Legend of the Buck Memorial - Bucksport, Maine
Posted by: 
razalas
Assisted by: 
T0SHEA
N 44° 34.265 W 068° 47.086
19T E 517089 N 4935327
Legend of the Buck Memorial is inscribed on a plaque, an Eagle Scout Project by Jef Hutchins in 1991. You can visit this memorial located at the corner of Main Street and Hinks Street.
Waymark Code: WMPQBG
Location: Maine, United States
Date Posted: 10/06/2015
Views: 5
Created From:
[Deleted Waymark] - posted by
T0SHEA
There are many urban legends connected to the memorial, the most common theme is described on a plaque placed in 1991 by Eagle Scout Jef Hutchins.
We visited the memorial and gravesite of Colonel Jonathan Buck, founder of Bucksport, Maine. Colonel Jonathan Buck was born on February 20, 1719 in Woburn, Massachusetts and died March 18, 1795 in Bucksport, Maine.
Though Colonel Jonathan Buck was a American Revolutionary War hero, the founder of Bucksport, Maine and was a leader in its early development, he also built the first saw mill, the first grist mill and the first boat in the area.
Colonel Johnathan Buck has received worldwide notoriety, not for these outstanding accomplishments, but for the Witch's Curse...
There is a monument erected by his descendants nearly sixty years after his death, which was about 1854.
In 1991, a plaque was installed as an Eagle Project and the legend continues to be immortalized there for visitors from around the world to visit first hand.
The plaque is transcibed as follows explaining the legend associated with Colonel Jonathan Buck...
The Legend of the Buck Memorial
This monument was erected in memory of Colonel Jonathan Buck, founder of Bucksport, who died on March 18, 1795. The memorial, built of Blue Hill granite, was erected by his descendants nearly sixty years after his death.
Sometime after its placement, the outline of a leg appeared on the monument. Making their appearance as well were the stories which became legendary.
The variations are many but common elements include Colonel Buck's condemnation of a woman for witchcraft and ordering her death by burning for sorcery. As the sentence is being carried out, the woman curses the Colonel and concludes with ".... so long shall my curse be upon thee and my sign upon thy tombstone." As the flames consume her body, her leg falls away and rolls out of the fire. Her deformed son, rejected by the community, grabs the leg, further insults the Colonel, and flees into the wilderness. The curse is forgotten until sixty years later. The monument is erected; the leg appears. Attempts to remove the sign are futile.
Historians will note the era of Colonial witchcraft and the infamous witch trials in Massachusetts were over long before Jonathan Buck was born. Additionally, there is no record of ANYONE being executed for witchcraft in Maine. Stories that the monument has been replaced are untrue -- this is the original. Stone cutters say it is not uncommon for granite to contain a flaw such as this stain which appears only after cutting and polishing. The outline can be removed but reappears when air oxidizes the iron. (Note, too, the outline of a heart on the upper part of the monument.)
The facts surrounding the life of Colonel Buck are that he was an honorable, industrious man who founded this community and was a leader in its early development -- building the first grist mill, and the first boat. Notably, the "witch's curse" was unheard of before the flaw in the marker appeared.
Jef Hutchins
Eagle Project
1991
Name of Eagle Scout: Jef Hutchins
Project Completion Date: 01/01/1991
Troop Number: 102
Troop Location: Not listed
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Visit Instructions:
Provide a picture at the location of the Eagle Project and explain how the project has benefited you by it being placed here.