"Treat Island View", 12x24, oil
A visitor came to my gallery here on Campobello Island at the end of the summer and said her father bought half of Treat Island back when he just got out of college. I don't remember the exact amount she said he paid, but it wasn't very much. From the Heirlooms Reunited blog, I found out more about the island:
The island's most famous resident was Colonel John Allen, a member of General George Washington's personal staff. He was appointed Military Commander of the Eastern District of Maine and was tasked with organizing colonists in the area and working with area tribes to keep them neutral in the Revolution.
After the Revolution, he opened a store on the island and continued his friendship with area tribes, who hold him in high regard to this day. His records show that he traded on occasion with Benedict Arnold, who lived for a time on the neighboring island of Campobello.
My visitor's father passed away not too long ago. She, along with her siblings and the other family who owned the island, decided to make the island available to the Maine Coast Heritage Trust. The Trust purchased it last fall. Here's a Bangor Daily News story on it.
Having recently created a commission for a similar organization (the Nature Trust of New Brunswick), I was delighted at the opportunity to capture a view of another piece of preserved land. Above is the view from Friar's Head on Campobello, looking out toward Treat Island. The foreground is full of late September color.
