Welcome to the Mount Desert Island questions page.

Purpose of this page: The purpose of this page is to report questions that researchers/explorers of Mount Desert Island’s cultural history have.

How to contribute: If you have any questions about MDI’s cultural history (see examples below) or any answers to any of those questions, please e-mail info@vfthomas.com or write to Mount Desert Island Questions at the address at the top of this page. Also, your comments and suggestions for additional topics are encouraged.

Cemeteries
   Question: Are there any burial sites with gravestones or other markers that are not already listed for the towns of Bar Harbor, Mount Desert, Southwest Harbor, or Tremont? GPS coordinates will be most helpful, but photographs, references, and other source materials are welcome.

Deeds
   In the 1790s, the General Court of Massachusetts, the name for the Massachusetts legislature at that time, appointed a group to draw the French Line, so-called, to divide the island into land belonging to Bartholomy and Maria Theresa DeGregoire and land belonging to John Bernard. The French Line runs from a short granite post just to the west, and within sight, of the small bridge on Route 198 north of the Maine Coast Heritage Trust building, to a point on Indian Point.
   Questions: What are the GPS coordinates for the marker on Indian Point, and are there any markers still evident for any other points on the French line?

   Within a decade or so after the fixing of the French Line, two maps were drawn. The map of land to the east of the French Line was drawn by John Peters and is known as the Peters Plan. The map of land to the west of the French Line was drawn by Salem Towne Jr. and is known as the Salem Towne map. These maps may be seen at http://www.vfthomas.com/MDI Cultural History Project/MDIdeedshome.htm.
   The goal of the Mount Desert Island Cultural History deeds page is (1) to find the original deed for each parcel shown on each of the two maps and (2) to trace the ownership history of the land conveyed by each of the deeds to the present time. An emphasis is on land that is now part of Acadia National Park and land that is now occupied by a cemetery/burial ground.
   Question: Can you add any deeds (book and page) to those already posted?

