Benedict Arnold stayed with Lovel Fairbrother on October 3, 1775 near present day Skowhegan, ME during his march to Quebec
Taken from Pittsfield on the Sabasticook by Sanger Mills Cook. Published by the author through Furbush-Roberts Publishing Co. 1966.
Chapter: Frontier Days Pages 16 - 17
Subject: Lovel Fairbrother (taken in its entirety, minus spelling mistakes)
Only on rare occasions did white settlers venture into this area. The first account we have of any kind of an effort to make a permanent home here is found in an article by W. Allen if Norridgewock, dated 1871, and now among the archives of the Maine Historical Society in Portland. It was photocopied for David C. Libby who kindly broght it to my attention. It is a brief history of Somerset COunty and the section dealing with SABASTICOOK-WARSAW-PITTSFIELD reads in part as follows:
"Lovel Fairbrother came to the Kennebec at an early day and explored this river and the Sabasticookl found choice intervale at or near the fork of that river, and abundance of fish in the river and game in the forest. He therefore pitched his tent a big camp near the forks of the river in 1775 and moved his family there being joined by two others and this commenced the settlement in what is now the prosperous town of Pittsfield, then called Sabasticook.
"Soon after he got his family there, he was visited by the Plymouth Patent surveyor, who was surprised to find a man of his intelligence in that secluded place to which there was no road; seperated from all other settlements by ponds and swamps and impenetrable forests and he took from his haversack a bottle of rum and instated him as Governor of Sabasticook and treated him and he was then called Governor as long as he lived.
"The Governor was disappointed in his expectations. Did not enjoy living upon herring and coarse bread made of pounded corn. THere being no mill within twenty miles and no road or communication with other places but by water in the summer and ice in the winter. The land being on Plymouth Patent he could get no title to it; and could have a deed of a lot given him if he would settle in Norridgewock.
"He in 1777 transfered his possession at that place to Moses Martin who moved there from Norridgewock with his family and spent his days there to old age."
If Mr. Allens account is acurated, and I have no reason to believe that it isn't, "Governor" Fairbrother and his family become the first known white settles who tried to make a home in theis area. However, he couldn't take the rigors of pioneer life and moved out in a year or two. His greatest contribution to Pittsfield is that he evidently interested Moses Martin in the land and provided us with our first permanent citizen