Saint Croix Island (Maine)
| Saint Croix Island International Historic Site |
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| Location | Washington County, Maine |
| Nearest city | Calais, Maine |
| Coordinates | 45°7′42″N 67°8′0″W / 45.12833°N 67.13333°WCoordinates: 45°7′42″N 67°8′0″W / 45.12833°N 67.13333°W |
| Area | 44.90 acres (18.17 ha) 22.44 acres (0.0908 km2) federal |
| Established | June 8, 1949 (U.S. National Monument); 1968 (Cdn. National Historic Event); 1984 (International Historic Site) |
| Governing body | U.S. National Park Service and Parks Canada |
Saint Croix Island (French: Île Sainte-Croix), long known to locals as Dochet Island, is a small uninhabited island in Maine near the mouth of the Saint Croix River that forms part of the Canada–United States border separating Maine from New Brunswick. The island is in the heart of the traditional lands of the Passamaquoddy people who, according to oral tradition, used it to store food away from the dangers of mainland animals. The island was the site of an early attempt at French colonization by Pierre Dugua, Sieur de Mons in 1604. In 1984 it was designated by the United States Congress as Saint Croix Island International Historic Site. There is no public access to the island, but there is a visitor contact station on the U.S. mainland and a display on the Canadian mainland opposite the island.
The 6.5 acre (26,000 m2) island measures approximately 200 yd (182.9 m) long by 100 yd (91.4 m) wide, and is located approximately 4 mi (6 km) upstream from the mouth of the river on Passamaquoddy Bay.
Viewed from Maine
Viewed from the New Brunswick
The Passamaquoddy Nation, who had lived around and used the island for numerous centuries before European discovery used several names for the island including Muttoneguis,Muttoneguamus, Metanegwis, and Metnegwis.
"Captain Nicola Anawan, 67 years old, said the Indians called the Magaguadavic the St. Croix, because there was a cross put up there by the French, and the whole river was called St. Croix when he was a boy, and did not know that the Scoudiac was ever called St. Croix. The two islands on this side of Devil's Head are called Muttoneguis and Aluttonegwenish, a great and little island, where was a store to deposit things."
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Wikipedia