WISCASSET — In a talk titled “Troubled Waters: French Acadian Naval Privateers in the Gulf of Maine during King Williams War,” historian Ken Hamilton will discuss the highly successful French naval actions off the Maine coast over a period of eight years beginning in 1689. Hamilton’s presentation will begin at 1 p.m. Sunday, Oct. 20, at Wiscasset Middle High School, 225 Gardiner Road, according to a news release from the Lincoln County Historical Association.
The sailing skill of the French Acadian ship commanders, along with their fighting tenacity and knowledge of the waters severely diminished the ability of Boston merchants to respond effectively. These privateers, or corsairs (from the word course, or route) continually pounded English merchant ships and harassed New England fishing vessels in what is known in Europe as a “Merchant War.”
Hamilton, of Corinth, is a blacksmith and internationally known colonial craft reproduction artist. He has been a Colonial-era Native American and French living history interpreter since 1985 and has also been an interpreter of a British soldier in His Majesty’s 10th Regiment of Foot. He has written about French trade knives and trade axes and has carried out extensive research into 17th and 18th century material culture — the physical objects, resources and spaces that people use to define their culture, according to the release.
This talk is the final presentation by Lincoln County Historical Association and Old Fort Western in part one of a three-part series of lectures commemorating Maine’s bicentennial. The second and third parts will took place in May and September.
Suggested donation is $5; refreshments will be served.
For more information, call 626-2385 or email oldfortwestern.org.
Old Fort Western is a not-for-profit organization whose mission is to preserve, protect, and interpret the National Historical Landmark, Fort, Store and House located on the Kennebec River in Augusta.
The Lincoln County Historical Association is a nonprofit organization that provides stewardship for the 1754 Chapman-Hall House in Damariscotta, the 1761 Pownalborough Court House in Dresden, and the 1811 Old Jail and Museum in Wiscasset. For more information about the organization, visit lincolncountyhistory.org or Facebook at Lincoln County Historical Association (Maine) and Pownalborough Court House Museum.
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