Wasson, George (1855 - 1932)

Genre: Non-Fiction - Scholarly, Short Stories

George S. Wasson, noted maritime painter and writer, was born in Groveland, Massachusetts. His father's family, however, was from the Penobscot Bay area. As a child, George spent most of his summers with his grandfather, 'Squire' David Wasson in Brooksville.

When he was seventeen, his father, Rev. David Atwood Wasson, took George to Stuttgart, Germany. He soon enrolled in the Art Academy, where he studied for three years.

After his return to Massachusetts, he spent the summers sailing along the New England coast, sketching scenes he would later paint in his Boston studio.

In 1889 he and his wife and their two sons moved to a new home in Kittery Point, Maine. He remained there, painting and writing, until 1916 when he and his wife and their son's widow moved to Bangor.

His short stories, many of which were first published in literary magazines, grew out of his great respect and friendship for his Kittery Point neighbors and his delight in their colorful expressions. In fact, his writing is still praised for the authenticity of the coastal vernacular expressions.

After two of his history articles, The Vanished Pinky and The Old Rockland, Maine, Lime Trade, were printed in Old-Time New England magazine, Wasson was encouraged to write a book-length maritime history.

In 1932, his Sailing Days on the Penobscot; The River and Bay as They Were in the Old Days was published. Maine author Lincoln Colcord (q.v.) contributed a detailed list of vessels constructed on the Penobscot River and Bay. The book, minus Colcord's detailed tables, was republished in 1949.

Selected Bibliography

  • Cap'n Simeon's Store (1903)
  • The Green Shay (1905)
  • Home From Sea (1908)

Selected Resources