Hannah Weston
Historic Marker Database
When word reached the communities near Machias in June 1775 that their militias were needed to mount an attack on British ships threatening the coastal community (see the Battle of Margaretta and Burnham Tavern), the men hurried off, taking with them what little ammunition they had. But the women who stayed behind knew it wouldn’t be enough, and two of them did something about it.
Hannah Watts Weston was 17-years-old and five months pregnant when her husband, Josiah Weston, left their Jonesboro home with his fellow militiamen to fight the British in Machias. Having seen them off, she knew how little their supplies were. She enlisted her sister-in-law, Rebecca Weston, to collect all the powder, lead, and pewter they could find – about 40 pounds worth in all.
Disguising their stash in bundles of everyday household goods, the two young women set off through the dense woods, walking about 20 miles to Machias. By the time they arrived in Machias, the fight was over, but the danger and the need for ammunition were not: The community knew the British would return with a greater force one day.
Hannah Watts Weston died in 1855 at the age of 97. By the early 20th century, the Daughters of the American Revolution had formed the Hannah Weston Chapter and was actively commemorating her story. In 1902, they erected a memorial to her, which can be found in Jonesboro today at the intersection of Route 1 and Station Road.
