A Brief History of Friends of Baxter State Park:

During the 1990s a number of controversies in the Katahdin region alerted a small group of wilderness advocates to potential threats to the wilderness character of Baxter State Park (BSP). One such instance was the closing of the Park’s West Gate, which triggered strong local opposition. Wilderness advocates applauded the Baxter State Park Authority’s decision, since the closure was predicated on the reduction of vehicular access to the Park, lessening of administrative and financial burdens, and better protection of Park wildlife.

The most significant precipitating event that ultimately gave rise to the creation of a friends’ group was the Authority’s 1998 decision to permit hunting on the newly acquired West Branch Lands. In spite of three recommendations to the contrary by a special subcommittee appointed by the Authority’s own Advisory Committee, Park Director Buzz Caverly, and a memorandum from the Attorney General’s office, the Authority voted, by a 2-1 margin, to permit hunting in the newly acquired parcel in T2 R10.

In response to the decision to permit hunting in the West Branch Lands parcel, John W. Neff observed that there was a need for a well-articulated philosophy of sanctuary consistent with Baxter’s own words and deeds. He went on to state in a letter to BSP Director Caverly: "I know that there will need to be some forum in the near future where this basic and fundamental philosophy needs to be hammered out so a specific decision will not be held hostage by any small group that wants to have its way and develops political clout to make it happen."

In 1999 John Loyd and Phyllis Austin began to round up people with similar concerns and love for the Park. Friends of Baxter State Park (FBSP) became an up and running organization by 2000, holding its first Annual Meeting in April 2001. John Neff served as FBSP’s first president from 2000-2002.

From its inception, Friends of Baxter State Park wanted to be thoroughly acquainted with the materials regarding Percival Baxter’s vision for a park at Katahdin so that the organization could weigh in intelligently on the issues of the day and on the Park’s future over the long term. The publication of the four-volume Percival P. Baxter’s Vision for Baxter State Park: An Annotated Compilation of Original Sources in 2005 -- which assembled for the first time in one source the Deeds of Trust, judicial and attorneys general opinions, and the voluminous speeches and correspondence associated with the Park’s creation and management -- did precisely that.

The so-called Baxter Papers project had an immediate payoff by enabling Friends of Baxter State Park to speak authoritatively as to Percival Baxter’s long-standing desire to acquire the northwest quadrant of T3 R8 where Katahdin Lake is located. FBSP was represented throughout the protracted legislative deliberations over the proposed acquisition in 2006, including speaking at the public hearing before the Joint Standing Committee on Agriculture, Conservation and Forestry. Members of Friends also participated in the fundraising campaign to acquire the Katahdin Lake lands, with the Friends' Board of Directors personally contributing in excess of $10,000. In December 2006, with the unanimous endorsement of the Baxter State Park Authority, 4,000 acres at Katahdin Lake were transferred to Baxter State Park to be managed as sanctuary. Friends of Baxter State Park rightfully received widespread praise for its signal role in helping to insure the permanent conservation of the Katahdin Lake lands.

In 2008, the annotator of the Baxter Papers, Howard Whitcomb, published under the auspices of Friends, Governor Baxter’s Magnificent Obsession: A Documentary History of Baxter State Park, 1931-2006 which included a major new essay on Baxter’s vision and brought the story of the Park’s creation up to date since the former governor’s death in 1969. The book documented the events and circumstances of the additions to the Park in 1992, 1997, and most importantly the Katahdin Lake parcel in 2006. In addition, Whitcomb’s invaluable detailed annotations of the Deeds of Trust, parcel by parcel, were reprinted in their entirety from his earlier work.

As the associated document on this website FBSP Accomplishments 2000-2010 readily demonstrates, Friends quickly became a forceful advocate for the Park’s wilderness character and Baxter State Park itself.

Notable among Friends’ recent accomplishments is the establishment in 2009 of the Maine Youth Wilderness Leadership Program, which has enabled ten Maine high school students to experience an eight-night backpacking trip in the Park each summer. The program is generously funded by a grant from the Quimby Family Foundation with the Chewonki Foundation of Wiscasset providing staff and logistical support.

