agricultural people. They grew corn, squash, and what was to become known as Jerusalem artichokes. They netted and speared alewives, salmon, and sturgeon from the Kennebec. They planted in the spring, traveled to the coast in the summer to gather shellfish and to fish, and in the winter they hunted. They were a peaceful people. Unfortunately, however, their village of Narantsouak was situated on a major travel route of both the French and the English.

The French were the first Europeans to frequent the lands of the Kennebec. They canoed and portaged down from Quebec on the Chaudiere River and sailed up from Castine on the Kenne-

SNOWMOBILING • HIKING • BIKING • BOATING • RAFTING • HUNTING Outstanding Outdoor Adventure All-Year Round Kitchens with King Bed Phones • A/C Pool with night light Jumbo Hot Tub/Jacuzzi Smoking/Non-Smoking Private Bath/Shower Remote Color Cable TV WiFi • Fridges/Microwaves 89 Main St., Bingham, ME ITS 87 in our backyard! ATVing & Snowmobiling 1-866-806-6120 | 207-672-4135

FISHING • HIKING • BIKING • SKIING • RAFTING • CANOEING • HUNTING

Appliances • Furniture • Bedding Lawn & Garden

207-474-2400 │ randbshomesource.com 517 Lakewood Rd. • Madison, ME

The Town of Madison is proud to have recently earned its “Certified Business-Friendly” designation from Maine’s Department of Economic and Community Development!

bec. The French treated the Indians they encountered well, quickly making them friends and allies. In turn the Indians asked the French for missionaries. By the time the English had established trading posts at the mouth of the Kennebec and at Cushnoc (Augusta) the French were already well established, and the French practiced a policy of cultivating the Indians, which the English did not.

The first English settlers in Maine had for the most part maintained an uneasy peace with the native inhabitants of the territory. This relationship was to change, however, as the Puritans of the Massachusetts Bay Colony began what was to become a systematic eradication of the Indian. In 1675 King Philip’s War broke out in Massachusetts and quickly spread to Maine. From this time on Maine became the scene for some of the bloodiest fighting of the colonial period. Worsening the situation

“Your Hometown Pharmacy”

Photo Printer Cards Essential Oils

Over 100 years of dedication

2 Old Point Avenue • Madison 696-3935 • taylorsdrugstore.com

FINE LINE PAVING & GRADING RESIDENTIAL & COMMERCIAL Driveways • Walkways Parking Lots • Repairs Sealcoating & Rubberized Crackfi lling Fine Grading FREE ESTIMATES

Jim Peters 207-696-8805 Cell: 207-431-1217 629 Main Street • Madison, ME 04950 was the struggle between France and Britan for dominance in Europe and in the New World. Louis XIV of France was determined to replace Britan as the dominant imperial power in the world. Maine, located between the colonies of British America and French Canada, was caught in the middle of the power struggle, and as a result, the English settlements there suffered attack after attack by the French and their Indian allies, most notably the Sokokis and the Kennebec.

All the English settlements in Maine were attacked. Some several times. Over 500 settlers were killed and almost 2000 taken prisoner. Women and children were taken by force and made to march to Quebec. By 1713 only York, Kittery, and Wells were inhabited. It was during this period that Governor Shute of Massachusetts declared all-out war on the French and their Indian allies. The Indians at Narantsouak

Rod’s Cycle & RV Not the biggest, just trying to be the best

R V R e n t a l s

474-6637

P a r t s S t o r e

837 Lakewood Road, Madison, ME rodscycleandrv.com

WOODLAWN REHAB & NURSING CENTER

received special attention, as did Father Rasle.

In 1705 Colonel Winthrop Hilton led an expedition to Narantsouak and burned much of the village including Father Rasle’s church. Rasle, though, was undaunted. He quickly had a new temporary chapel built out of tree bark, and by 1718 a new and permanent church was completed. However, during the construction the aging priest broke both his legs and had to be taken by canoe to Quebec. By the time he returned the English had put a price on his head.

In 1722 Captain John Harmon led a force of 200 men against Narantsouak. Unfortunately for the of the village and for Father Rasle, most of the warriors were away hunting. The now crippled priest was forced to flee to the woods where he again had to watch his church burn along with most of the village. In addition, his dictionary of the Abnaki (cont. on page 56)

G F H Giberson Funeral Home  Since 1948

GibersonFuneralHome.com FUNERAL & CREMATION SERVICES PRE-ARRANGED PLANNING

18 River St., Bingham 672-5563 40 Maple St., Madison 696-8081

Physician Directed Rehabilitation Program Long-Term Care  Skilled Care Respite Care Secure Care Protection 474-9300 donwoodlawn@firstatlantic.com 59 W. Front St. Skowhegan

language, a labor of some thirty years, was lost.

