Pennellville Historic District
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Pennellville Historic District is a U.S. residential district in the town of Brunswick, Maine. Much of the character and significance of the area revolves around historic mansions built in the area by the Pennell family in the 18th and 19th centuries, and the historic shipyard located there, where the Pennells built wooden sailing ships for the 18th and 19th Century cargo trade. To the local inhabitants, it is known simply as Pennellville. It is known for being one of the most expensive neighborhoods in the area, due in large part to the fact that much of it is waterfront property and it is home to several historic ship captains' mansions.
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[edit] Geography
Pennellville is located in the southern portion of Brunswick, on the Atlantic Ocean. The bay where it sits is known as Middle Bay which empties into Casco Bay [1]. Although no official boundaries have ever been designated, Pennellville does have a distinct area. The northern boundary is Middle Bay Road, the southern boundary is Middle Bay itself. As Pennellville sits on a peninsula, Middle Bay also forms the eastern boundary, and Simpson's Point Road serves as the western boundary. It is not thought that properties on Mere Point Road between Middle Bay Road and Simpson's Point Road are part of the area.
[edit] Local Government
Although Pennellville is a separate district, it is officially part of Brunswick, and all matters of local government are handled by Brunswick's town government. Residents also use Brunswick's post office, police department, fire and rescue departments, library, and public school system.
[edit] History
[edit] Native Americans
Before white settlers, Pennellville was inhabited by Native Americans. Evidence of their presence has been detected as arrowheads and stores of shellfish shells have been found in the area. Native Americans ate large amounts of shellfish found in Middle Bay, and discarded the shells in huge piles on the shores. It is not known if Native Americans were still in the area when the first European settlers arrived, and if they were, whether the relationship between the Natives and European settlers was hostile or friendly.
[edit] European Settlers
It is known that the first Pennell to settle the area was Thomas Pennell III. Thomas had been living in Falmouth, Maine (now Portland), where he had been living since moving north from Gloucester, Massachusetts. In the early 1700s, he travelled north to settle in Maine. Thomas built the first house in the area sometime in the early to mid 1700s. This house, however no longer stands. Thomas then had a son, Thomas II. It is not clear if Thomas II lived in his father's house or lived in another house which no longer stands, but Thomas II soon had a son, Jacob who built a new house in 1760. As of 2006, the Jacob Pennell House was the oldest surviving Pennell house in Pennellville.
[edit] Shipbuilding
Although the Pennell family was probably building ships since Thomas I arrived, the earliest available records show that Jacob Pennell began building wooden ships around 1760. Over the next 114 years (1760-1874) the Pennell family would build in excess of 90 sailing vessels from the shipyard in Pennellville, making them one of the most prominent shipbuilding families in America. With the wealth acquired from the massively successful shipbuilding business, the Pennell family (Jacob now had several sons, all of whom joined him in the business) began building stately mansions. Around this time, they christened the company "Pennell Brothers." Pennellville was soon considered its own community, and eventually three roads in the area would bare the Pennell name: Pennellville Road, Old Pennellville Road, and Pennell Way. Soon the area had its own schoolhouse and signs designating the area as being separate from Brunswick. In all, the Pennells built seven houses in the area between 1760 and 1877. Since 1877, development has been relatively sparse, and much of Pennellville remains wooded areas and open fields, although development has increased significantly since 1980. While all other Pennells have since sold their properties, one descendant of Thomas I still lives in one of the houses.
[edit] Relatives and Guests
A notable relative of the Pennell family is Pulitzer Prize-winning poet Robert P. Tristram Coffin, who lived in the Jacob Pennell Jr. mansion. Coffin wrote the critically acclaimed history Captain Abby and Captain John, about two Pennell ship captains. The Pennells gained quite a bit of visibility during their boom period and entertained several famous guests, who often attended ship launchings. Notables who visited Pennellville mansions include such historic figures as Norman Rockwell, Hellen Keller, James Michener, Henry Wadsworth Longfellow, and Joshua Chamberlain (Union General in the Civil War who was instrumental in the victory at Gettysburg)
[edit] Pennell and Brothers
As stated before, the Pennell and Brothers shipbuilding company built many of the wooden ships that carried cargos around the world in the 18th and 19th Century cargo trade. Sometimes the family would retain ownership of the ships and charge fees for shipping cargos, sometimes shares of a ship would be sold, and sometimes a ship would be sold outright. Pennells also acted as captains of many of the ships they built. The business operated out of the shipyard located in Pennellville. The site of the yard, including the "ways" from which a ship was launched was moved to three locations in the bay during the operation of the company. The first site was located deep inland, furthest away from the entrance to the ocean. The yard was moved twice after this, getting closer to the entrance to the ocean with each move.
As stated above, the Pennell family was probably building ships in America before the first records of such activities in the 1760s. This is thought because ancestors who pre-date Thomas I (the first Pennell in America) were shipbuilders in England. It is known with certainty that the Pennell family was building ships in Pennellville by 1760.
[edit] Routes and Cargos
The ships carried all kinds of cargos, amongst them timber, deadstock, wine, guano, salt, fruit and many other products. It is noted, however that the company was never involved in the slave trade. Ships made runs to ports all over the world, and included in their shipping routes was the infamous run around Cape Horn at the southern tip of South America.
[edit] Ships
The Pennells built many different styles of ships including barks, schooners, sloops, and brigs. The ships weighed anywhere from 45 tons to over 1,000 tons. The Benjamin Sewall, the largest ship ever produced by the yard, weighed 1,433 tons. Completed in 1874 it would also prove to be the last ship ever built by the yard, and was lost in 1903.
[edit] Demise of the Shipyard
Although it is not certain what caused the demise of the yard, there are several probable factors that contributed to its decline. By the end of the 1800s, metal hulled steamships had begun to replace wooden ships as a means of quickly and safely transporting goods around the world. This was combined with the fact that railroads had also come into their own as a means of shipping and transportation across a continent. For example, it was now easier to ship by railroad from New York to San Francisco than it was sail around Cape Horn.
Around this same time, James Pennell died as a result of a fall that occurred in the shipyard. As James was the last master builder of the Pennell family, his death was probably a major blow to the workings of the yard.
