The Early History of Crouseville, Maine

1800 - 1875

 Introduction

Long before European descendants populated the Aroostook Valley, the native peoples fished from the Aroostook River and ate fiddleheads from its banks. The land was thickly forested with no natural farmland. From 1800 to the 1820’s the very few white men venturing into the area were generally only timbermen interested in harvesting the tall pine.  

In 1800 the future Crouseville did not have any particular name. In 1826 it was first surveyed by Joseph Norris, whereupon it became known only as a part of Township[1] 13, Range 3. The early settlers living along the Aroostook River couldn’t be certain if they lived in New Brunswick, a North American British Colony, or the United States. In 1839 the United States formed Aroostook County.[2] This was an effort by the United States to lay claim to the area. In 1842 the Treaty of Washington firmly established the area as United States territory, yet some townships in Maine were administratively part of Massachusetts, the mother state. Salmon Brook Township, organized as the Plantation of Salmon Brook[3] in the winter of 1844-1845,[4] was one of the townships that belonged to Massachusetts, until about 1852. If you were born in what is present-day Crouseville in 1850, your birth place could be described as East Salmon Brook, Massachusetts. In 1861 the village of Salmon Brook incorporated into the city of Washburn and East Salmon Brook thereafter was commonly referred to as East Washburn. Finally, in 1897 the community was formally named Crouseville.

The Maine Register, State Year-Book and Legislative Manual, From May 1, 1897, to May 1, 1898, which was “prepared pursuant to the orders of the Legislature”, for the first time officially recognized the community as Crouseville. It stated that Crouseville’s Postmaster was J. Wilmot Crouse and the Selectmen for Crouseville were J. Wilmot Crouse and J. Allen Churchill. It listed two Crouseville manufacturers. The first was Herbert L. Crouse’s “springbeds and furniture” business. The second was for Winfield J. Crouse whose business was listed as “smith”.

From 1800 to 1900 the name for present-day Crouseville changed from Township 13, Range 3, Sections 3, 4, 5 & 6, W. E. L. S. (U.S. or British territory) to East Salmon Brook, Massachusetts to East Salmon Brook, Maine to East Washburn, Maine to Crouseville, Maine. Both sides of the Aroostook River were part of the community and were connected by a fording road, solid river ice in winter, and canoes or the like during high water times. For the purpose of simplicity in unfolding the early history of Crouseville, 1800 – 1875,  Crouseville, Maine, will be used for all time periods.