I never thought I would find myself on a ferry to the island of North Haven, Maine. Before I worked for the Wilford Woodruff Papers Foundation, I didn’t even know this island existed.

In the spring of 1837, Wilford Woodruff was called to serve a mission to New England, and on May 31, 1837, he left Kirtland to begin his journey eastward with his companion, Jonathan Harriman Hale.1 While they traveled, they felt inspired to focus their missionary efforts on the Fox Islands in Maine, which included two large islands, simply known as North and South Vinalhaven. Wilford also visited many smaller islands within Penobscot Bay.2

Shortly after I began working on the Wilford Woodruff Papers Project, I was assigned to research the people Wilford interacted with in Maine, and this naturally included the people of Vinalhaven. It didn’t take long for me to gain a love for these island people—both for those who had faith to be baptized and for those who had the courage to host Wilford despite, at times, severe opposition.

I caught the ferry on June 22, 2023—coincidentally 174 years to the day since Wilford Woodruff made his last crossing of the Penobscot Bay.3 My day was bright and beautiful with a blue sky, a light breeze, and temperatures in the low 70s. A trip to both islands was not possible for me, so after a lot of research, I chose North Haven because that is where Wilford first landed. With me on my adventure were my husband and five children.

North Haven and Vinalhaven (Fox Islands), Penobscot Bay, Maine.

We were greeted by Hope Sage and Nan Lee, both active with the North Haven Historical Society. These women volunteered their time, going above and beyond to make this day productive for us. I had reached out to the historical society for advice on what to see in a day on the island and to make sure a visit to the Historical Society would be possible. They in turn offered to take my family around the island to see the Wilford Woodruff “hot spots.” While I didn’t know who exactly I was looking for when I stepped off the ferry, they knew us immediately. Hope happily called out, “That must be our Mormon family! I could recognize you anywhere!”

We split up between Hope’s and Nan’s cars, and they then drove us to the site where Wilford and his companion landed at 2:00 a.m. on August 20, 1837.4 I learned that in 1837, there wasn’t necessarily a public wharf, and visitors to the island would generally just scout for a good place to land. Being the middle of the night, Wilford and Jonathan Hale weren’t greeted by a welcoming committee like we were. He wrote, “We wandered in the dark about an hour, rambling over rocks and bushes, [until we] found the house of Mr. Nathaniel Dyer,” who was kind enough to give Wilford and Jonathan a place to sleep.5

This home, built in 1830, sits on the property where Wilford Woodruff first landed on the Fox Islands.

A home near the site where Wilford landed is believed to have been built by Howland Dyer in 1830.6 It may have been the first building Wilford passed on the island. Being a genealogist, I couldn’t help but check land records to confirm this information. The description of the property laid out in an 1848 deed fits the description of the property I visited, being bordered on the southeastern side by the water.7

By good fortune, Hope and Nan had arranged for us to see inside the home. It was old and quirky, and completely charming. The house is perhaps two hundred to three hundred feet from the water, with a perfect view of the Fox Island Thorofare. A large tree with a swing hanging from the most perfect branch sat to the right of the home. One could sit on the swing, push back, and fly through the air as if they were living an idyllic life on an island in Maine. Lobster and fishing boats dotted the water, and I thought about how some things never change. Maine’s coastal towns and islands have always been fishing communities.

Wilford Woodruff’s list of the variety of fish inhabiting “the waters, coves and harbors” around the Fox Islands.

Wilford often noted the “gallant ships undersail” and the variety of fish in the waters around Vinalhaven.8 In his first journal entry recorded on the North Fox Island, he included a brief account of the town of Vinalhaven and the people on both islands. He wrote that “the inhabitants are generally wealthy, healthy, intelligent, industrious, generous, and hospitable to strangers.” The north island had good farmland while the south island was mostly too rocky to cultivate. On either island, he noted that the people got “most of their wealth and living by fishing.” In fact, many of them sailed as far as Newfoundland to fish. They would “bring their fish home and dry them upon their own flakes and prepare them for market.”9 Wilford Woodruff loved to fish! He took the opportunity to enjoy this sport whenever it was presented. In fact, a couple days after landing on the north island, he went out in a boat with Mr. Stephen Luce “to catch some fish in Penobscot Bay.” He recorded, “When we entered its mouth the bay was occupied by a magnus school of Pohagen fish, they covered acres. It was supposed there was a sufficient quantity in the school to have filled 500,000 barrels; we caught none of them, but saw and heard them rush in large bodies upon the top of the water. Numerous fish hawks were busy in catching and carrying off many of them.”10

View facing the beach where Wilford Woodruff first landed on North Fox Island.

