Gilbert Patten
The first one hundred pages of Gilbert Patten’s autobiography, Frank Merriwell’s “Father” An Autobiography by Gilbert Patten (Burt L. Standish), describe growing up in the small rural town of Corinna, Maine. Descriptions of his family, the town, the people, and events provide a fascinating view of life in Corinna from 1866 to 1898. Corinna residents will recognize locations and some of the family names of people he mentions. I highly recommend the book to anyone interested in Corinna history. A copy of it is available in the Stewart Free Library in Corinna. A few copies are also available for purchase on Amazon.
As the book begins Patten tells of sneaking out of the house two days before Thanksgiving to be the first one to skate on the Old Bog above the Upper Dam. Because the weather had been cold for the past few days he was sure the Bog would be fully frozen over.
His parents were deeply religious and strict. They discouraged him from spending time with others his age and always commanded him to stay close to home. He knew that other boys his age had more freedom. His peers viewed him as a “fraid cat” and teased him often. Being the first to skate on the Old Bog would improve his reputation.
The adventure almost ended in tragedy. No one else was on the Bog that morning. After a few passes over the smooth ice he was elated with his success at being the first. Suddenly he broke through the ice in water over his head. It was a mighty struggle for a small boy. It took some time for him to get to the edge of the hole, but he was not able to climb out. Surely drowning there was a real possibility. He manage to save himself because his wet mittens froze to the ice in front of him. He used them to pull himself out of the hole. He later stated that his determination to survive had saved him.
Rushing back home, soaked from head to toe, he managed to sneak back into the house and up to his room on the second floor. Later when his mother discovered the wet clothes he minimized the event saying he fell through in shallow water. She admonished him and called him reckless. He protested that he was “just showing the other fellers I ain’t a coward.”
Cordelia Patten warned her son that such actions would lead him into scrapping and fights with other boys, something that she and his father had forbidden him to do. He knew that not standing up for himself in a scrap would lead to his suffering and humiliation. Looking back Patten explained, “For back there in those far-gone days any boy who failed to stand up for his rights and self-respect by using his fists and strength was held in contempt by all lads who knew him, and was set upon and knocked around by fellows who took sadistic delight in beating and torturing the timid or those weaker than themselves.” [7] Much as he rebelled, his parents’ restrictions forced him to daydream heroic situations featuring himself as the hero.
Willie’s grandmother Simpson lived with them in the house she had purchased using money from her late husband’s military pension. Willie says he once heard his grandmother say of him, “Never saw a boy like Willie. All he wants to do is read or write or run away. Hates to work. Lacks ambition. Never’ll set any rivers on fire when he grows up.”
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