In 2010, Friends received an 80/20 matching federal Recreational Trails Program (RTP) grant to support a $43,000 trail restoration and reconstruction project in the Park by the Maine Youth Conservation Corps.

The ongoing activities of Friends of Baxter State Park include holding annual meetings; sponsoring "Walks in the Park;" coordinating volunteer activities, including trail maintenance crews; publishing an annual calendar collaboratively with BSP; making unrestricted grants to the Park; staying informed by regularly attending Baxter State Park Authority and Advisory meetings; and communicating FBSP’s positions on relevant issues.

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Full Chronology of Activities:

2010

• Officers of Board of Directors: Barbara Bentley, President; Howard Whitcomb, Vice President; Denise Clavette, Secretary; and Al Howlett, Treasurer.
• Balance of the Board of Directors: Henry Beeuwkes, Donna Betts, Lindsay Burgoine, Anne Huntington, Charlie Jacobi, Jym St. Pierre, Ralph Pope, Sally Daggett, Mike Stillman, Milt Wright, and Chaitanya York.
• The tenth Annual Meeting is held in Augusta featuring keynote speaker Kimberley Beal talking about her research on climate change, for which she earned an award from the Waterman Fund.
• The Friends doubles the number of 4-person chainsaw crews sent to clear blowdowns from trails early in the season.
• Through an LLBean grant, Friends funds a BSP Volunteer Coordinator position filled by members Laurie and Doug Rich.
• Through the same grant, the Friends produces a new, colorful membership brochure.
• The Friends receives an 80/20 matching federal Recreational Trails Program (RTP) grant to support a $43,000 trail restoration and reconstruction project in the Park by the Maine Youth Conservation Corps during the 2010 season.
• An anonymous donor enables the Friends to make an unrestricted gift to the Park that facilitates its acquisition of the rights to "the Clark Guide", Katahdin: A Guide to Baxter State Park and Katahdin
• A delegation from the Friends attends the Annual Meetings of the Friends of Mount Carleton Provincial Park (FOMC), in New Brunswick, and the International Appalachian Trail Annual Meeting at Shin Pond.
• The 2nd annual Maine Youth Wilderness Leadership Program, expanded to 8 nights in park, is held in August, funded for a second year by the Quimby Family Foundation.
• Friends, in collaboration with BSP, publishes the 2011 Baxter State Park Calendar with photographs provided exclusively by Friends’ members and Park staff.
• Arcadia Publishing contracts with John Neff and Howard Whitcomb to write a volume for their history series entitled Baxter State Park and Katahdin, due to be released in the spring of 2012.

2009

• Howard Whitcomb and Barbara Bentley meet with Governor John E. Baldacci at the State House and to present to him signed copies of Governor Baxter’s Magnificent Obsession.
• Officers of the Board of Directors: Barbara Bentley, President; Ken Spalding, Vice President, Howard Whitcomb, Secretary; and Al Howlett, Treasurer.
• Balance of the Board of Directors: Chip Ahrens, Henry Beeuwkes, Denise Clavette, Anne Huntington, Lester Kenway, Jonathan Milne, Jym St. Pierre, Ralph Pope, Rex Turner, Milt Wright, and Chaitanya York.
• The ninth Annual Meeting is held in Augusta featuring former Attorney General Steve Rowe reflecting on his personal experiences in the Park and his service as a member of the Authority, and Carol Redelsheimer, Baxter State Park Resource Manager, introducing the Scientific Forestry Management area to members.
• A Spring 2009 supplement to Forever Wild is devoted entirely to Jensen Bissell’s "State of the Park" address. FBSP again sends 4-person chainsaw crews to clear blowdowns from trails early in the season.
• The Maine Youth Wilderness Leadership Program debuts. This week-long back-packing experience in the Park for ten Maine high school students is funded by a grant from the Quimby Family Foundation. Friends partners with the Chewonki Foundation of Wiscasset for staff and logistical support.
• Friends, in collaboration with BSP, publishes the 2010 Baxter State Park Calendar with photographs provided exclusively by Friends’ members and Park staff.
• Membership exceeds 500.

