Amidst the critically important work of the Legislature this session, which includes work on the state budget and debates about economic development and infrastructure enhancements, two bills have moved forward to remind us about what makes our incredible democracy possible.

The first bill signed into law by Governor Janet Mills was LD 200, Resolve, To Name the Bridge on Main Street in the Town of Orono the Brandon M. Silk Memorial Bridge, sponsored by Rep. Ryan Tipping, D-Orono. Staff Sergeant Brandon Silk was a crew chief on a Blackhawk helicopter in the 101st Airborne Division, and was killed when his helicopter crashed while inserting Australian special forces troops into a firefight in Afghanistan in 2010.

Sergeant Silk was a native of Orono, where he played football, and where his family still lives today. His mother is a school principal and his father and brothers are all law enforcement officers. Sergeant Silk signed up to serve after the terrorist attacks of 9/11, and was due to be promoted and rotated home when he pulled his promotion papers so he could stay with the crew he served with. His devotion to duty and loyalty to country, along with his love of family and community, made his loss all the more bitter. Naming the Orono bridge after him, which received the unanimous backing of the Orono town council and the Transportation Committee, will serve to assure his friends, family, and those who come after that such sacrifices should never be forgotten.

Likewise, I sponsored legislation to name the bridges up the river that connect Stillwater and Old Town after another area son who stepped into the flames of battle—literally. Now awaiting the Governor’s signature, LD 207, Resolve, to Rename the Stillwater Bridges in Old Town the Llewellyn Estes Bridge, is meant to honor Old Town native Llewellyn Estes, who received the Medal of Honor in the assault on Atlanta during the Civil War.

Estes was born in 1843 in what is now the Stillwater section of Old Town, near the bridges in question. In 1861, he enlisted as a first sergeant in the 1st Maine Cavalry—which, as an aside, was the most heavily engaged cavalry unit in the war, fighting in almost every major battle. In short order he was promoted to Lieutenant, and then Captain by August of 1863, and in December, he was assigned to General Hugh Kilpatrick, whom he served for five months, when Kilpatrick recommended him to be the Adjutant General of the Cavalry in the Military Division of the Mississippi.

In August of 1864, as General William Tecumseh Sherman moved toward Atlanta with the Armies of the Cumberland, the Tennessee and the Ohio, Estes became a key participant in the Georgia campaign. Already known as a skilled and fearless officer, he was part of the campaign led by Gen. Oliver Otis Howard, of Leeds, to cut the railroads leading into Atlanta.

In August, 1864, Estes was with a small number of cavalrymen on the banks of the Flint River, near Jonesboro, Georgia.  A nest of Confederate soldiers stymied the Union forces from reaching the fresh water they needed. Gen. Howard asked/ordered Estes to make it possible for the infantry to access the river flow. Estes spurred his horse and led a charge at the Confederate position, driving them away, he then dismounted and led two companies on foot to seize the bridge (which was on fire, having been lit by retreating rebel soldiers) over the Flint. Howard had not directed Estes’ tactics. The pride of Old Town elected to dislodge the Confederates with the bold assault and the follow-up capture of the bridge. And he did it with no more dangerous a weapon than a pistol. His aggressive and successful action was recognized by the Union command and Estes was awarded a Medal of Honor in 1894 for his exploits. By the time he mustered out from the army in 1865, had been brevetted as a Brigadier General. He died in 1905 and is buried in Arlington National Cemetery.

As I told the Joint Standing Committee on Transportation at the public hearing, “I believe the importance of the actions both taken and proposed before this committee to name the bridges that connect Marsh Island to the main shore are contemplated by what these actions represent not so much to our history as by what they mean to our future. Whether these brave people signed up to save the future of our country from the dissolution of our Union or to rebuke the threat of terror, they represent the fact to our neighbors—especially our youth—that the best of our nation walk among us, and that the actions of Llewellyn Estes and Brandon Silk constitute an important chapter in the story of our freedom.”

As Americans, everything we do in the spirit of freedom is informed by the actions of brave people like Estes and Silk. I think that’s worth remembering.

Rep. Michelle Dunphy, D-Old Town, is a member of the Joint Standing Committee on Appropriations and Financial Affairs.

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