AUGUST 1905 TRAGEDIES DREW NATIONAL ATTENTION TO READFIELD AND WINTHROP

August, 1905 was not a particularly eventful month in most parts of the country. August 5^th President Roosevelt hosted the Russian and Japanese peace commissioners at his home in Oyster Bay, NY; on the 6^th a record high rainfall occurred in Indiana; on the 24^th the Chicago Cubs beat the Phillies 2-1 in 20 innings. Nothing in particular made titillating headline news on the national level except for two tragic events that occurred in Readfield and Winthrop, Maine.

Mattie Hackett of Readfield, ME

The stage was set when a young Readfield woman named Mattie Hackett was murdered on August 17^th. She had been a student at Maine Wesleyan Seminary and Female College (Kents Hill School) and was working at the Elmwood Hotel in Readfield Corner.  After supper that evening Mattie’s father found her near their farmhouse on P Ridge - lying in the road and gasping for air. After he carried her to the house he found a piece of rope wrapped around her neck but it was too late - she died minutes later.

A novice reporter was sent from the Kennebec Journal to cover the story but his editor soon realized he had fodder for headline news and assigned an investigative reporter. Articles soon began to appear across the country with headlines like “All shrouded in mystery. No clues in Mattie Hackett murder”. In the days that followed all eyes were focused on small town Readfield, Maine and details of every movement on or near the Hackett farm on Kents Hill gave rise to another news report.

By August 24^th a suspect had been identified – Mrs. Elsie Raymond of Readfield Corner. Mattie worked with Raymond’s husband at the Elmwood and investigators theorized it may have been a crime of jealousy. A guard was stationed outside Raymond’s home and Maine’s Attorney General Hannibal Hamlin took personal interest in the inquiry. Townspeople were all abuzz and emotions of fear and insecurity were running high.  

Meanwhile, only two miles away as the crow flies, Maranacook Lodge was in full swing for the season. Guests had arrived by train and filled the hotel to capacity.  It was exceptionally hot that summer. Starting in June, temperatures hit 100 degrees in New York and New England and stayed above 90 from then on. The lakeside resort gave blessed relief to the weary city dwellers. A Malden, MA resident - 17 year old Robert D. Boutwell - was among the employees at Maranacook Lodge that year.  He was a well-fit student athlete, who had worked there as a hotel clerk in 1904, when his strong swimming skills were discovered by the hotelkeepers. So, upon his return in 1905, in addition to his duties as clerk, Boutwell was asked to ride on excursions when the 60 foot, 75 passenger steamboat the Steamer Maranacook set sail for sightseeing tours around the lake.

On the evening of August 25^th, as they cruised near Craig’s Point (Tallwood), the Steamer Maranacook collided with a rowboat and its two passengers were thrown into the lake. One managed to swim to safety but as the other went down for the second time young Boutwell sprung into action and saved her. He was hailed as a hero and a story appeared in newspapers the next day “Boston Girl Saved by Steamer Passenger”. Festivities were planned for the evening of August 27^th when the hotel management would present Boutwell with a plaque and recognize him as a hero, but it was not to be.

The evening of August 26^th began uneventfully with dinner in the dining hall followed by adult conversation on the swings, in the lounge or on the croquet court. Mattie Hackett’s murder had to be fresh on the minds and tongues of these folks who surely thought they would be safe in Maine away from the throng of city life. They must have watched their children closely for there was a murderer on the loose. Little did they know that hours later a perpetrator of another kind would invade their haven.

Most retired to their rooms at a reasonable hour and all were asleep when sometime in the night Boutwell and another employee were awakened by the sounds and smells of fire. Boutwell immediately ran through the hotel pounding on doors calling “FIRE! GET OUT NOW!”  With his hands, face and neck severely burned he helped carry ladders and placed them as alternate escape routes. Guests fled down the stairs, jumped from the roof or windows and exited down the ladders. There were many injuries – three doctors were brought in from Readfield to attend those in need. Guest ledgers were destroyed so there was uncertainty about whether everyone had escaped. It was not until the next day, when the rubble had cooled enough to sort through, that remains of a young family named Martin from Roslindale, MA – husband, wife and 7 year old son – were discovered.

Had it not been for the valiant efforts of the now second time hero Robert Boutwell, many more lives would have been lost. He did not know this because he had been transported across the lake to the Sir Charles Hotel (Tallwood Inn) where doctors were monitoring him closely for severe burns and inhalation of smoke and fire. The outlook was grim and his father was summoned to come from Malden posthaste!  Mr. Boutwell arrived in time to hear his son’s final words early the next morning - “Good bye father. God bless you and dear mother.”

On the following day the Boston Globe, New York Times and other newspapers across the country printed headlines such as “Hero of hotel fire succumbs” and “Hero’s dying prayer”.

The press coverage of the Mattie Hackett murder continued off and on for years. Elsie Raymond was brought to trial but found innocent. The crime was never solved.  

Oral tradition has kept both stories alive over the years. A book titled “In Search of Mattie Hackett” was authored by Emeric Spooner and published in 2011. Readfield musician Ellen Bowman recently wrote a ballad in memory of Mattie Hackett which, Bowman says pays long overdue tribute to Mattie’s memory. On July 22^nd a cousin of Boutwell, Lois Buchan of Manchester, N.H., visited Maranacook Lodge to share information about the young hero and to pay tribute to his memory. As others looked on she stood on the spot where young Boutwell had spent his last days and played Amazing Grace on her fife.

Mattie Hackett, Robert Boutwell and a young family died tragically that August long ago, before any of them could make their marks on the world. But then, perhaps they did? One-hundred and nine years later they are still touching lives.

January, 2024 A new, deeply researched historical novel by Peter Pettingill chronicles the murder and subsequent, years long investigation. The book is titled The Murder of Mattie Hackett and can be purchased via amazon.com as a paperback or kindle. 

(c) 2014 All Rights Reserved Dale Potter-Clark

This story appeared in Discover Maine Magazine, Kennebec & Androscoggin River Valleys, 2014