2008

• The first Warm Winter Weekend for members is held in late March at Twin Pines Camps on Millinocket Lake.
• Friends Board Member Chaitanya York spearheads the launch of a new membership campaign to boost membership numbers.
• Officers of the Board of Directors; Barbara Bentley, President; Ken Spalding, Vice President; Sally Daggett, Secretary; and Al Howlett, Treasurer.
• Balance of the Board of Directors: Chip Ahrens, Don Hudson, Anne Huntington, Charlie Jacobi, Lester Kenway, Howard Lake, Linda McKee, Rex Turner, Howard Whitcomb, and Chaitanya York.
• The eighth Annual Meeting is held in Augusta featuring keynote speakers Maria Girouard, of the Penobscot Nation, speaking about the Penobscot’s historical, cultural, and spiritual ties to the Katahdin region, and BSP Chief Ranger Chris Drew, regaling attendees with stories of his years at the Park.
• Rosemary Hastings replaces Mary Cooke as Administrative Manager.
• Friends sends its first 4-person chainsaw crew to clear blowdowns early in the season and begins to support chainsaw training for members who want to help with spring cleanup of trails.
• David R. Getchell, Sr., a Founding Director, is the recipient of the Espy Land Heritage Award; "Getch" shares the monetary award with Friends and two other organizations he helped found, the Maine Island Trail Association and the Georges River Land Trust.
• Howard Whitcomb's Governor Baxter's Magnificent Obsession: A Documentary History of Baxter State Park, 1931-2006 is published by Friends. This popularized and condensed version of his earlier work includes new material from Governor Baxter’s death in 1969 to today including the most recent acquisition of Katahdin Lake.
• An anonymous donor's gift makes possible the second printing of Percival P. Baxter’s Vision for Baxter State Park: An Annotated Compilation of Original Sources, thereby ensuring more widespread availability of the four-volume set across New England.
• Friends, in collaboration with BSP, publishes the 2009 Baxter State Park Calendar with photographs provided exclusively by Friends' members and Park staff.
• Friends publishes the Know Before You Go brochure for distribution at tourist kiosks and other locations throughout the state.

2007

• Friends offers comments on the draft Katahdin Lake Management Plan.
• The seventh Annual Meeting is held in Oakland featuring Dr. Alison Dibble delivering the keynote address on the lichens and bryophytes of BSP.
• Officers of the Board of Directors; Barbara Bentley, President; Ken Spalding, Vice President; Sally Daggett, Secretary; and Al Howlett, Treasurer.
• Balance of the Board of Directors: Chip Ahrens, Steve Cartwright, Don Hudson, Anne Huntington, Charlie Jacobi, Lester Kenway, Howard Lake, Linda McKee, Rex Turner, Howard Whitcomb, and Chaitanya York.
• Board Member Linda McKee attends a "No Child Left Inside" conference at Acadia National Park and the idea is born for what becomes the Friends' Maine Youth Wilderness Leadership Program.
• The Baxter Park Wilderness Fund is established by Friends member and longtime supporter of the Park H. Frank Trautmann, Jr. It begins to provide annual financial support to the Park, supplementing the trust funds established by Governor Baxter.

2006

• Friends meets with new BSP Director Jensen Bissell to discuss a wide range of Park issues, partnership opportunities, and more.
• The Katahdin Lake campaign is launched at the State House on January 25th with Friends President Charlie Jacobi among the speakers. Friends members later testify at the public hearing for Katahdin Lake before the Joint Standing Committee on Agriculture, Conservation, and Forestry at the Civic Center on February 27th. Several Board Members also testify at working sessions of the standing committee during March and early April. Four Friends Board Members are asked to serve on the grassroots committee for the campaign.
• Officers of Board of Directors: Charlie Jacobi, President; Ken Spalding, Vice President; Sally Daggett; and Don Hudson, Treasurer.
• Balance of the Board of Directors: William Bentley, Steve Cartwright, Al Howlett, Howard Lake, Anne Huntington, Linda McKee, John Neff, Ken Spalding, Rex Turner, and Howard Whitcomb.
• The sixth Annual Meeting in Oakland features speakers Karin Tilberg, Deputy Commissioner (DOC), talking about the Katahdin Lake preservation effort, and BSP Director Jensen Bissell who gives a Park update.
• The Appalachian Mountain Club Press publishes founding President John Neff’s new book, Katahdin: An Historic Journey
• Throughout summer and the fall, FBSP members are active statewide in supporting the Katahdin Lake campaign; the Board of Directors contributes in excess of $10,000 to the fundraising campaign.
• Friends helps clean up and carry out tons of trash at the Katahdin Lake Camps in anticipation that the campaign will succeed and Baxter State Park will oversee the lease.
• The Katahdin Lake campaign succeeds! The Katahdin Lake parcel in T3 R8 is acquired after a successful $14M fundraising campaign by the Trust for Public Land, in cooperation with the Department of Conservation. A signed deed is transferred to the Baxter State Park Authority on December 14th and the official announcement by Governor Baldacci and other state officials occurs on December 15th in Millinocket and Portland.

