- Maine's Swedish Colony Guide

The whole township was owned by timber/paper companies, who granted leases until lakeside sales and second husband Andrew Lawson until 1949, when it was sold to Chester Buzzell. He added a line of clothing and other goods, and sold to Stan's in 1964.

Madawaska Lake camp

Steamboat Rides

In July 1894 Lewis Anderson wrote from Jemtland to Sweden that "I live at a lake where Peter and I have a steamboat to take people out on pleasure trips. They have Sunday School festivals, musical bands,a guitar band and a brass band and violins, singing and music and young people's groups every Friday evening and lovely prayer meetings." In 1895 the steamboat was sold, but others also operated steamboats, including Jacob Hedman and J.J. Sodergren, who also rented rowboats for the fabulous fishing. In 1899 J.J. was reported to be packing ice (from the lake, in sawdust in the icehouse) for the summer trade. He had also built a bandstand between the camps and the store, and provided transportation in his three-seater wagon for those without their own buggies. A barn was built close to the lake, was later moved across the road.

In the early 1900's the lumber companies had large wide scows to transport their goods across the lake to such places as Ketchum's Landing for their woods camps. The softwood trees were floated down the Little Madawaska Stream in the spring to the Stockholm mills, and timber was also
took place in 1981. John J. Sodergren arrived from Sweden in 1884 and built a log home (still there) on his Stockholm farm lot next to the T16-R4 town line. His daughter Adeline later said that John J. and his father Jons cut a path to Madawaska Lake with axes and hauled out the trees with horses. A few people began to venture in to the lake and soon the first cabin was built (later sold to a Civil War veteran named Clark. The lot was resold many times, most recently to Terry Thibodeau). There was a cabin of Lillie Gien (later torn down) on Rosalind Sodergren's lot. Lars Anderson helped Mr. Jernard build a cabin on the lot now owned by Alice Brown. Sven Tall and Lars Anderson built a cabin for George Trickey from New York (later President of the Aroostook Trust Co.), now owned by Hildur Doyle.

In 1890-93 the Aroostook Republican reported that a club house was built by A.F. Ulrich and some Caribou men for picnicking and outing groups. Then it said that John Sodergren bought the club house and also the steamer Lock Nae Gar for excursions on the lake, and that he had shot a caribou buck. He had started the first store in a lean-to. The property was sold to his daughter Mabel in June 1914. She operated the store and camps with her first husband John Ronnberg hauled on huge sleds drawn by horses, or by steam log haulers on iced roads through the woods. Vestiges of these old roads still remain, but have been supplanted by new gravel roads for the huge logging trucks.

Carlstrom Landing

In the meantime, Anselm Carlstrom had homesteaded a farm lot north of Madawaska Lake (on the present Rt.161), and then cleared another area on the lake north of Sodergrens. He built a place right on the lakeshore and rented boats and had a store and eating place. Later a store and camps were built across the road. Peter Carlstrom took over from his father, and at various times the camps were used by George Lind, John Ronnberg, G. Wiren, and Andrew Nesman. The camps were then sold to Storm Wessell, Dorothy Wessell and Curtis Cooper, Ernest Lindberg, Fernald Anderson, the Hede Family, John McCormack, Roger Harpine, Mrs. Tony Lamb (who owned the property when it burned 31 March 1997), and P.L. Willey. When Storm Wessell owned the camps, the elder Clinton Fraser and young Gordon Fraser and Martin Anderson and a Finn by the name of Walfred Stone stayed there while building camps on the Johnson Point Road, with Mrs. Fraser doing the cooking. Martin reported that it was a very lively winter!As time passed, the landowner (International Paper Co.) began leasing more lots around the lake for summer use, with the store owners being the only year-around residents. And they often closed for the winter. But Buzzell, Stan Thomas and Hedes stayed open year around. The leased lots eventually extended all the way from the thoroughfare on the south shore to beyond Johnson Brook on the north shore. After the lots were sold in 1981, more and more people decided to become permanent year-around residents. In the 2000 election, there were 129 registered voters in this still unorganized township. Stan's (home of the 10¢ coffee) is the lake's only community gathering spot.

Moose watching on Carry Brook.

Top
«Previous | Next»
Rev.3/20/2005
Gen.3/20/2005 19:33:27

© 2005 Maine's Swedish Colony Inc.
Send email to: John Hede, [email protected] and Bill Duncan, [email protected].
Get involved. Join the Maine Swedish Colony, PO Box 50, New Sweden, Maine, 04762.
Updated 20 Mar 05, 19:33

Hosted by www.Geocities.ws