Finally, in 1724 the last attack on Narantsouak took place. This attack was led by Captain Jeremiah Moulton, who had a personal interest in wreaking violence on the Indians and their French confederates. A year or so earlier Moulton had returned to his home in York to find it in ruins from an Indian raid. He swore vengeance and was to achieve it with a sneak attack on Sabastian Rasle and his congregation. By the time he was done the village of Narantsouak was annihilated.

Father Rasle was leading a worship service when Moulton and his men swept down on the village. As the worshippers watched in horror, the priest was shot as he stood in the doorway of his little chapel. By the time the raid was over the Norridgwogs were so de- (cont. from page 55) moralized that they abandoned forever their home on the Kennebec. The surviving members of the tribe either journeyed to Quebec or joined with the Penobscots. As for Father Rasle’s records of the Kennebec, little remains but lists of local plants and animals and a few fragments of the work of a lifetime.

On the hundredth anniversary of the death of Father Rasle, Bishop Fenwick of Boston erected the monument that now stands on Old Point. In the 1920s land was acquired within sight of the iron cross on the monument for a Catholic cemetery. Nothing, however, remains of the village of Narantsouak, whose name ironically meant in Abnaki “smooth water between rapids.”

Discover Maine

Caring for the Community!

Since 1865

2015 • 2016 • 2017 • 2018 • 2019

~ Debit, EBT Cards & Food Stamps Also Accepted ~

~ Skowhegan’s Oldest Business ~

474-3449 quinnhardware.com

125 Waterville Road • Skowhegan OPEN 7 DAYS A WEEK

Restaurant

You’ll love our outside deck seating overlooking beautiful Kennebec gorge

E. Leavitt Street in Skowhegan. Item # LB2010.9.121504 from the Eastern Illustrating & Publishing Co. Collection and www.PenobscotMarineMuseum.org

RANDY’S FULL SERVICE AUTO REPAIR, LLC Voted “Best Auto Repair” in greater Skowhegan 20 years running! We off er a full range of auto repair services in our 10-bay garage! • Shocks & Struts • 2 & 4 Wheel Alignments • Brake & Exhaust Systems • Transmissions • Engine Rebuilding & Installation • Tires • A/C Service & Repair • General Tune-ups 204 Madison Ave • Skowhegan, ME 04976 (207) 474-7580 • (800) 474-7580 24-HOUR TOWING Now offering full collision repair services!

Heather N. Blodgett Associate Broker

BOYNTON’S GREENHOUSE

Family owned Florist, Greenhouse & Garden Center 144 Madison Ave., Skowhegan (207)474-2892 www.boyntonsgreenhouses.com ______________________________________________ Knowledgeable staff to help your garden grow!

Garden Center open May through September 5 Greenhouses with annuals, perennials, vegetables & more

Blanchet Builders, L.L.C.

• New Home Construction • Light Commercial Construction Custom Built Homes 34 Willys Way • Skowhegan, Maine 474-8459

Reach Buyers Across the State Advertise In Discover Maine Magazine 1-800-753-8684

www.discovermainemagazine.com

U.S. Civil War veterans of Norridgewock lined up at the memorial display for the Maine 9th Regiment. Item # LB2017.6.1 from the PMM General Collection and www.PenobscotMarineMuseum.org

FLOORMASTER NORTH Owned & Operated By Bruce & Geoff Reynolds 474-5220 Route 201 227 Waterville Road Skowhegan, Maine Sales, Service & Installation Carpet • Inlaid • Tile • Laminate Maine Traditions Hardwood Floors fl oormasternorth.com

WHITTEMORE & SONS Outdoor Power Equipment Since 1970

Sales and service by a family who cares! (207) 474-2591 • 257 Waterville Rd., Skowhegan, ME www.whittemoreandsons.com

Sue Ellen Lexier Independent Nikken Wellness Consultant selexier@gmail.com • cell: 207.431.4786 www.nikken.com/na/sueellenlexier

Water Treatment Systems Propane, Natural Gas & Oil Installations “small business works” Licensed and Insured 397-2300• Cell: 692-3153 mwainerph@yahoo.com 79 George St. • Norridgewock, ME

JT’S FINEST KIND SAW 579 Skowhegan Rd. (Rte. 2) • Norridgewock fi nestkindsaw.com 474-9377 Chainsaws Lawn Tractors Trimmers Brush Cutters 207-431-3218 Canaan, ME

Skowhegan: 474-6223