By Paul Sylvain

Rebellion, in the name of independence, doesn’t wait for perfect weather. And cloudy skies and a little drizzle or rain was not going to prevent Margaretta Days festivities from taking place June 14 and 15 in and around the shire town.

The annual celebration honors events that culminated on the morning of June 12, 1775, with the Battle of the Margaretta, months after the more famous battles of Lexington and Concord, Massachusetts, which are widely considered to be the start of the Revolutionary War. 

Nobody that June 249 years ago could have ever imagined that the small Massachusetts Colony town of Machias would play such a huge role in freeing the 13 English colonies from the bonds of Mother Britain.

You heard right. Maine was a part of the Massachusetts Colony back then, and it was that connection with Massachusetts that set the stage for the events of June 12 in Machias. 

The British army in Boston desperately needed lumber to build barracks for the growing number of troops arriving there as tensions after the Battles of Lexington and Concord that April grew. The armed British schooner HMS Margaretta escorted another ship carrying badly needed supplies to Machias in exchange for lumber.

The ships arrived in town and were greeted with the sight of a Liberty Pole near where American Legion Post 9 is now. Lt. Moore, the Margaretta’s commander, issued an ultimatum to the town: take down the pole or you get no supplies.

On June 12, about 100 Machias patriots (or “rebels” if you were Lt. Moore) — some with guns, but most with pitchforks, hoes, and other farming tools — commandeered the Unity from the British and, along with the Falmouth Packet from East River, chased down and boarded the Margaretta. 

Lt. Moore died of wounds suffered in the battle. The patriots’ leader, Jeremiah O’Brien, and the townspeople of Machias had captured an armed British vessel and won what is acknowledged as the first naval engagement of the American Revolution. From this, our Navy was born.

250 years later, Machias and surrounding towns have embraced their Revolutionary War roots. The series of bridges spanning Bad Little Falls in downtown Machias is named after O’Brien. Two local women, Hannah and Rebecca Weston, who attempted to bring supplies to soldiers in Machias from Jonesboro, have a nearly eight-mile section of US Route 1 named in their honor. And the Burnham Tavern, widely regarded as the meeting place of local patriots, is a hive of activity throughout the summer and early fall months. 

Chris Sprague had the honor of representing Jeremiah O’Brien at this year’s event, as he has done nearly every year since Margaretta Days Festival began in the early 2000s. Sprague certainly knows how to make anyone around him laugh. 

As he and a group of Machias “patriots” met in the woods to discuss an upcoming skirmish with the British, he was overheard urging his men on to victory with, “Remember the Alamo!” Never mind that the Alamo wouldn’t happen until some 60 years after the Margaretta!

The festivities this past weekend honored the memory of those daring events from 1775. Of course, there was no Margaretta or Unity moored in town, but there was a grand parade and several gunsmoke-filled “skirmishes” between Machias patriots and British Redcoats on the University of Maine at Machias campus to delight young and old history buffs alike.

However, overcast skies for the kick-off Friday, June 14, and a more than 50-percent chance of rain forecasted for Saturday morning, June 15, wasn’t promising a well attended event. 

While damp weather did not bode well for the crowds, it did add to the look and feel of a military encampment just waking up Saturday morning. One colonial reenactor was frying up some bacon in a deep cast iron pan. One woman, wearing 1770s period dress, had a dish of freshly scrambled eggs in front of her. There was a heavy smell of burnt, smoky wood in the air, and a tinge of freshly smoked alewives thanks to several nearby cooking fires.

The outdoor craft fair was, Friday afternoon, moved indoors to Reynolds Gym, though many of the food vendors, outside events, and Revolutionary War Reenactors’ encampments remained outdoors throughout a light drizzle that persisted most of the morning. While attendance was sporadic, those who did venture outdoors enjoyed themselves, and the crowds burst to life when raindrops and dark clouds retreated around noon. 

As is the case with such huge events, planning is expected to begin shortly for next year’s Margaretta Days, the 250th anniversary of the First Naval Battle of the Revolution.

The Piscataqua Rangers Fife & Drum Corps of Portsmouth, New Hampshire, set the pace for the Margaretta Days parade through the University of Maine at Machias campus on June 15. Photo courtesy Paul Sylvain.

From left, David Vegers, Anne Vegers, Steve Ramsey on his horse Henry Lee, and Hugh McGinley, on June 15 at the Margaretta Days celebration at the University of Maine at Machias campus. Photo courtesy Paul Sylvain.