Aroostook County
8
Haynesville Poetry Maine’s iconic country song by Charles Francis
A
letter writer mourns the loss of a woman with lines of sad poetry. Highway deaths are the subject of an iconic Maine country song. Two brothers who don’t quite fit with the incrowd and who may be mentally challenged are the brunt of some malicious girls’ humor. An elderly woman places flowers at her own grave site. All have something in common ― they relate to the Aroostook community of Haynesville. The above mentioned letter may have been written by an Albert Cook. It was sent to a William Cook of Eddington in 1851. The letter has monetary value. It went up for auction. The value relates to the fact it was mailed
H.C. Haynes, Inc.
Family Owned & Operated Since 1963
from Haynesville. Not many letters bear a Haynesville postmark from that long ago time period. In addition, the letter bore no stamp and consisted of a single piece of folded paper. Old stampless folded letterws are sought after by certain collectors. Their collection is sometimes described as a subcategory of stamp collecting. The iconic Maine country song is, of course, Dick Curless’s A Tombstone Every Mile. It is considered here with the view that song lyrics may be regarded much as lyric poetry. It was written by Dan Fulkerson, a Bangor-based songwriter and copywriter, working at television station WABI, and released in 1964. Curless was from Fort Fair-
field. Tombstone was released on Allagash, a subsidiary of Capitol. The song describes the terrible loss of life on the road passing through the Haynesville woods. It was frequented by truckers hauling potatoes south to Boston and beyond. There are a fair number of stories about deaths along the road. Some even go so far as to say spirits of the departed make an appearance on occasion. The two brothers and the malicious girls and the elderly woman who placed flowers on her own grave site are subjects of poems by Alden Nowland. In the general time period of the 1950s, Nowland worked as a journalist and newspaper editor in Hartland, New
KNIGHTS’ GROCER Shurfine Food Store Quality Meats • Produce Deli • Bakery Weekly Sales Flyer
Chips • Pulpwood Real Estate
736-3412 • 40 Route 168 • Winn, ME
Hayes Drywall No Job Too Big or Too Small...We Do It All!
Keith Hayes - Owner • Sheetrock Hanging & Taping • Painting & Finishes • Wallpapering
448-2461 Central Street
Danforth
EAST BRANCH LODGE East Branch Mattawamkeag River
Deer • Bear • Moose Hunting Cabin rentals with easy access to the great, groomed snowmobile trails of the County! Fully equipped for cooking, refrigerators, monitor or wood heat. * Daily and Weekly Rates Available * Paul Dorward - paul@eastbranchlodge.com
~ Free Estimates • Insured ~
207-592-3696 Orient, ME
cell: 207-694-1185
Rt. 2A • Haynesville, ME • Aroostook County www.eastbranchlodge.com
FOSS & SONS, INC. Est. 1973
• Gravel • Loam • Bulldozer & Backhoe Work • Septic Systems • Sitework Serving Aroostook County • Parking Lots for 40 Years!
448-2335 • WESTON, ME