The Josias River is a U.S. Geological Survey. National Hydrography Dataset high-resolution flowline data
The National Map
, accessed June 30, 2011 river in southern

Maine Maine () is a state in the New England and Northeastern regions of the United States. It borders New Hampshire to the west, the Gulf of Maine to the southeast, and the Canadian provinces of New Brunswick and Quebec to the northeast and north ...

in the

United States The United States of America (U.S.A. or USA), commonly known as the United States (U.S. or US) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It consists of 50 states, a federal district, five major unincorporated territorie ...

. The river enters the

Gulf of Maine The Gulf of Maine is a large gulf of the Atlantic Ocean on the east coast of North America. It is bounded by Cape Cod at the eastern tip of Massachusetts in the southwest and by Cape Sable Island at the southern tip of Nova Scotia in the northeast ...

in the town of

Ogunquit Ogunquit ( ) is a resort town in York County, Maine. As of the 2020 census, its population was 1,577. Ogunquit is part of the Portland– South Portland– Biddeford, Maine Metropolitan Statistical Area. History Ogunquit, which means "b ...

where it and the

Ogunquit River The Ogunquit River is a U.S. Geological Survey. National Hydrography Dataset high-resolution flowline dataThe National Map, accessed June 30, 2011 tidal river in southern Maine. It flows to the Atlantic Ocean at the town of Ogunquit. Images Fil ...

come together at Perkin's Cove, a popular artist and tourist area. Research into the name of the river has revealed that, like many geographical features, it has gone by various names over time. At one time, for example, it was known as Four Mile Brook. The ultimate name arose from the Littlefield family, the first recorded settlers in

Wells Wells most commonly refers to: * Wells, Somerset, a cathedral city in Somerset, England * Well, an excavation or structure created in the ground * Wells (name) Wells may also refer to: Places Canada *Wells, British Columbia England * Wells ...

, which once included Ogunquit. Josiah Littlefield owned considerable property along the river, and he built and operated a saw mill at the falls on the river for several years. This naturally resulted in local residents referring to it as "Josiah's river". Josiah Littlefield was abducted to

Canada Canada is a country in North America. Its ten provinces and three territories extend from the Atlantic Ocean to the Pacific Ocean and northward into the Arctic Ocean, covering over , making it the world's second-largest country by tot ...

in 1708 during the

French and Indian Wars The French and Indian Wars were a series of conflicts that occurred in North America between 1688 and 1763, some of which indirectly were related to the European dynastic wars. The title ''French and Indian War'' in the singular is used in the U ...

, where he spent two years seeking his freedom (freedom was usually bought), only to be killed in an Indian attack in 1712, a couple years after his return. The river was named in his memory.

References

*
Maine Streamflow Data from the USGSMaine Watershed Data From Environmental Protection Agency
Ogunquit, Maine Rivers of York County, Maine {{Maine-river-stub

See also

References