Stephen Luce was just one of many individuals Wilford would meet on the islands. But first things first, Wilford wanted everyone to know that he and Jonathan Hale were “servants of God.” This he told to his late-night host, Nathaniel Dyer. He then “inquired concerning meetings” and learned that, as it was Sunday, there would be preaching in the Baptist church, which was in the center of the North Island.11 Another man, Benjamin Kent, accompanied Wilford and Jonathan “to the place of meeting.”12 This church is called the Pulpit Harbor Church, and that is where Hope and Nan took us next.

The Pulpit Harbor Church in North Haven, Maine.

We traveled a short distance by car, meandering past summer residences on a populated knoll. The church is right on the street, with only grass for parking. The building has changed somewhat on the outside throughout the years, but I was informed the inside was still much the same. A skeleton key was produced to unlock the old door, and after a good kick, it swung open.

Interior of the Pulpit Harbor Church in North Haven, Maine.

Rows of wooden pews filled the one-room building and faced a simple pulpit with a very large and page-worn bible. Hope directed our attention to the old pump organ which also sat on the stand. She informed us it was original to the building, and would have been played when Wilford Woodruff visited. She opened it up and asked if any of us played. She then requested “Put Your Shoulder to the Wheel”13 and my daughter Lucy obliged. It was quite a trick to play this old organ, much like riding a bicycle and playing the piano all at once. The whole organ rocked back and forth, and Hope braced herself against it to help steady it. We all did our best to sing along, including Hope. Lucy then played “Come, Come Ye Saints”14—I thought for sure Wilford would approve. Those of us who could play each took a turn with a hymn. I played Wilford’s favorite: “God Moves in a Mysterious Way.”15

The pulpit that Wilford Woodruff would have stood behind to preach in the 1830s.

Wilfords first view of this church was probably very similar to ours. But when he arrived that Sunday morning, the church was probably full of people waiting to hear Gideon J. Newton, the pastor who was sitting on the stand.

He wrote,

At the door, I sent for the deacon, and told him I wished him to inform the minister that we were servants of God, and wished to deliver a message to that people. The minister sent word for us to come into the pulpit; accordingly, with valise in hand, we walked up into the pulpit, and took a seat on each side of him. When he closed his discourse, he asked me what hour we would like to speak; I told him at five; he gave out our appointment . . . I took out my Bible, Book of Mormon, and Doctrine and Covenants, and laid them all upon his stand; he promised to read them. The hour of meeting arrived, and I preached to a full house upon the first principles of the Gospel, and bore testimony that the Lord had raised up a prophet, and had commenced to establish his church and Kingdom again upon the earth, in fulfilment of his word, as spoken through the ancient Prophets and Apostles.16

Outside the church, the air truly smelled like roses. Beach roses were growing on every lane and in every nook and cranny where they could take root. While I took a minute to sit in the pews, my children crossed the street and took a seat on a bench set against a white picket fence surrounded by pink and white roses. Of wild roses Wilford did not take note, but he did mention a variety of flora on the island. He would often find a private spot on the island, nestled among the pines, whortleberries, and wintergreens, and spend time in worshipful prayer and singing.17

Wilford kept himself busy that first week on the North Island. During the day he visited and explored the north, south, east and west districts of the island. In the evenings he preached sermons to large congregations in the four school houses. Both he and his companion bore testimony “upon the authenticity of the Book of Mormon.” He recorded,
“The Spirit of God rested upon us.”18 Wherever he went, he was fed and given a place to sleep. Benjamin Kent, Stephen Luce, Hezekiah Eames, Lewis Leadbetter, and Captain Justus Eames all hosted him as he began his ministry.19 Within ten days Wilford seemed to have found his place amongst the people. He wrote, “Last day of summer I visited many friends.”20

Page from the Pulpit Harbor Church record book.

