Indian Township: Down East settler on the road again

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Indian Township: Down East settler on the road again

Post by Outspoken on Fri Aug 01, 2008 4:39 am

Indian Township: Down East settler on the road again
By Diana Graettinger
Staff Writer Bangor Daily News

INDIAN TOWNSHIP, Maine - Capt. Tomah Lewey left such an important mark on Washington County’s landscape that on Thursday a portion of U.S. Route 1 was dedicated to the former surveyor, boat captain and farmer.

The dedication of the Capt. Tomah Lewey Memorial Highway was the work of tribal state Rep. Donald Soctomah. Last year, Soctomah introduced legislation to name that portion of U.S. Route 1 from the Princeton-Indian Township bridge to Topsfield.

Soctomah said Thursday that he had support from the towns of Waite and Talmadge to do so. This is the first major highway in the state to be named after a Passamaquoddy, Soctomah said.

Tribal members, including some of Lewey’s descendants, met near a big Department of Transportation highway sign that designates that portion of the road as the Capt. Tomah Lewey Memorial Highway. The sign is between the tribal offices and Lewey Lake, which also was named after the tribal member.

A ribbon was stretched across the highway and, for a time, the road was blocked. Former tribal Gov. John Stevens, who is an ancestor of Lewey’s, and Indian Township tribal Chief Billy Nicholas cut the ribbon to open the highway.

Tribal member Brenda Lozada began the dedication with a smudging ceremony. Tribal member Blanche Sockabasin and tribal Councilor Wayne Newell sang the honor song. Tribal elder Joanna Dana offered a prayer to the four directions.

Then it was time to honor Lewey with words.

Nicholas said Lewey was one of the most notable Indian Township residents.

"In the late 1700s, Tomah Lewey lived in St. Andrews, New Brunswick, but was forced to leave his home because of the influx of Loyalists near the tribal village," Nicholas said. "Capt. Tomah Lewey and his wife and children canoed up to a small island near Lewey Lake. He was the first permanent resident in the northern part of Washington County." That location was known as Lewey’s Island.

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