Hancock Barracks
Encyclopedia
Hancock Barracks was a 19th century fortification near Houlton, Maine
.
ended American Revolutionary War
. British invaded coastal Maine during the War of 1812, but the treaty ending that war simply reverted the border to that established in 1783. The Army anticipated further conflict along the border and purchased 25 acres of land atop Garrison Hill east of Houlton, Maine.
The Army in 1828 established Hancock Barracks to quarter a garrison of two hundred troops. At the time of its construction, Hancock Barracks lay farther northeast than any other Army installation in the United States. Soldiers and their family members who died at the post were interred at the post cemetery. Locals took jobs supplying the troops, stimulating the local economy. Workers completed military and state roads connecting Hancock Barracks with Bangor, Maine
, open for travel after 1834.
Major Reynold M. Kirby arrived at Hancock Barracks in October 1838 alongside the Lucien Webster, an officer.
When Aroostook War
flared in 1839, three companies of the 1st Artillery Regiment manned Hancock Barracks under Major Reynold M. Kirby. Maine legislature sent twelve companies of state militia, and Major Kirby helped to restrain them from starting a shooting war. The officer corps in 1840/1841 briefly included Second Lieutenant Michael Simpson Culbertson
. Brigadier General Winfield Scott
in 1839 successfully negotiated a truce that minimized hostilities until Webster-Ashburton Treaty
settled the boundary dispute in 1842.
The Army made Hancock Barracks the headquarters of 1st Artillery Regiment in 1840. Despite the bitter weather, it gained a reputation as a good post. American army officers occasionally made merriment with their British counterparts in nearby Woodstock, New Brunswick
.
Houlton, Maine
Houlton is a town in Aroostook County, Maine, on the United States – Canada border, located at . As of the 2010 census, the town population was 6,123. It is perhaps best known as being at the northern terminus of Interstate 95 and for being the birthplace of Samantha Smith...
.
Origin
Controversy surrounded the boundary between Massachusetts (now Maine) and New Brunswick after Treaty of Paris (1783)Treaty of Paris (1783)
The Treaty of Paris, signed on September 3, 1783, ended the American Revolutionary War between Great Britain on the one hand and the United States of America and its allies on the other. The other combatant nations, France, Spain and the Dutch Republic had separate agreements; for details of...
ended American Revolutionary War
American Revolutionary War
The American Revolutionary War , the American War of Independence, or simply the Revolutionary War, began as a war between the Kingdom of Great Britain and thirteen British colonies in North America, and ended in a global war between several European great powers.The war was the result of the...
. British invaded coastal Maine during the War of 1812, but the treaty ending that war simply reverted the border to that established in 1783. The Army anticipated further conflict along the border and purchased 25 acres of land atop Garrison Hill east of Houlton, Maine.
The Army in 1828 established Hancock Barracks to quarter a garrison of two hundred troops. At the time of its construction, Hancock Barracks lay farther northeast than any other Army installation in the United States. Soldiers and their family members who died at the post were interred at the post cemetery. Locals took jobs supplying the troops, stimulating the local economy. Workers completed military and state roads connecting Hancock Barracks with Bangor, Maine
Bangor, Maine
Bangor is a city in and the county seat of Penobscot County, Maine, United States, and the major commercial and cultural center for eastern and northern Maine...
, open for travel after 1834.
Aroostook War
Conflict quickly arose regarding the definition of the border with Maine and New Brunswick authorities expressing sovereignty in the area. Lumbermen and settlers infiltrated the Aroostook region from both sides.Major Reynold M. Kirby arrived at Hancock Barracks in October 1838 alongside the Lucien Webster, an officer.
When Aroostook War
Aroostook War
The Aroostook War was an undeclared nonviolent confrontation in 1838/1839 between the United States and Great Britain over the international boundary between British North America and Maine. The compromise resolution win a mutually accepted border between the state of Maine and the provinces of...
flared in 1839, three companies of the 1st Artillery Regiment manned Hancock Barracks under Major Reynold M. Kirby. Maine legislature sent twelve companies of state militia, and Major Kirby helped to restrain them from starting a shooting war. The officer corps in 1840/1841 briefly included Second Lieutenant Michael Simpson Culbertson
Michael Simpson Culbertson
Michael Simpson Culbertson was an American Presbyterian clergyman, missionary to China, academic and author.- Early life :...
. Brigadier General Winfield Scott
Winfield Scott
Winfield Scott was a United States Army general, and unsuccessful presidential candidate of the Whig Party in 1852....
in 1839 successfully negotiated a truce that minimized hostilities until Webster-Ashburton Treaty
Webster-Ashburton Treaty
The Webster–Ashburton Treaty, signed August 9, 1842, was a treaty resolving several border issues between the United States and the British North American colonies...
settled the boundary dispute in 1842.
The Army made Hancock Barracks the headquarters of 1st Artillery Regiment in 1840. Despite the bitter weather, it gained a reputation as a good post. American army officers occasionally made merriment with their British counterparts in nearby Woodstock, New Brunswick
Woodstock, New Brunswick
Woodstock is a Canadian town in Carleton County, New Brunswick located on the west bank of the Saint John River at the mouth of the Meduxnekeag River, 92 km west of Fredericton and close to the Canada – United States border and Houlton, Maine.- History :Woodstock was settled by Loyalists...
.