2005

• Mary Cooke replaces Barbara Bentley as Administrative Manager. Barbara Bentley replaces Dave Getchell Sr. as editor of Forever Wild.
• Officers of Board of Directors: Charlie Jacobi, President; Ken Spalding, Vice President; Sally Daggett; and Don Hudson, Treasurer.
• Balance of the Board of Directors: William Bentley, Holly Dominie, Clint Dyer, Sandra Johnson, Howard Lake, John Loyd, Linda McKee, John Neff, Ken Spalding, and Jon Tierney.
• The fifth Annual Meeting is held in Waterville, featuring speakers Bart DeWolf, Manager of T5 R8 lands owned by Roxanne Quimby, and Dave Soucy, Director of Parks and Land (DOC), talking about the management of lands adjacent to the Park.
• The publication of the four-volume set Percival P. Baxter’s Vision for Baxter State Park: An Annotated Compilation of Original Sources is announced at a May 31st ceremony in the Hall of Flags at the State House. Governor Baldacci accepts a copy on behalf of the State of Maine, and copies are also presented to the three Baxter State Park Authority members and selected public libraries from across the state.
• This research project was undertaken by member Howard Whitcomb and assembles for the first time in one source the Deeds of Trust, judicial and attorneys’ general opinions, and Baxter’s voluminous speeches and correspondence associated with the Park’s creation and management. A grant from Davis Conservation Foundation helped underwrite this project.
• Several members of the Board of Directors combine a trip to the Park with a flight around the park boundaries with the intent of seeing, first hand, the East Branch Lands.
• "Buzz" Caverly resigns as Director of Baxter State Park in May and is replaced in December by Jensen Bissell, long-time BSP Resource Manager and supervisor of the Scientific Forestry Management Area.
• Membership reaches 450.

2004

• Friends donates $3,000 to Park. It is used to support staff management of moose-visitor interactions at Sandy Stream Pond, volunteer lake monitoring, and an invasive plants workshop.
• Officers of the Board of Directors: Charlie Jacobi, President; David R. Getchell, Sr., Vice President; Sally Daggett, Secretary; and Don Hudson, Treasurer.
• Balance of the Board of Directors: William Bentley, Holly Dominie, Clint Dyer, Sandra Johnson, Howard Lake, John Loyd, Pat Murtagh, John Neff, Ken Spalding, and Jon Tierney.
• Friends urges members to support the Nature Conservancy’s Katahdin Forest Project, which will buffer the Park border on the south and west through a conservation easement.
• The Fourth Annual Meeting is held in Waterville featuring speaker and author Dean Bennett, Professor Emeritus (U of ME, Farmington), delivering a paper entitled Wilderness, Preservation and Baxter State Park. President Jacobi urges the Park to develop a long-range plan to further the move toward greater wilderness within the Park.
• After careful consideration and spirited discussion, Friends writes to the Baxter State Park Authority, taking positions on several Park issues. We support the removal of the selected Daicey Pond cabins. We support actions taken at Sandy Stream and Stump Ponds to protect moose. We support changes in the reservation system and applaud the Advisory Committee’s work on it. We support the Park’s commitment to use a formal planning process called “limits of acceptable change.” We urge the Park to reopen the North Peaks Trail, arguing the reasons for its closure have diminished over time or have been mitigated. We continue to urge for comprehensive trails planning.
• Friends winter enthusiasts participate in a review, chaired by Park staff, of snowmobile regulations.
• Friends writes the Authority to urge conservation of the East Branch Lands to buffer the Park through (in priority order) public ownership, compatible conservation ownership by another entity, or easement.
• Friends writes the Authority to urge that a suitable buffer be left as part of a planned harvest along the “legal mile” of the Tote Road that serves as a boundary of the SFMA.

