Mount Kineo
Encyclopedia
Mount Kineo, situated beside Moosehead Lake
in Maine
, is in the northern Maine forest, which stretches north to Canada
. Kineo is a peninsula
, comprising 1,150 acres (4.7 km²), which extends from the easterly shore into the lake. Mt. Kineo, with 700 feet (213.4 m) cliffs rising straight up from the water, is a dramatic setting that has attracted visitors for centuries.
Native Americans
once traveled great distances to Mt. Kineo to acquire its rhyolite
rock. The mountain is a peculiar geological formation of flint
known as siliceous slate
, or hornstone. It is the country's largest known mass of this rock, once used by Indians
to craft arrowhead
s, hatchet
s, chisels, etc. Because Indian implements made from the stone have been found in all parts of New England
and even further south, it is evident that various tribes visited Mt. Kineo for centuries to obtain this material.
In 1846, Henry David Thoreau
visited the Moosehead Lake region, and the mountain's geological formation, Indian relics and traditions deeply interested him. The first Mt. Kineo House was built on the shores of Moosehead Lake in 1848, but burned in 1868. Rebuilt in 1870 and opened in 1871, the second Mt. Kineo House would burn in 1882. Designed by Arthur H. Vinal
, the third Mt. Kineo House opened in 1884. Mt. Kineo Golf Course, built in the 1880s, is believed to be the second oldest in New England.
In 1911, the Maine Central Railroad
purchased the resort and engaged the Hiram Ricker Hotel Company to operate it. Then the largest inland waterfront hotel in America, it had accommodations for over 500 guests. But in 1933, the railroad eliminated its Kineo branch, and in 1938 sold the hotel. It burned during demolition.
Moosehead Lake
Moosehead Lake is the largest lake in the U.S. state of Maine and the largest mountain lake in the eastern United States. Situated in the Longfellow Mountains in the Maine Highlands Region, the lake is the source of the Kennebec River. Towns that border the lake include Greenville to the south and...
in Maine
Maine
Maine is a state in the New England region of the northeastern United States, bordered by the Atlantic Ocean to the east and south, New Hampshire to the west, and the Canadian provinces of Quebec to the northwest and New Brunswick to the northeast. Maine is both the northernmost and easternmost...
, is in the northern Maine forest, which stretches north to Canada
Canada
Canada is a North American country consisting of ten provinces and three territories. Located in the northern part of the continent, it extends from the Atlantic Ocean in the east to the Pacific Ocean in the west, and northward into the Arctic Ocean...
. Kineo is a peninsula
Peninsula
A peninsula is a piece of land that is bordered by water on three sides but connected to mainland. In many Germanic and Celtic languages and also in Baltic, Slavic and Hungarian, peninsulas are called "half-islands"....
, comprising 1,150 acres (4.7 km²), which extends from the easterly shore into the lake. Mt. Kineo, with 700 feet (213.4 m) cliffs rising straight up from the water, is a dramatic setting that has attracted visitors for centuries.
Native Americans
Aboriginal peoples in Canada
Aboriginal peoples in Canada comprise the First Nations, Inuit and Métis. The descriptors "Indian" and "Eskimo" have fallen into disuse in Canada and are commonly considered pejorative....
once traveled great distances to Mt. Kineo to acquire its rhyolite
Rhyolite
This page is about a volcanic rock. For the ghost town see Rhyolite, Nevada, and for the satellite system, see Rhyolite/Aquacade.Rhyolite is an igneous, volcanic rock, of felsic composition . It may have any texture from glassy to aphanitic to porphyritic...
rock. The mountain is a peculiar geological formation of flint
Flint
Flint is a hard, sedimentary cryptocrystalline form of the mineral quartz, categorized as a variety of chert. It occurs chiefly as nodules and masses in sedimentary rocks, such as chalks and limestones. Inside the nodule, flint is usually dark grey, black, green, white, or brown in colour, and...
known as siliceous slate
Slate
Slate is a fine-grained, foliated, homogeneous metamorphic rock derived from an original shale-type sedimentary rock composed of clay or volcanic ash through low-grade regional metamorphism. The result is a foliated rock in which the foliation may not correspond to the original sedimentary layering...
, or hornstone. It is the country's largest known mass of this rock, once used by Indians
Indigenous peoples of the Americas
The indigenous peoples of the Americas are the pre-Columbian inhabitants of North and South America, their descendants and other ethnic groups who are identified with those peoples. Indigenous peoples are known in Canada as Aboriginal peoples, and in the United States as Native Americans...
to craft arrowhead
Arrowhead
An arrowhead is a tip, usually sharpened, added to an arrow to make it more deadly or to fulfill some special purpose. Historically arrowheads were made of stone and of organic materials; as human civilization progressed other materials were used...
s, hatchet
Hatchet
A hatchet is a single-handed striking tool with a sharp blade used to cut and split wood...
s, chisels, etc. Because Indian implements made from the stone have been found in all parts of New England
New England
New England is a region in the northeastern corner of the United States consisting of the six states of Maine, New Hampshire, Vermont, Massachusetts, Rhode Island, and Connecticut...
and even further south, it is evident that various tribes visited Mt. Kineo for centuries to obtain this material.
In 1846, Henry David Thoreau
Henry David Thoreau
Henry David Thoreau was an American author, poet, philosopher, abolitionist, naturalist, tax resister, development critic, surveyor, historian, and leading transcendentalist...
visited the Moosehead Lake region, and the mountain's geological formation, Indian relics and traditions deeply interested him. The first Mt. Kineo House was built on the shores of Moosehead Lake in 1848, but burned in 1868. Rebuilt in 1870 and opened in 1871, the second Mt. Kineo House would burn in 1882. Designed by Arthur H. Vinal
Arthur H. Vinal
Arthur H. Vinal was an American architect who lived and worked in Boston, Massachusetts. Vinal started a partnership with Henry F. Starbuck in 1877; the firm broke up when Starbuck moved away. Vinal was City Architect of Boston from 1884 to 1887. He is principally known for his Richardsonian...
, the third Mt. Kineo House opened in 1884. Mt. Kineo Golf Course, built in the 1880s, is believed to be the second oldest in New England.
In 1911, the Maine Central Railroad
Maine Central Railroad
The Maine Central Railroad Company was a railroad in central and southern Maine. It was chartered in 1856 and began operations in 1862. It operated a mainline between South Portland, Maine, east to the Canada-U.S...
purchased the resort and engaged the Hiram Ricker Hotel Company to operate it. Then the largest inland waterfront hotel in America, it had accommodations for over 500 guests. But in 1933, the railroad eliminated its Kineo branch, and in 1938 sold the hotel. It burned during demolition.