Rangeley “Snowroller” packed the snow down to enhance travel by sleigh. Submitted

(What follows appeared in the April 30, 1914, edition of the MAINE WOODS newspaper. We begin with some excerpt regarding the late-arriving spring from the column titled, “Fly Rod’s Note Book” written by the famous Cornelia “Fly Rod” Crosby. We have redacted it for space reasons. We hope you enjoy it.

Contemporary commentary inserted in italics.)

Fly Rod’s Note Book

Mountain View House, Rangeley Lake, Me., April 26, 1914.

Surely ‘winter lingers in the lap of spring’ in this part of the country. As I looked from the car window, coming over the summit below Bemis and along the shores of Mooselookmeguntic and Rangeley Lakes I noticed there was still much snow in the woods, and the ice looking as thick and firm on the lakes as in mid-winter. “Oquossoc! Oquossoc!” called the conductor, and it was a pleasure to be greeted so heartily by old friends. I was a little surprised to find that at the depot there were only sleighs, and the handsome span of black horses driven by George Church made quick time over to the hotel. “Still winter weather, only 15 degrees above zero this morning” remarked Landlord Bowley. When I looked out this morning at about 7 o’clock I found it was snowing and I could see a big sled loaded, drawn by a pair of horses trotting over the ice on the lake which seemed as firm as the earth itself. Many anxious fishermen are asking the question, “When is the ice going out?” Doubtful things are most uncertain and even the wise ones are not making many bets as to the time when the lakes will be clear. A week ago, Mayor Curley of Boston was adding to his fame by reeling in a gamy salmon at Sebago Lake, although there were cakes of ice floating around. The ponds between here and Rumford Junction were covered with ice, as I noticed from the train yesterday. I cannot answer the question, ye fishermen, as to when the ice will go out, but I do think it will be a late season. Yet, Old Dame Nature’ sometimes does strange and unexpected things, and with the hot sunshine and a strong, warm wind could make a mighty quick job of her spring cleaning in this part of the country. But this is only four days from May and it is snowing, heavy teams are crossing the ice on the lakes and looking in all directions one can see as much of the ground covered with snow, as they can, that is not.

(And we’ll close with more about long Maine winters as reprinted in the MAINE WOODS from the BANGOR COMMERCIAL newspaper)

SNOW ON APRIL 30

Some Late Springs Recalled by E. H. Greeley.

Switching to wagons with wheels in early spring instead of remaining with sleighs was a tough call back in the day. Submitted

The eight-inch snowfall of last Thursday, April 16, and the cold weather of the past few days, turns attention to some cold springs of former years. When it comes to weather reminiscences, the Ellsworth American always turns to E. H. Greeley, who is well known in Bangor, or to Mrs. Greeley who for years has kept a weather diary.

“Oh, yes. There have been colder springs and later snows than this,” said Mr. Greeley. On April 16, 1858, about five inches of snow fell, and one week later eight inches more came in one snowfall. It had been an early spring up to that, and men had gone upriver to start driving logs. They had no tents and had to sleep outdoors in the snow with only their blankets over them. “On April 10, 1863,” continued Mr. Greeley, “I left Bangor driving a stage wagon drawn by six horses and carrying 12 passengers. While coming to Ellsworth, ten inches of snow fell. When I got to the Craigs Farm, the drifts were so deep that the leaders (lead horses) waded up to their collars. We had to shift to sleighs thereafter and went three trips between Bangor and Cherryfield on runners.

The spring of 1874 was remarkably cold. Mrs. Greeley’s diary records that on April 1 the mercury registered zero! On April 30 snow fell nearly all day. May 1 the sun shone, but the ground was covered with snow and icicles hung from the house all day. I carried my mother and little girl to the stable to see a colt just foaled. Mother suggested that we should call it Mayflower, but the little girl said: ‘No, it ought to be Snowbound,’ and ‘Snowbound’ was the name it always bore.”

The heaviest spring snowstorm that Mr. Greeley remembers was on April 2, 1887, when snow fell all day, accompanied by a heavy gale from the northeast. Trains were delayed 24 hours, and on April 4, Mrs. Greeley noted in her diary that there were drifts ten feet deep and the snow was packed so hard that it was almost impossible to cut through. Under the date of April 11 of the same year, the diary records that wheels are seen on the streets for the first time since December, and on April 14, that people crossed on the ice with sleighs from Oak Point to Newbury Neck. Two weeks later came one of the worst freshets (Spring floods) in the history of Union River. — Bangor Commercial.

(I can recall a storm on April 24th many years ago where we received 20 plus inches from a storm. Have a wonderful week and don’t count on our not making any more ‘late snowfall history’ of our own before this April comes to pass)!