[Congressional Record Volume 160, Number 47 (Tuesday, March 25, 2014)]
[Senate]
[Pages S1725-S1726]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




                           GOULDSBORO, MAINE

  Ms. COLLINS. Mr. President, I wish to commemorate the 225th 
anniversary of the town of Gouldsboro, ME. Known today as a beautiful 
gateway to the Schoodic Peninsula section of Acadia National Park, 
Gouldsboro was built with a spirit of determination and resiliency that 
still guides the community today.
  Gouldsboro's incorporation in 1789 was but one milestone on a long 
journey of progress. For more than 10,000 years, the area was a 
favorite hunting and fishing grounds of the Abenaki, the Native 
American tribe of northeastern North America. The name ``Schoodic'' 
comes from their word for a place of plentiful fish in waters kept ice-
free through the winter by the moderating currents of the Gulf of 
Maine. The reverence of the Abenaki for nature remains strong among all 
who call the peninsula home today.
  The original name of Acadia National Park--Sieur de Monts National 
Monument recognizes the ongoing influence of the French explorers who 
visited the area in the early 1600s. In 1763, the Seven Years' War 
between France and Great Britain for control of North America ended 
with a British victory. With peace came bold pioneers seeking 
opportunity.
  The first recorded non-Native American settler on the peninsula was 
Thomas Frazer, who built a salt works at the mouth of a creek that 
today bears his name. Another early settler was the town's namesake, 
Robert Gould, whose untiring efforts and boundless optimism helped 
attract new members to the growing community. By the early 1800s, 
Gouldsboro was a thriving town of lumber and grain mills, fishing, and 
shipbuilding.
  The character of the people of Gouldsboro of years gone by and of 
today is best represented by one of the town's historic treasures, the 
bell of the SS Queen Victoria. In 1864, leaders of the Canadian 
Confederation gathered on that great steamship anchored at 
Charlottetown, Prince Edward Island, and reached the agreement to found 
a new nation.
  Two years later, the Queen Victoria sank in a hurricane off the coast 
of Cape Hatteras, NC. Captain Rufus Allen, from the Gouldsboro village 
of Prospect Harbor, steered his Gouldsboro-built brig Ponvert into 
harm's way and was able to rescue 42 of the 43 officers and crew. In 
recognition of his heroism, Captain Allen was presented with one of the 
few items saved from the doomed steamship--the bronze bell. He gave the 
95-pound bell to the Prospect Harbor School upon his retirement in 
1875.
  In 2004, 138 years after Captain Allen's daring rescue, the people of 
Gouldsboro recognized the significance of the Queen Victoria to 
Canadian history and commissioned Prospect Harbor artist and craftsman 
Dick Fisher to create a replica, which was given to the people of 
Charlottetown.
  That single gesture reaffirmed Gouldsboro's connection to the sea and 
strengthened the enduring friendship between the United States and 
Canada.
  Today, Gouldsboro is a place where fishing families and summer 
visitors cherish that connection to the sea. Through hard work and 
ingenuity, Gouldsboro has become not just a gateway but an essential 
part of the Acadia experience. With its charming villages, working 
waterfronts, artist studios, and many recreation opportunities, 
Gouldsboro is a true gem on the Maine coast.

[[Page S1726]]

  One of Gouldsboro's early and most influential citizens was David 
Cobb of Massachusetts, a hero of the American Revolution who served as 
General Washington's aide during the British surrender at Yorktown.
  As the war neared its end and American independence was secured, 
General Washington urged his aide to leave rocky and cold New England 
and make his future in Virginia, which he argued had a superior climate 
and more fertile soil. With his sights already set on Maine, Colonel 
Cobb replied, ``Sir, we have our heads and our hands.''
  That is the spirit that made a thriving town out of the wilderness 
more than two centuries ago and that sustains a vibrant community 
today. It is a pleasure to congratulate the people of Gouldsboro, ME, 
on their 225th anniversary and to wish them all the best in the years 
to come.

                          ____________________