Campobello --- Island of Flowers

I'm just coming back from a walk along the North Road. Down below the road, on an empty lot stands a patch of Lupines. They were standing in the golden rays of this late afternoon. I saw two ladies being busy with taking pictures of the lupines. One of them turned towards me exclaiming "What a  beautiful island".  Yep, they are right. Campobello IS VERY beautiful. And Bea had taken pictures of the flowers  just days earlier. She was also in a neighbor's garden where she found orange 

Rhododendrons.

And here are her pictures:

CAMPOBELLO (Part 6)

From the last couple of days I also include a picture Bea took at Herring Cove.

CAMPOBELLO (Part 6)
James Roosevelt purchased several acres of land and had a summer home constructed; other wealthy visitors did the same. Although the resulting summer colony produced work for local people building cottages, providing food and services, provisioning yachts,fishing remained the Island's mainstay.

Campobello's hotels prospered until about 1910. In 1915, the Campobello Company sold its holdings to a group of New York businessmen who took the name Campobello Corporation. This Corporation's interests were sold to the remaining summer colony about 1930,and the name changed to the Campobello Island Club. 

The Dead River Land Company bought the club holdings in 1957 and for several years harvested lumber and pulp wood. Most of Dead River's holdings were eventually sold to a new Campobello Company, interested in developing and subdividing property. Some of the Arkansas developers were later well known figures involved in the "White Water" scandal in the U.S.

The summer trade exists again on Campobello. In 1959, a gift of land from one of the original summer colonists helped establish Herring Cove Provincial Park. Herring Cove provides summer visitors with a challenging nine-hole golf course, excellent camping facilities, scenic picnic areas and woodland hiking trails.

With the opening of the Franklin D. Roosevelt Memorial Bridge in 1962, over 100,000 people visit Campobello each year. The Roosevelt Campobello International Park was established in 1964 following a gift of the cottage and its grounds to the Canadian and United States governments.

The Park was established as an expression of the close relationship between Canada and the United States and as a memorial to the President of the United States who so greatly strengthened that relationship.

Although the fishing industry ; the harvesting of lobster, scallops, clams, sea urchins, herring, cod,pollock, mackerel and pen-raised salmon and occupations related to the fishing industry remain the mainstay of Campobello, tourism is a steadily increasing Campobello industry.

Campobello (Part 5)

Wealth, Style and Privilege was to dominate the Island in a manner that was unknown to the population.
An era of American gentility of the Gilded Age settled on Campobello as it got to be the playground of Victorian mores and culture -- Yankee-style.


Of course there were rich Canadian families from Montreal, but being miles from the Canadian mainland, Americans dominated the scene.


With about 1mill. Dollars at hand the Campobello Company started to build resort-style hotels for the upper American class. The first hotel to be build was "The Owen".
It was followed by the Tyn-y-Coed (welsh: house in the woods) and the Tyn-y-Maes (house in the field)
These were huge hotels with hundreds of rooms offering the utmost in comfortable living, with the goal of providing a refined home for their guests.


While being of exclusive service for the distinguished guests, a border line was drawn towards local population which was referred to as being industrious and drifty, but clearly part of the background.


The next goal of the Campobello Company was to devise and establish an extensive colony of summer cottages, each on a lot the size of 2-6 acres. 15 lots were sold quickly and cottages were built. Campobello Company's promotional literature was full of praise for the natural beauty and serenity of the island. It talked about the islanders "lonely huts" and extolled about the "forest crowned" islands of the Passamaquoddy Bay. 
Friar's Head, Herring Cove, Cranberry Point and Liberty Point were all picturesque spots for picnics, outings and games. 
There was an abundance of fresh seafood, which at times was hard-to-come-by in big-city homes.

Tyn-y-Coed and Tyn-y-Maes on Campobello Island

With the arrival of the automobile and thus greater mobility the Campobello Company was facing great pains for the future. The hotels stayed empty and when WW-1 rolled around they were abandoned and dismantled. 


Campobello might have been an agreeable place all together, but it was a hard to reach destination in those days.
In 1882 travelers could take to the railroads to Eastport and from there being ferried across the bay to Campobello, or they could jump on a steamer in New York or Boston which would reach Eastport after many hours of travel. The steamer from Boston would take 25 hours, the trip from New York would take 43 hours.


