Thomas Westbrook, the Wabanakis and His World
The Tate House Museum continues it’s Summer Lecture Series on August 17 at 6:30PM with a lecture titled “Thomas Westbrook, the Wabinakis, and His World” with Dr. Zachary Bennett. Zachary Bennett is an Assistant Professor of History at Norwich University in Vermont. He grew up on Mast Road a few feet from the Westbrook town line. He is currently completing his book project entitled Contested Currents which reframes the history of colonial New England as a struggle to control rivers and waterpower instead of land. Zach received his PhD from Rutgers University and his writing has appeared in academic journals such as The New England Quarterly and Early American Studies.
Colonel Thomas Westbrook (1675-1744) played what may have been the most important role in founding the City of Portland. The neighboring city of Westbrook is named for him, yet he has remained a mysterious figure since few records about his personal life have survived. Dr. Bennett will reconstruct the social and political world of colonial New England and focus on
Westbrook’s rise from humble beginnings to the inner circle of Imperial politics as the King’s Mast Agent in Maine. Westbrook’s world was defined by conflict: he lived to see no less than five separate wars with Maine’s Indigenous people, the Wabanakis. The lecture will address Westbrook’s controversial role in the conquest of Wabanakis from central and southern Maine, his status as New England’s leading soldier in Maine’s most important Indian conflict known as Dummers War (1722–1725), and his business activities that transformed the region’s environment and dispossessed Indigenous people.
Tickets purchased in advance are $12 General Admission, $10 Tate House Museum members, at the door $15 General Admission, $12 THM members. Tickets can be purchased by going to www.tatehouse.org Attendees are asked to bring their own lawn chairs or blanket and note that a rain date of August 18th is possible.
FMI: Holly Hurd
hkhurd@tatehouse.org
207-774-6177
1267 Westbrook St
Portland ME 04102