List of colonial governors of Maine facts for kids

The land that is now the state of Maine has a very interesting and complicated history! Many different groups wanted to control this area. In the 1600s, parts of Maine were called the Province of Maine and Lygonia. These areas had their own governments.

Other parts of Maine were controlled by the Massachusetts Bay Colony. This was either because of land claims in their official document (called a charter) or because they bought the land. The eastern parts of Maine, between the Kennebec River and the St. Croix River, were claimed by the French province of Acadia. This lasted until France lost control in 1760. However, the French only actually lived in the area east of Penobscot Bay.

From 1652 until Maine became a state, the land west of the Kennebec River was part of Massachusetts. The land between the Kennebec and St. Croix rivers was given to the Duke of York in 1664. This area became part of the Province of New York. But remember, the area east of Penobscot Bay was still controlled by the French. The parts west of the bay, like present-day Bristol, were governed by New York until 1692. Then, New York's claim was given to the new Province of Massachusetts Bay.

The governors listed below were leaders whose main government office was actually in what is now Maine. Other governors of Massachusetts, New York, and Acadia governed from other places. One governor of Acadia, Hector d'Andigné de Grandfontaine, set up his capital in Maine at Fort Pentagouet (now Castine) in 1670. Most other Acadian governors ruled from places like Port Royal in what is now Nova Scotia and New Brunswick.

Maine's First English Colony: Popham

The Popham Colony was an early English settlement attempt. It was started in 1607 on the coast of what is now Phippsburg, Maine. The Virginia Company of Plymouth tried to create this colony.

The colony only lasted for about one year before everyone left. One of the main people who supported the colony was Sir John Popham. His nephew, George, was the colony's governor for most of its time. George Popham died in the colony in 1608. Raleigh Gilbert took over as governor. He and the remaining colonists left after they heard that John Popham and Gilbert's older brother had also died.

Who Owned Maine? The Provinces of Maine and Lygonia

The name "Province of Maine" first appeared in an official document (a charter) in 1622. This charter was given to Sir Ferdinando Gorges and John Mason by the Plymouth Council for New England. It covered land between the Merrimack and Kennebec rivers.

In 1629, Gorges and Mason divided this large land grant. Mason took the southern part, which he called the Province of New Hampshire. Gorges kept the northern part, calling it New Somersetshire. Even though this grant only gave him ownership, not the right to govern, Gorges set up a government. He put his nephew, William, in charge. William Gorges was based in Saco.

In 1639, Sir Ferdinando Gorges received a new charter from King Charles I. This document again called the land the Province of Maine. Sir Ferdinando became the owner and governor. He appointed his cousin, Thomas Gorges, as his deputy. Thomas Gorges left the colony in 1643. After that, Sir Ferdinando, who never actually visited the New World, let a local council govern the colony. This council chose Richard Vines as deputy governor in 1644. Sir Ferdinando died in 1647, which was a big loss for the colony. In 1649, the colonists living on Sir Ferdinando's land met and elected Edward Godfrey as governor.

The Province of Lygonia

In 1643, a military leader named Alexander Rigby bought the land known as Lygonia. This territory was supposed to be east of Gorges' land, but in reality, they overlapped a lot. The western border of Lygonia was considered to be Cape Porpoise, and the eastern border was the Kennebec River. This meant that present-day Portland, Saco, and Scarborough were under Lygonia's control.

Rigby sent George Cleeve back to Maine. Cleeve was a settler who had disagreed with Gorges and helped arrange the sale of Lygonia. Rigby made Cleeve his deputy president. There was a big argument about who owned which land. In 1646, a decision was made in England that favored Rigby. Cleeve governed Lygonia until Rigby died in 1650. After that, the settlers of Lygonia slowly agreed to be ruled by Massachusetts.

Massachusetts Takes Control

As early as 1639, some landowners in Maine made agreements with the Massachusetts Bay Colony. These settlers agreed to be governed by Massachusetts in exchange for its protection. By 1652, Massachusetts had presented its land claims to the governments of Cleeve and Godfrey.

Godfrey strongly disagreed with these claims at first. But eventually, most people wanted Massachusetts to take over. In November 1652, Massachusetts gained control of Maine.

In 1676, a group in England called the Lords of Trade decided that Massachusetts did not have a right to the land in Maine. So, Massachusetts bought the land claims from the Gorges family heirs for £1,250 in May 1677. In 1680, Massachusetts set up a new government in this territory. Thomas Danforth, who was the deputy governor of Massachusetts, was chosen as the president of the territory. He held this position until 1686.

At that time, a larger government called the Dominion of New England took over all of Massachusetts' territory. But this Dominion fell apart after its governor, Sir Edmund Andros, was arrested in 1689. The old government was put back in place until the new Province of Massachusetts Bay was created in 1692. This new province claimed all of what is now Maine as part of its territory.

Leaders of Maine (Province of Maine)

• Richard Vines (1629) as Governor of the Plantation at Saco (an early version of the Province of Maine)
• Walter Neale (1629) as Governor of the Laconia Company (an early version of the Province of Lygonia)
• William Gorges (1636–38)
• Sir Ferdinando Gorges (1639–47)
  • Thomas Gorges (1640–43)
  • Richard Vines (1644–45)
  • Henry Jocelyn (1646–49)
• Edward Godfrey (1649–52)
• Thomas Danforth (as president, 1680–86, 1689–92)

Leaders of Lygonia

• Alexander Rigby (1642–52)
  • George Cleeve (1642–52)