Patten Lumberman’s Museum
Edited by Rhonda Brophy & Charles Cormier
To get a real appreciation of The Patten Lumbermen’s of choice for making ship mask for British and American
Museum, one must first get a feel for the history of Patten sailing vessels. In 1829 these individuals received permission
from Patten to return and settle the area. Originally, this
and its roll in Maine’s logging history.
settlement was known as Fish’s Mill but was later renamed
History of Patten
Patten.
In 1827, two men from Lincoln Maine, Ira Fish and Elijah
Kellogg along with Samuel Wiggin paddled and poled
their bateaux up the Mattawamkeag River to the head of
navigation on Fish Stream (Mattawamkeag West Branch) to
scout for lumber in the area of T4R6 for businessman and
landowner Amos Patten. They found the township to have
vast stands of tall white pines. These pines were the wood
30 Lumberman's Museum SUMMER 2011
Several factors contributed to Patten becoming the center
for logging operations in Northern Maine. Patten is the
first town beyond the Katahdin range, giving it access to
the upper East Branch of the Penobscot River basin and the
lower Allagash River basin. These areas were heavily wooded
with much sought-after pine and spruce. The abundance of
water allowed for the annual spring log drives that floated