We left the church and were taken to the North Haven Historical Society. Nan had pulled documents and papers she thought would interest me. The most fascinating item placed in my hand was the record book of the Pulpit Harbor Church. Nan turned to a page dated January 19, 1838, and I read, “At church meeting Excluded Nathaniel Thomas and his wife and Ruth Luce from the Church having joined the Mormons—[signed] James Thomas Church Clerk.”21 I had researched each of these individuals and many of their family members for the Wilford Woodruff Papers Project. I turned page after page of this book looking for people I knew. It was an incredible experience. Had there been time, I would have happily spent hours looking through all the holdings of the Historical Society. But we could not miss our ferry off the island, so we headed back to Hope’s home to eat our picnic lunch and ramble through her woods to view the native plants.

We were informed that Hope and her husband, Ted, had the most beautiful woods on the island. Ted had spent forty years making trails and caring for the foliage and trees on his property. Hope walked us to where a trail began and gave us directions to follow a loop through the woods. Our time with her was now at an end. We thanked her for her generosity and began our walk into the wild. I wish I could name all the plants we saw, but I can’t. I know I saw hay fern and a variety of brambles, and I smelled the balsam pine. But I imagined, as I walked through the woods, that I also saw the plants Wilford often mentioned: whortleberry and wintergreen. We passed a natural spring with watercress growing in its depths. Perhaps Wilford tasted its waters many years ago.

Hay fern growing in the woods on North Haven.

During 1837 and 1838 Wilford spent about nine months traveling back and forth between North and South Fox Islands; he visited both islands for the last time in June of 1849. Of this experience he wrote,

Twelve years ago I brought the Gospel to this Island in company with Jonathan H. Hale. I spent a year upon this Island and baptized near a hundred persons and took about 60 persons with me and my family to Quincy [Ilinois]. I found the Saints fleeing before their persecutors out of Missouri and settled in Illinois. Since I was upon this Island before, I have crossed the Atlantic four times and traveled in all about 50,000 miles and I now find myself treading this soil again to visit the few remaining Saints that they may be gathered to Zion.22

It hasn’t even been a week since our visit, but with only five short hours on the island, I look back and wonder if it was just a dream. I wonder if Wilford felt the same.

Erin B. Hills is a Research Specialist with the Wilford Woodruff Papers Project and a graduate of Brigham Young University–Idaho. Erin loves learning about the life of Wilford Woodruff and happily shares all her favorite stories with her family and friends. She lives with her husband and five children in Virginia. 

To learn from Wilford Woodruff’s 65 years of Church history records, visit the Wilford Woodruff Papers at wilfordwoodruffpapers.org. 

To join the volunteers transcribing and researching the documents and individuals within the papers, visit wilfordwoodruffpapers.org/volunteer.

Some original historical text has been edited for readability and clarity.

Endnotes

1 Wilford Woodruff’s Journal, May 31, 1837, p. 153, The Wilford Woodruff Papers, wilfordwoodruffpapers.org/journal/1837-05-31.

2 Wilford Woodruff’s Journal, August 1837, p. 169, The Wilford Woodruff Papers, wilfordwoodruffpapers.org/journal/1837-08.

3 Wilford Woodruff’s Journal, June 22, 1849, p. 218, The Wilford Woodruff Papers, wilfordwoodruffpapers.org/journal/1849-06-22.

4 Wilford Woodruff’s Journal, August 20, 1837, p. 169, The Wilford Woodruff Papers, wilfordwoodruffpapers.org/journal/1837-08-20.

5 Wilford Woodruff’s 1865 Autobiography in the Millennial Star, p. 20, The Wilford Woodruff Papers, wilfordwoodruffpapers.org/autobiography/1865.