2003

• Friends begins to monitor potential real estate transactions on the East Branch (Penobscot River) Lands.
• Officers of the Board of Directors: Holly Dominie, President; David R. Getchell, Sr., Vice President; Joanne McPhee, Secretary; and Don Hudson, Treasurer.
• Balance of the Board of Directors: William Bentley, Sally Daggett, Clint Dyer, Charlie Jacobi, Sandra Johnson, Howard Lake, Pat Murtagh, John Neff, Ken Spalding, Cindy Swan, and Jon Tierney.
• The third Annual Meeting is held in Waterville featuring a Park update from Director Caverly; a report on changes in land ownership in the Park’s vicinity by Deputy Commissioner of Conservation Karin Tilberg; and a memorial tribute for long-time Park volunteer and founding member of the Board, John Howard.
• At the Friends suggestion, the 100th Anniversary of Governor Baxter’s first visit to the Katahdin area is celebrated at Daicey Pond with Park staff, the Baxter State Park Authority, and Governor John E. Baldacci attending.

2002

• The inaugural issue (Winter 2002, Vol. 1, No. 1) of Forever Wild, a quarterly newsletter edited by David R. Getchell, Sr., is published.
• The second Annual Meeting is held in Waterville featuring a panel that includes Park Director Buzz Caverly and a discussion on the pros and cons of further land protection adjacent to Baxter State Park.
• Officers of the Board of Directors: Holly Dominie, President; Howard Lake, Vice President; Joanne McPhee, Secretary; and Don Hudson, Treasurer
• Balance of the Board of Directors: William Bentley, Holly Dominie, Clint Dyer, David R. Getchell, Sr., Eric Hendrickson, Charlie Jacobi, Howard Lake, Pat Murtagh, and Jon Tierney.
• A delegation from the Board of Directors tours southern part of the Park with Director Caverly.
• Friends members participate in National Trails Day on Chimney Pond Trail, and initiate a tradition of participating in National Trails Day events in the Park every year.
• The first of many "Walk in the Park" programs is initiated by Bill and Barbara Bentley, providing an opportunity for members to meet and enjoy the Park together.
• Membership nears 300.
• The Board creates a Friends of Baxter State Park slide show for use in public presentations and membership drives.
• Readers of Forever Wild respond to the "Wilder Within" concept of Director Caverly, thereby initiating an on-going dialogue with FBSP’s membership on issues of note that continues to this day.
• Delegation of Board of Directors tours northern part of the Park with Director Caverly

2001

• The administrative details of creating an organization are worked out—incorporation, by-laws etc.
• The first Annual Meeting is held in Fairfield, Maine.
• Officers of the Board of Directors: John W. Neff, President; John Howard, Vice President; Joanne McPhee, Secretary; and Don Hudson, Treasurer.
• Balance of the Board of Directors: William Bentley, Holly Dominie, Clint Dyer, David R. Getchell, Sr., Eric Hendrickson, Charlie Jacobi, Howard Lake, Pat Murtagh, and Jon Tierney.

2000

• The first organizational meeting is held in Fairfield on May 16th and the first interim Board of Directors’ meeting is held a month later. Within a year, FBSP is incorporated as a non-profit 501(c)(3) organization, and a membership drive generates significant financial support and over 100 Founding Members.
• Officers of the Board of Directors: John W. Neff, President; John Howard, Vice President; Joanne McPhee, Secretary; and Don Hudson, Treasurer.
• Balance of the Board of Directors: William Bentley, Holly Dominie, Clint Dyer, David R. Getchell, Sr., Eric Hendrickson, Charlie Jacobi, Howard Lake, Pat Murtagh, and Jon Tierney.
• Membership Manager: Barbara Bentley.
• Board members begin the standard practice of attending meetings of the Baxter State Park Authority and the Advisory Committee.

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