Thousands of years before the first white man ever arrived at Skowhegan Falls in the Kennebec River, the Red Paint Indians had already established settlements and graveyards on the banks of the river. Much later, the area was inhabited by the Abnaki Indians. They trod on Skowhegan Island and paddled their canoes down the Kennebec. They speared salmon in the flowing waters of the river and utilized the rich land on its banks to raise corn.
For hundreds of years Indians from all over the area came along the banks of the Kennebec River as they went to and from the Atlantic Ocean. The Kennebec was once a thoroughfare for traveling bands of Indians. The Abnaki Indians were the natives of the area, prior to the coming of the white man. The Abnakis were a part of the Algonquin nation and the Norridgewocks were a tribe of the society. For many years the Norridgewocks made their home near Madison, located ten miles from Skowhegan. They were converted to Christianity by a Jesuit priest from France, Father Sebastian Rasle.
Father Rasle virtually ruled this region, holding the British at bay for many years. Finally tired of Rasle, the British sent three companies of infantry up the Kennebec to defeat the priest and his tribe of "savages". The Norridgewocks were virtually annihilated and were never a threat to the area again. Father Rasle was killed.
Skowhegan - What's In A Name
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