Skolfield family papers

The Skolfield family of Brunswick and Harpswell, Maine, originated with Thomas Skolfield (1707-1796), who arrived on Harpswell Neck in 1740 after emigrating from Ireland. He and his wife, Mary Orr (1714-1771) had 11 children, most of whom entered shipping in one way or another, either through sailing, building, or marrying into local shipbuilding families. One of Thomas’ grandsons, George Skolfield (1780-1866), became a well-known and highly regarded shipbuilder, constructing over 60 ships during his career and launching what would become a multi-generational shipping business. It is this branch of the family that is represented in this collection.

George married Lydia Dole (1785-1867), a daughter of James and Anna (Dunning) Doyle. Together, the couple had 8 children, including George R. (1809-1897). George R. Skolfield married Ann Eliza Reed (1813-1835), and together the couple had a son who died in infancy and a daughter named Ann Eliza (1832-1911), who married Paul Curtis Merryman (note that this surname is spelled variously Merryman and Merriman throughout; as much as possible, it is recorded as it is found in the collection). Upon the elder Ann Eliza’s death in 1835, George R. married Hannah Frances (Fannie) Milliken (1830-1900), and together they had six children: Susan Curtis (1849-1893), who married Isaac Merriman; Lydia Doyle (1852–1917) who married Clement S. Dunning (1837-1908), a captain and master on multiple Skolfield ships; George Skolfield (1855–1860); John Theodore (Thede) (1858–1938) who married Josephine Dunning Pennell and was a member of the D.W. True & Co. wholesale firm of Portland, Maine; Curtis (1861-1862); and Daniel True (1862–1949), a farmer.

The Skolfield family built, sailed, and managed ships throughout the 19th century. A family operation, their ships were frequently commanded by family members and various women of the family accompanied their husbands on voyages for decades. The Skolfield ships traveled the world engaged in trade and commerce, frequently sailing to ports throughout Asia and participating in the cotton trade, before and after the Civil War. The Skolfield ships were built at the family’s Harpswell Neck and neighboring Brunswick shipyards. These shipyards held boarding houses for the workers, kitchens, barns, and smithy shops, employing hundreds of locals over their century-plus operation. The various homes, descendants, and maritime contributions of the extended Skolfield family left a lasting mark on the towns and communities of Harpswell and Brunswick.