Last updated: October 5, 2020
Place
Samuel de Champlain Memorial Plaque
NPS Photo/D. Warner
Quick Facts
Location:
Day Mountain Trailhead
Significance:
Memorial plaque dedicated to Samuel de Champlain
MANAGED BY:
Village of Seal Harbor
Amenities
2 listed
Parking - Auto, Trailhead
A memorial plaque dedicated to noted explorer Samuel de Champlain can be found at the start of the Day Mountain Trail. The trailhead is located off Maine Route 3. The inscription reads as follows:
IN HONOR OF SAMUEL DE CHAMPLAIN
BORN IN FRANCE, 1567
DIED AT QUEBEC 1635
A SOLDIER SAILOR EXPLORER
AND ADMINISTRATOR
WHO GAVE THIS
LAND ITS NAME
“THE SAME DAY WE PASSED ALSO NEAR AN ISLAND
ABOUT FOUR OR FIVE LEAGUES LONG…IT WAS
VERY HIGH, NOTCHED IN PLACES, SO AS TO APPEAR
FROM THE SEA LIKE A RANGE OF SEVEN OR EIGHT
MOUNTAINS CLOSE TOGETHER. THE SUMMITS OF
MOST OF THEM ARE BARE OF TREES FOR THEY
ARE NOTHING BUT ROCK….I NAMED IT THE
ISLAND OF THE DESERT MOUNTAINS.”
TRANSLATION FROM CHAMPLAIN’S JOURNAL
5 SEPTEMBER 1604
THIS MEMORIAL WAS ERECTED BY THE SEAL
HARBOR VILLAGE IMPROVEMENT SOCIETY
IN 1904 – THE 300TH ANNIVERSARY
OF CHAMPLAIN’S VOYAGE.