Location: North Jay, Jay, Franklin, Maine, United States
Surnames/tags: Howes Fuller Woodman
Contents |
General Information
Howes Orchard is currently owned by Sam Howes, who purchased it from his mother in 2016. This page is to document the history of the property and connect the families that once lived there.
History
Early Settlement
The land was first purchased by Thomas Fuller from the Phipp's Canada Proprietors in 1790. The proprietor's had received this land from Massachusetts in 1771 for the service of their ancestors in the march to Canada in 1690. Fuller was granted lot 12 in the 6th range east of the Androscoggin River because he had cleared ten acres of land, built a dwelling house, and seeded the cleared land. In 1796 he purchased the west half of lot 13 in the 6th range east of the Androscoggin River from William Bond, which was just north of the original property. At some point Fuller sold the west half of lot 12, but the deed of this transfer has not been found. Later deeds refer to the property as being the west half of lots 12 and 13.
Thomas remained at the home until his death in 1844, though he had sold it to his son, George W. Fuller in 1831. George and his family lived on the property until 1854 when he bought land at the bottom of the hill on the opposite side of the road now called Old Jay Hill Road.
Later Development
After George sold the property a few different families lived there in quick succession, including Calvin Bumpus, Simon Yetton, and Stephen Childs. In 1860, Charles A. Macomber purchased the property and lived there with his family. After five years, he sold it to his older brother, Tilson Macomber, who lived on the property. At this time Charles broke up the lot and about 40 acres south of the road now called Woodman Hill Road was retained by Charles and sold to their other brother, George R. Macomber, in 1873. In the 1860s the granite at the north end of the property began to be quarried. One man who was involved in this was James M. Woodman from Wilton who had moved to Jay by 1870. By 1873, he was living on the Macomber property, but did not yet own it. Tilson Macomber sold the land in 1872 to Horace F. Davis of Cape Elizabeth (formerly of Wilton). It is not believed that Davis ever lived on the property, so the Woodman's probably rented it from him. The Woodman's purchased it from Davis in 1878 before selling it to Eugene Macomber in 1887. It is unknown when the Woodmans left the property, but over the next decade the property changed hands several times before Herman Briggs purchased the farm in 1898. Herman lived on the property with his family until his death in the 1940s.
Recent History
Herman's widow, Alice, sold the property in 1944 to her daughter and son-in-law, Verna and Frank Briggs. They sold it to Vernon and Ann Brown the following year. Vernon was originally from St. Stephen, New Brunswick but was living in Connecticut with his family. Vernon's parents, Ira and Mabel, moved in to the home and purchased it from their son and daughter-in-law in 1949. Mabel died there in 1953 and later that year Ira sold it to Lauriston and Gladys Swett. The Swetts lived in the home for three years before selling it to Reginald and Gertrude Howes in 1956. Reginald planted apple trees on the property and turned it into a large apple orchard. He later sold to the property to his son and daughter-in-law, Normand and Mary. Mary sold the home to her son, Sam, in 2016, who is the current owner.
Research Notes and Data
Known Residents
Date | Family |
1790-1844 | Thomas Fuller |
1810-1854 | George W. and Martha Fuller |
1854-1857 | Calvin and Deborah Bumpus |
1857-1858 | Simon B. Yetton |
1858-1860 | Stephen Childs |
1860-1865 | Charles A. Macomber |
1865-c1872 | Tilson and Mary Macomber |
c1872-1887 | James M. and Julia A. Woodman |
1898-1944 | Herman E. and Alice Briggs |
1945-1949 | Vernon F. Brown |
1945-1953 | Ira F. and Mabel G. Brown |
1953-1956 | Lauriston E. Swett |
1956-1997 | Reginald E. and Gertrude C. Howes |
1985-1996 | Normand A. and Mary B. Howes |
Deeds
Below is a table of deeds documenting the history of the property. Note that this table does not include mortgages or deeds adding or removing pieces of the property, but instead focuses on the portion of the property where the home stands. More detailed history will include those additional documents at a later date.
Date | Grantor | Grantee | Book-Page |
March 4, 1790 | Phipps Canada Proprietors | Thomas Fuller | 17-394 |
December 5, 1831 | Thomas Fuller | George W. Fuller | 50-335 |
April 23, 1853 | George W. Fuller | Albion K.P. Childs | 26-238 |
September 9, 1853 | Albion K.P. Childs | Calvin Bumpus | 26-514 |
July 7, 1857 | Calvin Bumpus | Simon B. Yetton | 36-500 |
February 6, 1858 | Simon B. Yetton | Stephen Childs and Lucy Ann Childs | 38-373 |
May 4, 1860 | Stephen Childs and Lucy Ann Childs | Charles A. Macomber | 46-215 |
October 12, 1865 | Charles A. Macomber | Tilson Macomber | 57-478 |
September 19, 1872 | Tilson Macomber | Horace F. Davis | 74-209 |
July 1, 1878 | Horace F. Davis | Julia A. Woodman | 109-581 |
May 11, 1887 | Julia A. Woodman | Eugene W. Macomber | 109-582 |
September 26, 1890 | Eugene W. Macomber | Myra E. George | 114-376 |
October 10, 1891 | Myra E. George | Ella M. Jordan | 122-333 |
April 20, 1895 | Ella M. Jordan | Frank H. Lane | 131-332 |
May 16, 1896 | Frank H. Lane | Everett G. Look | 133-313 |
November 10, 1898 | Everett G. Look | Herman E. Briggs | 140-403 |
January 1, 1944 | Alice G. Briggs | Frank R. Grant and Verna B. Grant | 295-380 |
September 17, 1945 | Frank R. Grant and Verna B. Grant | Vernon F. Brown and Ann Morris Brown | 295-557 |
July 12, 1949 | Vernon F. Brown | Ira F. Brown and Mabel G. Brown | 302-392 |
August 25, 1953 | Ira F. Brown | Lauriston E. Swett and Gladys E. Swett | 327-411 |
June 26, 1956 | Lauriston E. Swett and Gladys E. Swett | Reginald E. Howes and Gertrude C. Howes | 344-71 |
November 8, 1985 | Reginald E. Howes | Normand A. Howes and Mary B. Howes | 861-253 |
August 29, 2016 | Mary B. Howes | Samuel N. Howes | 3850-333 |
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