Cobblestones Home : Colonial Trail : Fort Loyall

     By the mid sixteen hundreds, Falmouth, Maine had grown into a large economy. During this time, both the French and the Indians worked together against the British settlers.

   A lot of Wabanaki Indians targeted attacks on Falmouth largely due to its success. These attacks became so frequent, Thomas Danfroth, who had been given authority over Maine, decided to create a new, safer, and compact settlement. He divided Falmouth’s neck into several dozen different house lots. In the middle of this was Fort Loyall, located at an elevated level at the foot of King Street, which is now known as India Street. This was planned out in case of an Indian invasion. The plan would then be for all of Falmouth’s settlers to gather up at the elevated Fort Loyall.

Although Falmouth’s settlers knew that they could be ambushed at any moment, they were prepared. In 1690, the French and the Wabanaki Indians took four to five hundred canoes and crossed the Casco Bay. Once they arrived at the shore they ambushed the settlers. The surviving settlers retreated up to Fort Loyall. Fighting went on for five bitter days. Finally, the settlers gave up and surrendered. As the settlers were walking out of Fort Loyall, the Wabanaki Indians viciously massacred the unarmed settlers, and destroyed the Fort. History is written that the Indian’s counterparts, the French, tried to stop them from murdering the settlers, but were unable to keep them from carrying out this tragedy.

I think that this should be part of our freedom/history trail, because it would show the hardships, trouble, and sadness of Portland’s history. It would show that we did not win every battle that we fought. If I was a modern day towns person which I am, but if I was not a child, and I was downtown, and I passed by Fort Loyall, I would definitely take some time, and stop to read the memorial. I think that the massacre of Fort Loyall is a very interesting subject to both discuss, and also to research, I don’t think that many people, in Portland, know about Fort Loyall, and this would be a great way to introduce them to it. I also think that Fort Loyall is important because it shows how Portland was involved with the French and Indian War.

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