"BELOW", Dead River and Flagstaff, Maine - Immortalized in Lyrics on Waymarking.com

In the 1950s, the Central Maine Power Company purchased the home of the residents of Dead River and Flagstaff, as part of the public emminent domain law, to increase the size of Flagstaff Lake so that additional electricity could be generated for the people who lived downstream.

When the Power Company made the announcement to the residents of the two small towns, depression and dismay hung over all the people, who had to give up everything they had worked for, in order to provide electricity to those they did not even know. The song "Below" by Slaid Cleaves appears on his 2004 album Wishbones, documents this situation and how the residents felt.

Here is the YouTube Video:
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And here are two videos about the pre-flooding and the flooding of the towns:
The Plan to Flood Flagstaff:
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The Flooding of Flagstaff
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Musician: Slaid Cleaves Name of Song: "Below" Relevant Verse: Sometimes I wander down that road alone Remembering the town, that I once called home I grew up in the valley, every neighbor a friend Until the modern world started creeping in One day came the lawyers, with cash in hand They swore that our village would light up the land The dusky waters move cold and slow And the ghosts of a village still wander below Homesteads of families and friends forever more Haunting the valley below this sparkling shore Surrounding the valley was a painted red line Drawn by company men like marking a crime A silent reminder that all inside it must go Or be lost to the rising dead river's flow We watched our town, like a photograph fade As the company came, to take it all away They tore down the church, the schoolhouse burned They dug up the graves, the wheels of progress turned They got Dutchie's store, and Haven's pool hall When the dozers rolled, it shattered us all. The dusky waters move cold and slow And the ghosts of a village still wander below Homesteads of families and friends forever more Haunting the valley below this sparkling shore Old May Savage stayed as long as she could Her house on the hill towered over the flood It rose up alone, in the dark of night Its face on the water, the cold moonlight I shake off the memories, on my lips a prayer Thanks for the grace, and the beauty down there And while the porch lights glow, all over the state There's nothing but darkness, under the lake Location website: [Web Link]

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