[&ANoNG] DOCHET (ST. CROIX) ISLAND 213 
in the River St. Croix” from the description of the bounds of St. 
Croix. 
3. Tur Moprern History oF DocHET ISLAND FROM THE First PER- 
MANENT SETTLEMENT OF THE RIVER TO THE PRESENT,— 
1799—-1902. 
The modern history of the island began apparently with the 
adoption of its present name not long prior to 1796. The permanent 
settlement of the Passamaquoddy region had begun in 1763 with a 
few New England fishermen and traders, and a few settlers from 
various sources continued to arrive from time to time until 1784, when 
large numbers of loyalists settled on the British side of the St. Croix, 
and various settlers began to occupy the American side. But there 
is nothing to indicate any occupancy of Dochet Island prior to 1799, 
and probably it was not settled, for had any settlement existed it would 
hardly have escaped mention in the testimony of Pagan and of Wright 
above cited, or some representation on Wright’s map. Moreover, the 
implication in the letter of Ward Chipman above cited, is that Amer- 
ican settlers were taking possession of the island for the first time 
in: 0499. - > * 
There is no evidence known to me as to who these settlers were 
aside from tradition, which states that the earliest settlers on the 
island were one Haliker and his wife, who lived there many years, 
and whose graves, marked by rude unlettered stones, can now be seen 
near the lighthouse. It is possible, however, that Haliker and his 
wife were simply early residents, and not the earliest. The first 
residents must have been squatters, since the island was not granted 
until 1820.. The next event in the history of the island is also 
supplied by tradition, namely, that at the time of the war of 1812 
the island was used as a “neutral island” (hence originating the 
name, Neutral Island, by which it has often been known), on which 
the British and American vessels exchanged their cargoes of plaster. 
For some years prior to 1812, and for some time after, the navigation 
laws of one or the other nation were so constructed that British 
vessels could not carry plaster or other goods into the United States, 
nor United States vessels go to British ports for it. Consequently, 
the vessels had to meet and exchange cargoes, quite illegally, on cer- 
tain places tacitly accepted as “ neutral,” and Dochet Island was one 
of these places, probably utilized for this purpose because far removed 
from the customs officers who had headquarters at Eastport.t British 

* A good account of these operations has been published by Sabine, re- 
printed in Kilby’s ‘‘ Eastport and Passamaquoddy.”’ 
