When Adoniram Blethen was born in 1832, in Cumberland, Maine, United States, his father, Benjamin W. Blethen, was 36 and his mother, Sarah Gordon, was 33. He married Nancy Ray Ward on 27 July 1862, in Penobscot, Maine, United States. They were the parents of at least 1 daughter. He lived in Madrid, Franklin, Maine, United States in 1850. He died on 6 January 1897, at the age of 65.
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Convinced that a group of Native American tribes were hostile, The United States formed a frontier militia to stop them in their tracks. Even though Black Hawk was hoping to avoid bloodshed while trying to resettle on tribal land, U.S. officials opened fire on the Native Americans. Black Hawk then responded to this confrontation by successfully attacking the militia at the Battle of Stillman's Run and then left northward. After a few months the militia caught up with Black Hawk and his men and defeated them at the Battle of Wisconsin Heights. While being weakened by hunger, injuries and desertion, Black Hawk and the rest of the many native survivors retreated towards the Mississippi. Unfortunately, Black Hawk and other leaders were later captured when they surrendered to the US forces and were then imprisoned for a year.
The State of Maine chartered the Calais Railway in 1832, one of the first railway charters to be granted by the state. Construction was very long, as the project was reorganized, abandoned, transferred to other companies, and extended several times. It was finally completed in 1898.
"In 1851, Maine outlawed the sale of alcohol, allowing exceptions only for ""medicinal, mechanical, and manufacturing purposes"". This made Maine the first state to experiment with prohibition. Neal Dow, mayor of Portland, believed that alcohol was linked to slavery and was also convinced by the Christian temperance movement. Dow ran into problems later for his anti-immigration rhetoric against the Irish, and also for breaking his own prohibition laws; although not a designated ""purchaser"", Dow personally purchased alcohol to distribute to local doctors, violating a technicality. As the citizens turned against him, Dow eventually ordered soldiers to fire on protesters. This marked a sharp decline in Dow's political career, and the Maine Law was repealed by 1856. Aspects of the law would remain in tact, however, and ultimately paved the way for the 18th Amendment, which prohibited alcohol on the national level."
Welsh: from the Middle Welsh personal name Blethyn (Old Welsh Bledgint, from bleid ‘wolf’ + apparently the mutated form of cint ‘first’), or an Anglicized form of ap Blethyn ‘son of Blethyn’.
Dictionary of American Family Names © Patrick Hanks 2003, 2006.
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