Twenty Unsettled Miles in the Northeast Boundary [From the Report of the Council of the American Antiquarian Society, presented at the Annual Meeting held in Worcester, October 21, 1896]

For nearly three centuries the coast between Maine and New Brunswick has been the scene of a quiet but persistent border dispute. Though the Webster‑Ashburton and Buchanan‑Pakenham treaties are often thought to have settled the matter, a twenty‑mile stretch of sea and estuary remains undefined, leaving the sovereignty of a rugged shoreline in doubt. The author sketches the early colonial claims, the vague language of 18th‑century accords, and the natural complexities of a tide‑riddled, deep waterway that refuses to behave like a tidy river.

Drawing on diplomatic correspondence, congressional reports, and on‑the‑ground surveying attempts of the 1890s, the work traces how two nations grappled with an ambiguous line that cuts through shifting currents and islands. Readers are guided through the legal arguments, the geographic realities, and the modest but spirited efforts to mark the missing boundary before modern technologies took over. The narrative balances scholarly detail with a vivid sense of the place, making a niche chapter of North‑American history feel immediate and relevant.