   Some of the boundaries of those early parcels or portions of them are, according to one or more deeds, marked with an iron rod (or pipe) or a stone post. Thanks to several persons, a growing number of rods or posts are being reported. The task is now to connect the locations of those rods or posts with the corner bounds reported in the deeds.
   Question: What, if any, boundary points are related to the following objects?
      N44.38921910° x W68.23314127° (iron rod surrounded by rocks; uphill from water tank, east of Duck Brook Road).
      UTM 19T 0564237, 4911293 = Lat./Long. N44°21′7.4″ x W68°11′38.4″ (iron rod, now broken off at ground level; Champlain Mountain North Ridge Trail).
      UTM 19T 0559300, 4916551 = Lat./Long. N44°23′59.4″ x W68°15′19.2″ (circular marker on rock in middle of Breakneck Brook).
      Lat./Long. N44.32379045° x W68.32234268° (iron rod).
      Lat./Long. N44.36096798° x W68.20929627° (vertical stone).
      Lat./Long. N44.36256046° x W68.19394087° (survey marker).
      Lat./Long. N44.36245149° x W68.19392520° (survey marker).
      Lat./Long. N44.35971405° x W68.19439148° (survey marker).
      Lat./Long. N44.37601392° x W68.25293095° (survey marker [possibly?]).
      Lat./Long. N44.37638071° x W68.25366470° (survey marker).
      Lat./Long. N44.33681930° x W68.19093956° (bolt).
      Lat./Long. N44.35267392° x W68.27869231° (bent 1/2" iron rod).
      Lat./Long. N44.35253780° x W68.27860044° (bent rod).
      Lat./Long. N44.34955107° x W68.20253106° (tall rod and eye ring).
      Lat./Long. N44.38463361° x W68.22642251° (survey marker).
      Lat./Long. N44.33509439° x W68.26852271° (iron boundary pin; junction of Sargent Mountain Pond north trail with Jordan Bluffs connector).
      Lat./Long. N44.34213192° x W68.26795115° (1-1/4" rod).
      Lat./Long. N44.34135760° x W68.27308984° (1/4" rod).
      Lat./Long. N44.33594951° x W68.27101205° (1" rod).
      Lat./Long. N44.33417322° x W68.27085539° (1/2" rod, flattened).
      Lat./Long. N44.34358626° x W68.25780100° (3/4" rod).
      Lat./Long. N44.35154831° x W68.22983654° (1" rod).
      Lat./Long. N44.34825548° x W68.22858277° (1" rod).
      Lat./Long. N44.35002122° x W68.22562639° (1" rod).
      Lat./Long. N44.38440714° x W68.26656512° (1" rod).
      Lat./Long. N44.34748820° x W68.23063919° (1" rod).
      Lat./Long. N44.35602324° x W68.22549756° (1" rod).
      Lat./Long. N44.35029933° x W68.23064799° (bent 1" rod; 18" long).
      Lat./Long. N44.35969217° x W68.19187272° (survey stone; JDR Jr.).
      Lat./Long. N44.35318714° x W68.22336923° (1" rod).
      Lat./Long. N44.35578939° x W68.22688049° (cairn).
      Lat./Long. N44.35527089° x W68.22735223° (large cairn).
      Lat./Long. N44.31911437° x W68.21323752° (1" rod).
      Lat./Long. N44.35137313° x W68.22636459° (cut iron pipe).
      Lat./Long. N44.34555425° x W68.22975515° (vertical stone).
      Lat./Long. N44.34150294° x W68.19492776° (3" iron rod).
      Lat./Long. N44.39231906° x W68.22966429° (1/2" iron rod, 1' high).
      Lat./Long. N44.30237714° x W68.22937386° (3/4" rod).
      Lat./Long. N44.36679005° x W68.23104102° (survey stone; “B” buckboard road).
      Lat./Long. N44.34679787° x W68.19326579° (1" rod).
      Lat./Long. N44.30703974° x W68.22927730° (3/4 rod; off car road; possibly for moving coping stones nearby).
      Lat./Long. N44.34843771° x W68.18089838° (1" rod).
      Lat./Long. N44.34603032° x W68.18039639° (survey stone).
      Lat./Long. N44.34416713° x W68.19358883° (approx. 3/4" rod; off south ridge trail on Champlain Mountain).
      Lat./Long. N44.38122847° x W68.23214022° (1-1/2–1-3/4" rod).
      Lat./Long. N44.30037956° x W68.35246470° (survey stone).
      Lat./Long. N44.34043039° x W68.24415719° (3/4–1" rod).
      Lat./Long. N44.35136542° x W68.18964808° (3/4" rod; 6" high; just off Precipice Trail).
      Lat./Long. N44.36093772° x W68.20928001° (3/4" rod; 3" high; due south of high vertical stone on Emery Path).
      Lat./Long. N44.32270518° x W68.33227614° (survey stone; “H”).
      Lat./Long. N44.37634450° x W68.25365950° (survey stone).
      Lat./Long. N44.37737639° x W68.25265409° (cut iron rod).
      Lat./Long. N44.37596404° x W68.25143293° (3/4" rod; in rock in water).
      Lat./Long. N44.32988228° x W68.18495028° (copper bolt; near top step leading to/from Sand Beach).
      Lat./Long. N44.29940215° x W68.35171251° (survey stone).
      Lat./Long. N44.37824702° x W68.26162994° (iron rod).
      UTM 19T 0559535, 4914058 = Lat./Long. N44°22′38.5″ x W68°15′09.6″ (iron rod in rock at north shore of Eagle Lake).
      UTM 19T 0559636, 4913909 = Lat./Long. N44°22′33.6″ x W68°15′5.1″ (iron rod in rock at north shore of Eagle Lake).
      UTM 19T 0559761, 4913961 = Lat./Long. N44°22′35.3″ x W68°14′59.4″ (iron rod in rock at north shore of Eagle Lake).
      UTM 19T 0560024, 4913933 = Lat./Long. N44°22′34.3″ x W68°14′47.6″ (iron rod in rock at north shore of Eagle Lake).
      UTM 19T 0552739, 4911760 = Lat./Long. N44°21′25.9″ x W68°20′17.5″ (stone post “H”; in woods southwest of Somerville Fire Station).

Boundary Markers
      According to a deed, the four corners of Peters Plan lot 57 [G8 on the on alphanumeric code superimposed on the Peters Plan] were marked by (1) a piece of iron pipe on the east shore of Eagle Lake, (2) an iron bolt on the east shore of Eagle Lake; (3) an iron bolt east of Eagle Lake, and (4) a stone post east of Eagle Lake.
   Question: Where are these markers?

Foundations/Cellar Holes
   Question: What was the structure along the west side of the Park Loop Road a short distance north of the Duck Brook Bridge?
   Questions: Who built the foundation between the carriage road and the east shore of Eagle Lake? For whom was it built?

Place Names
   Question: What was the origin of the name Enoch Mountain?