6 “The George F. Lewis Farm, built by Howland Dyer in 1830,” compiled notes found at the North Haven Historical Society.

7 There were at least three deeds between 1834 and 1844 for this property. I could not trace the land earlier than that. “Deeds 1791-1861; index 1791-1864,” FamilySearch; John Dyer, John Kent, and James Beverage, November 24, 1834, Vinalhaven, Hancock Co., Maine, p. 229; citing Hancock Co., Maine, Register of Deeds, image 124/597; DGS 8202806. “Records of deeds, 1828-1896; indexes to deeds, 1827-1900,” FamilySearch; John Kent and Oliver H. Lewis, April 3, 1848, North Haven, Waldo Co., Maine, p. 346; citing Waldo Co., Maine, Register of Deeds, image 500/629; DGS 8297051. “Records of deeds, 1828-1896; indexes to deeds, 1827-1900,” FamilySearch; B. J. Porter, John Dyer, and Levi Dyer, February 6, 1845, Vinalhaven, Waldo Co., Maine, p. 409; citing Waldo Co., Maine, Register of Deeds, image 512/585; DGS 8297043. Howland Dyer was neither grantor nor grantee in these transactions; he did, however, witness the 1834 deed. “Deeds 1791-1861; index 1791-1864,” FamilySearch; John Dyer, John Kent, and James Beverage, November 24, 1834, Vinalhaven, Hancock Co., Maine, p. 229; citing Hancock Co., Maine, Register of Deeds, image 124/597; DGS 8202806.

8 Wilford Woodruff’s Journal, August 20–21, 1837, p. 171, The Wilford Woodruff Papers, wilfordwoodruffpapers.org/journal/1837-08-21.

9 Wilford Woodruff’s Journal, August 20, 1837, p. 170, The Wilford Woodruff Papers, .wilfordwoodruffpapers.org/journal/1837-08-20.

10 Wilford Woodruff’s Journal, August 22, 1837, p. 171, The Wilford Woodruff Papers, wilfordwoodruffpapers.org/journal/1837-08-22.

11 Wilford Woodruff’s Journal, August 20, 1837, p. 169, The Wilford Woodruff Papers, wilfordwoodruffpapers.org/journal/1837-08-20.

12 Wilford Woodruff’s Journal, August 20, 1837, pp. 169–170, The Wilford Woodruff Papers, wilfordwoodruffpapers.org/journal/1837-08-20.

13 “Put Your Shoulder to the Wheel,” Hymns, no. 252, ChurchofJesusChrist.org.

14 “Come, Come, Ye Saints,” Hymns, no. 30, ChurchofJesusChrist.org.

15 Conference reports of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, April 1937, p. 11, Church History Library, catalog.ChurchofJesusChrist.org; “God Moves in a Mysterious Way,” Hymns, no. 285, ChurchofJesusChrist.org.

16 Wilford Woodruff’s 1865 Autobiography in the Millennial Star, pp. 20–21, The Wilford Woodruff Papers, wilfordwoodruffpapers.org/autobiography/1865.

17 Wilford Woodruff’s Journal, September 5, 1837, p. 172, The Wilford Woodruff Papers, wilfordwoodruffpapers.org/journal/1837-09-05.

18 Wilford Woodruff’s Journal, August 21, 1837, p. 171, The Wilford Woodruff Papers, wilfordwoodruffpapers.org/journal/1837-08-21.

19 Wilford Woodruff’s Journal, August 21, 1837, p. 171, The Wilford Woodruff Papers, wilfordwoodruffpapers.org/journal/1837-08-21.

20 Wilford Woodruff’s Journal, August 31, 1837, p. 172, The Wilford Woodruff Papers, wilfordwoodruffpapers.org/journal/1837-08-31.

21 “Records of the North Haven Baptist Church from 1830 to 1889,” January 19, 1838.

22 Wilford Woodruff’s Journal, June 23, 1849, p. 218, The Wilford Woodruff Papers, wilfordwoodruffpapers.org/journal/1849-06-23.