The tiny spruce-clad island in the Bay of Fundy was 
established, promoted and visited by a group of rusticators, some of whom would return regularly for half a century and more. Among those rusticators was James Roosevelt w. wife and son Franklin.


Historical source: "Beloved Island" by Jonas Klein

Campobello (part4)

How did this remote island became what it is today? What is the story of history? Let's have a look into the past, long before F.D.R. came to be a guest and summer resident.
The first Europeans settled on the island in 1684. During the English/French struggle over control of North America the rulers changed many times. At times the area was under English rule, then again the French were the masters of the country. 


Following the great triumph of the British over the French after the 7-year-war, a Welsh naval officer, Lieutenant William Owen was named the principal Proprietary of the "Great Outer Island of the Passamaquoddy".
With 38 Lancashire settlers Owen landed on the island in May 21 1770. Partly honouring his former commander Lord William Campbell, partly because of referring to the Island's beauty he named it CAMPO BELLO.
For unknown reasons Owen sailed back to England in 1771 and never returned. His nephew David Owen took over Campobello in 1787. 


By 1835, the next Owen, David Owen's English-born second son Admiral William Fitzwilliam Owen had succeeded to the proprietorship of the island. After living a life of British gentility on Campobello, the Admiral died in 1857. A son-in-law, Captain James Robinson-Owen assumed the Owen name and the proprietorship. He became known as an unsympathetic landlord and tried to sell the island as it continued to be unprofitable. But the hard financial  times that followed the Great American Depression in 1872 made a sale impossible and Sir Robinson-Owen died suddenly in 1874.


The hard times brought a new sort of enterprise to Campobello: Rum-running. Fishing boats from various parts of the coast arrived at Campobello, supposedly for purchasing herring, while they in reality bought imported whiskey and gin from Ireland, Scotland, France and Holland. That kind of business was revived again during the Prohibition Era in the U.S. in the 1920's.


The Owen Era and the Proprietorship ended in 1881, when Cornelia Robinson-Owen sold her rights to the island to a group of American businessmen who had formed the Campobello Company. Their plans were developing the island into a gilded tourist resort for the rich and wealthy. The Owens left the island and sailed for England. 
The remaining ordinary population of Campobello were now witnessing an enormous social change take place on Campobello.

Campobello (Part3)

The Roosevelts

Why did the Roosevelts come to Campobello Island?  In the 1880s rich families from New York, Philadelphia, Boston, Montreal and Ottawa came to Campobello by Rail and Steamship or private Yachts. At that time Campobello had 3 fashionable hotels. Several Families purchased land and started building expansive cottages.

Franklin D. Roosevelt and his wife in the canoe to the right

James Roosevelt, his wife Sara and one-year-old son Franklin first visited Campobello in 1883. James purchased a partially completed house on 1.6 hectares. Two years later the house was finished and the Roosevelts became yearly summer residents on Campobello. (This house is not longer standing) Now  they could escape the opressive summer heat in New York and enjoy the lovely nature with outdoor summer activities.

Franklin in a conversation with Passamaquoddy Tribal Chief William Neptune around 1920

The building, today known as the Roosevelt Cottage was built in 1897 for another early Campobello visitor, Mrs. Hartmann Kuhn, who was fond of  Eleanor Roosevelt,  When Mrs. Hartmann Kuhn died she had put a provision in her will that  F.D.R’s mother, Sara, could purchase the cottage for the low sum of $5000. Sara purchased the property in 1909.

From 1909 to the summer of 1921, Franklin, Eleanor and their children vacationed in what is now called “The Roosevelt Cottage”. It was in 1921 that Franklin, who was always an energetic and athletic man, contracted Polio. He was carried off the Island on a stretcher!

Even though Eleanor and the children continued to visit Campobello, F.D.R’s. growing political involvement soon limited his visits to a few days at a time.

During the years of 1929-1933 Franklin D. Roosevelt served as the Governor of New York State. Then he ran for President against Herbert Hoover and won in a landslide.

