Falmouth

He was raised in Roxbury, Massachusetts, and graduated from Harvard College in 1670.

George became a Congregational minister and served in Falmouth, Maine, beginning in 1674.

After a native raid destroyed Falmouth in 1676, he moved to Massachusetts and became minister of Salem Village in 1680.

His first wife, Hannah Fisher, died in childbirth in 1681.

Burroughs struggled financially because Salem Village failed to pay his wages, and eventually left in 1683.

American.

But in truth, this was viewed as, all up and down the coast, in all of the colonies, the burning of Portland, which was then called Falmouth, was viewed as an atrocity.

And that, too, served substantially to unify I'll call them Americans in support of the insurrection and in favor of independence.

So it was a tactical success, but like many of these things, when dealing with a civil war and revolution, a strategic, ultimately catastrophe for the British because it unified people from Georgia to Maine against the crown.

So

very quickly, very quickly, Royal Navy burning Falmouth, Massachusetts, which is now called Portsmouth.

Falmouth, Maine.

Falmouth, Maine.

But Grievance 24 actually goes beyond interfering with colonial commerce because by the fall of 1775, British naval commanders were attacking ports directly, sometimes to punish colonial resistance, sometimes to extract supplies, and sometimes just to intimidate Americans.

Probably the most infamous example of this came in October 1775 in what is sometimes called the Burning of Falmouth.

when the Royal Navy bombarded the coastal town of Falmouth, which sat on the site of present-day Portland, Maine.

This was done in retribution for American revolutionary resistance, and the British Navy gave the residents of the town just two hours to evacuate before they bombarded and then torched the town, destroying the majority of it and leaving families homeless as the Maine winter approached.

One eyewitness described the bombs and incendiary shells filled with combustible material, which were known as carcasses, saying they were, quote, armed with destruction and streaming with fire that blazed dreadful through the air.

The destruction was supposed to punish and pacify the colonies, but it had the opposite effect and became a catalyst for militarization and a Continental Navy was established soon after.

So, Jefferson likely had Falmouth in mind.

Were there similar events elsewhere?

Yeah, I get that, Ray.

We're in a canoe on Casco Bay, just off the coast of Falmouth, Maine.

The water's pretty calm here because of the bay and all the many small islands around us.

Yeah, still, I'm not good in a canoe on a small pond.

With that out of the way, let's get into it.

Our story begins in Falmouth, Maine, in June 1980, where a 62-year-old man, Edwin E. Robinson, was outside his backyard, clucking for his pet chicken, Tuk Tuk.

During his search for Tuk Tuk, a storm rolled in, leading Edwin to take shelter beneath a poplar tree.

Moments later, Edwin was suddenly struck by a bolt of lightning, knocking him to the ground and leaving him unconscious for 20 minutes.

The course was at Mackworth, Nick.

So Mackworth Island, which is actually in Falmouth, but it's just right over the bridge.

And, um, yeah, it was just, it was the Mackworth Island course.

Well, I think what happened, you know, Mackworth didn't allow you to do it anymore.

It is part of the fun too.

I'm going to make us a course.

I had a blast making the Falmouth middle school course, which I use the community park for it, but I made a brand new 1.5 mile version and, And I spent like time, you know, and especially now with, uh, with the garments and stuff and the watches, you don't even have to necessarily wheel it.

I know to get it official, you probably still use a wheel, but you know, you can, I, I love that stuff.

The main wire.

From time to time, people ask me, Steve, why doesn't the main wire publish more good, happy news? So I figured today was a good day to come here to Hardy Road in Falmouth, Maine, the former home of Abdulahi Ali, the former CEO of Gateway Community Services, the most notorious Medicaid scam in the state of Maine.

MaineWire readers are familiar with the story by now.

Gateway Community Services, as we reported over a year ago, was a...

For more information on the Midcoast Symphony Orchestra's 2026-2027 season and to purchase tickets, visit midcoastsymphony.org.

The Maine State Ballet's 2026-2027 season starts October 9th through 17th with their performance of The Little Mermaid, which will be performed at the Maine State Ballet's Lopez Theater, which is located in Falmouth, Maine at 348 U.S. Route 1.

The season continues with their performance of The Nutcracker at the Merrill Auditorium in Portland, Maine from November 27th through December 6th.

Then from January 30th through February 7th, they'll be performing Tap Tap Jazz at the Lopez Theatre in Falmouth, Maine.

The season concludes March 26th through April 11th with their performance of Coppelia at the Lopez Theatre.

For more information on the season and to purchase tickets, visit mainstateballet.org.