Putnam, Blackhawk, Tavern - Houlton ME
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nomadwillie
N 46° 07.654 W 067° 50.549
19T E 589423 N 5108871
Built in 1813, it is the oldest standing building Aroostook County. In the mid-19th century it served as a tavern on the military road, and one of its owners was Blackhawk Putnam, a veteran of the American Civil War.
Waymark Code: WMXA6W
Location: Maine, United States
Date Posted: 12/16/2017
Views: 0
Built in 1813, it is the oldest standing building Aroostook County. In the mid-19th century it served as a tavern on the military road, and one of its owners was Blackhawk Putnam, a veteran of the American Civil War.
The tavern was built in 1813 by Samuel Wormwood, a master carpenter originally from Alfred, Maine, for Aaron Putnam, who had settled in the Houlton area in 1805. It was not the first house built in Houlton by Wormwood; a house built for the local doctor in 1812 burned down in 1879. Houlton was connected to the rest of Maine by a military road built in 1828, and it is probable that the house began to serve as a tavern around then, as it was likely the largest house in the small community. The house was the scene of several sessions of the Washington County district court before the area was set off as Aroostook County in 1839. It then held sessions of that county's court for a number of years, and was owned by John Varnum Putnam, the county sheriff for many years. Putnam's son, Blackhawk, commanded a company of Maine volunteer infantry in the American Civil War. The property was used as a restaurant for a time after his death; it is now a private residence.
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