Maine Early History

First Early Inhabitants

Early history examines the archaeological record that tells the story of the first inhabitants of Maine. Learn about the history and culture of the first inhabitants, and what lessons it might teach us about the early history of Maine.

• 11,500 years ago, the Paleo Indians settled in Maine.
• 3000 BC - Burial grounds for these earliest Maine dwellers  known as the "Red Paint" people - so named because of the red clay with which they lined the graves of their dead - except that they flourished and hunted in Maine long before the coming of the Micmac and Abnaki Indian nations.
• 1000 A.D. - Norse sailors, led by Leif Erikson, arrive in Newfoundland and Nova Scotia. Evidence suggests that they may have reached as far south as Maine.
• 1497 - John Cabot sights land near Cape Breton and claims it for King Henry VII.
• 1524 - Giovanni da Verranzano became the first confirmed European to explore the coast of Maine.
• 1597 - Simon Ferdinando, a Portugese Navigator, working for the British Crown, lands on the Coast of Maine, looking for treasure.

The region's earliest inhabitants were descendants of Ice Age hunters. Little is known of these "Red Paint" people - so named because of the red clay with which they lined the graves of their dead - except that they flourished and hunted in Maine long before the coming of the Micmac and Abnaki Indian nations. Little is known about this prehistoric group of people, but they left behind scattered bits of bone and stone that are among the oldest archeological treasures in North America.

Burial grounds for these earliest Maine dwellers are thought to date back to 3000 B.C. Huge oyster shell heaps on the Damariscotta estuary testify to the capacious appetites of Maine's aborigines.  Archeologists estimate that these heaps – remnants of ancient shellfish "dinners"- are between one and five thousand years old. The arrowheads and tools found within these heaps are distinctly different from those of the Red Paint People.

Of Maine's two earliest Indian nations, the Micmacs of eastern Maine and New Brunswick were largely a warlike people, while the more numerous Abnakis (or Wabanakis) were a peaceful nation, given to farming and fishing as a way of life

But their numbers began to diminish rapidly due to increasing conflict with the white man, wars with other invading tribes, and disease. Of the dozens of Algonkian Indian tribes that once inhabited Maine, only two remain - the Penobscot and the Passamaquoddies.

When European settlers came to the region in the early 17th century, they encountered the Abnakis and the Etchimins, two major divisions of the Algonkian nation. These Native Americans moved several times each year, following the available food supply. In the spring they fished in the rivers and planted crops of corn, squash and beans along the riverbanks. Early summer brought them to the coastal areas, and by September they returned to harvest their crops. The coming of winter found them venturing deep into the forests of Maine to hunt for game.