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Atwell's Creek

Coordinates: 43°47′23″N 70°09′53″W / 43.7898°N 70.1647°W / 43.7898; -70.1647
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

Atwell's Creek
Folly Creek
Map
Location
CountryUnited States
StateMaine
TownYarmouth
Physical characteristics
MouthRoyal River
 • location
Yarmouth, Maine, U.S.
 • coordinates
43°47′23″N 70°09′53″W / 43.7898°N 70.1647°W / 43.7898; -70.1647

Atwell's Creek is a former watercourse in Yarmouth, Maine, United States.[1] It is named for John Atwell, who married Elizabeth Maine, daughter of John and Elizabeth.[2][3]

Flowing into the southern edge of Yarmouth harbor, between today's Holy Cross Cemetery and Larrabee's Landing, it was formerly an important access point to the mainland.[3] It was used from the early 18th century to power various mills, the first being Massachusetts native Gilbert Winslow's sawmill in 1720.[4] The creek received its nickname of Folly's Creek at this time, because Winslow's venture was expected by many people to fail, but it proved to be "a profitable concern."[5][6] The creek was "a considerable watercourse then"; now, though, it is nothing more than a tidal inlet.[7]

John Atwell Jr., son of John Atwell, married Margaret Maxe in 1693. They later lived beside Atwell's Creek on its western side.[3]

References

[edit]
  1. ^ Corliss, Augustus W. (1877). Old Times in North Yarmouth, Maine. Augustus W. Corliss. p. 684.
  2. ^ Felt, Dorr Eugene (1921). A Register of the Ancestors of Dorr Eugene Felt and Agnes (McNulty) Felt. D. E. Felt. p. 4.
  3. ^ a b c Atwell Family – Orange County California Genealogical Society
  4. ^ Lowell, Mary Chandler (1911). Chandler-Parsons: Edmund Chaundeler, Geoffrey Parsons and Allied Families. T. R. Marvin & Son. p. 69.
  5. ^ Collections of the Maine Historical Society: Volume 2. Maine Historical Society. 1847. p. 181.
  6. ^ "Atwell's Creek - History of Yarmouth ME". October 21, 2020. Archived from the original on October 21, 2020. Retrieved March 1, 2024.
  7. ^ Ancient North Yarmouth and Yarmouth, Maine 1636-1936: A History, William Hutchinson Rowe (1937)