Clarke and Lake's Fort
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Clarke and Lake's Fort (1654-1676) - A fortified trading post and garrison house established 1654 by Major Thomas Clarke and Captain Thomas Lake as the Clarke and Lake Company. Located on the eastern side of Arrowsic Island along the Sasonoa River, between Mill Island and Spring Cove, Sagadahoc County, Maine. Named Clarke and Lake's Fort after the builders. Destroyed by hostile Indians and abandoned in 1676. Also known as Arrowsic Fort (1). Assigned Location ID ME00078. HistoryEstablished in 1654. The Clarke and Lake Co. built a fortified trading post and garrison house (20 feet by 65 feet) on Arrowsic Island which Major Clarke and Captain Lake purchased from the Indians in 1661. The complex came to included a fort, mills, a foundry, and a shipyard. During the second year of King Philip's War, the complex was attacked and destroyed by hostile Indians on 14 Aug 1676. The Indians attacked the settlement and killed or captured all but three of the inhabitants. Captain Lake was mortally wounded but Major Clarke survived and escaped. In February of the following year, troops came from Baston to recover the cannon and bury the dead. The burned-out site was abandoned. The fort's two cannon were recovered in February 1677 and taken back to Boston. Archeological excavations were done initially in the 1890's and later in the 1960's-1970's. The digs revealed hundreds of artifacts, many were on display at the Woolwich Historical Society Museum on US Hwy 1 at Nequasset Road in Woolwich, Maine. Many of the artifacts are cataloged on-line. Current StatusArcheological remains only.
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