[at-l] Baxter State Park History Question

[camojack at comcast.net (camojack@comcast.net)]

Baxter State Park, a wilderness area of 202,064 acres, was a gift to the State of Maine by former Gov. Percival P. Baxter. In 1930 he made his first land purchase of 5,960 acres which included Katahdin, the highest mountain in Maine. This land was given to the State in 1931. By resolve of the Maine Legislature in 1933, the area was officially designated as Baxter State Park in his honor. His final gift of 7,764 acres was made in 1962.

The Baxter Park Authority, in its annual report, has quoted Baxter's desire that the park: "...shall forever be retained and used for state forest, public park and public recreational purposes...shall forever be kept and remain in the natural wild state...shall forever be kept and remain as a sanctuary for beasts and birds."

Regarding wilderness?

The 1964 Wilderness Act defines it as follows:

A wilderness, in contrast with those areas where man and his own works dominate the landscape, is hereby recognized as an area where the earth and its community of life are untrammeled by man, where man himself is a visitor who does not remain. An area of wilderness is further defined to mean in this Act an area of undeveloped Federal land retaining its primeval character and influence, without permanent improvements or human habitation, which is protected and managed so as to preserve its natural conditions and which (1) generally appears to have been affected primarily by the forces of nature, with the imprint of man's work substantially unnoticeable; (2) has outstanding opportunities for solitude or a primitive and unconfined type of recreation; (3) has at least five thousand acres of land or is of sufficient size as to make practicable its preservation and use in an unimpaired condition; and (4) may also contain ecological, geological, or other features of scientific, educational, scenic, or historical value.

Let the "games" begin, er, continue!

-"Camo"
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Date: Sat, 17 Apr 2004 22:46:31 -0400
From: "rick boudrie" <rickboudrie@hotmail.com>
Subject: [at-l] Baxter State Park History Question
To: ellen@clinic.net
Cc: at-l@mailman.backcountry.net

I have got to admit a bit of confusion on this.

For all the talk of Baxter's desire to maintain the park as "forever wild", 
didn't he also intend to have the property operate as a PARK?

Like many others on this list, I have stayed at a number of different sites 
at Baxter-- from bunkhouses to primitive cabins to drive in campsites in 
close company with strangers.  When were these built?  It had to have been a 
while back, right?

Kidney Pond has cabins all around it, and has for years, right?  Is that 
wilderness?  Probably not by most people's standards, but I wouldn't be 
surprised if Baxter stayed there himself.   In comparison to the size of 
that compound, a 4' x 4" solar pannel is not much to notice, IMHO.  Then 
there are the drive in sites.  WIlderness?  Who knows, I got some great 
Northern Lights at Neowhatsits Fieild one night, even though I was only 5 
feet from my car.  I am not sure Baxter would have disapproved.  Thoughts?  
Do you think that site and Trout Brook and all the rest were built after he 
died?

And that's the real thrust of my post.  Didn't Baxter intend this place to 
be a park?

Rick B