After the Polio attack Franklin did not return to Campobello for nearly 12 years and then only three times in 1933, 1936 and 1939.

Exquisite on Campobello (part 2)

From friends we had heard that the Roosevelt Cottage had planned a luncheon as a fund raiser for our lighthouse group. 

Roosevelt Cottage

Of course we had to support the idea, and besides it would be an excellent opportunity to meet our friends and enjoy the exquisite surroundings of the park buildings. The luncheon was to be held in the Prince Cottage.  The cottage is normally not open to the public. Most visitors will never see or notice it as it is hidden between big trees.

A wide, double-columned porch invites us inside. As we enter we are immediately taken by the elegance greeting us from the living area. We are also invited to view the upper floors where all the neatly renovated bedrooms, most of them with ensuite baths, are located. The Prince Cottage serves as part of the parks conference activity as it offers a large dining area with modern equipped kitchen.

After lunch we walk over to the Hubbard Cottage to enjoy the Eleanor Roosevelt Tea-time.

Hubbard Cottage

Living Room in Hubbard Cottage

Living Room towards the Bay side

Hubbard was an American Millionaer who, like the Roosevelts, had fallen in love with the islands charming nature and remote location. He had a cottage built which is one of the richest decorated cottages on the island. Like also the Prince and the Roosevelt Cottages the Hubbard was built with a wide view across the Passamaquoddy Bay.  When touring the cottage, it becomes clear that the woodwork is even more elaborate than that of the Roosevelt Cottage.  Also, the living room is just stunningly beautiful.

The Hubbards often enjoyed Campobello together with the Roosevelts and had picnics together.

We were served tea with delicious cookies and it turned out to be the most inspiring afternoon.

But we hadn’t brought our camera and Bea wanted to get back to fetch the Nikon. In the meantime I took Molly and drove out into the Roosevelt Park. The park features a coastal trail offering amazing views across the ocean. Since I am still hampered with the recovery of my left foot, I had brought a camping chair, while Molly was exploring the close-up surroundings.

The quiet of the park can hardly be described. Today it was only the faint surf along the beach which could be heard.

I will write more about the Park, the history and the Roosevelts. Just hang in here and read on tomorrow.

Campobello Island (part 1)

Here, on the island, more and more summer-residents are arriving. And plans are already made to re-start the work on the East-Quoddy Lighthouse. Ah – of course, you don’t know it yet. We have two lighthouses on the island: On the south-tip towards Lubec, Maine, there is the Mulholland Lighthouse, then on the north end we have the much bigger East Quoddy Lighthouse. The East-Quoddy lighthouse was given to the Campobello Community in 2006. It was in pity conditions when a group of enthusiasts, mostly pensionists, started the rehabilitation of the buildings. 

The East Quoddy Lighthouse

Today East-Quoddy is a powerful attraction as it stands perched on the rocks against the Bay of Fundy. But work will never stop out there. So last year, I joined the group and have worked with a number of small projects.  The lighthouse is also the best spot on the island to view the whales. The whales are coming in late summer and stay around for feeding until early october. They are just another attraction we have out here, which can also be viewed by hooking up with a whale-watch boat from the island.

Campobello Island is a small island, less than 10 miles long and 3 miles wide. Water views are abundant with the Passamaquoddy Bay to the West and the open ocean to the East.  It is one of the most beautiful spots on earth I have ever seen.  A number of natural beaches invite the beach comber to hours of searching for “treasures”, and hikers will love the many paths through out the Herring Cove Provincial Park and the Roosevelt-Campobello International Park. 

What? An International Park? Yes that’s right, we have the only International Park on Canadian soil which is administered by both the U.S.A. and Canada governments.  One of the more famous U.S.-Presidents, Franklin D. Roosevelt, established his summer residence on this island. It is a “cottage” of 34 rooms located towards the Passamaquoddy Bay on the South end of the island. Around the cottage there is a beautiful garden and beyond that, acres and acres of natural park landscape with miles of trails.

I will be writing more about Campobello Island in the days and weeks to follow. So hang on and read it right here on american-traveler.blogspot.com!

In the Roosevelt-Campobello Intern'l Park