Book allows history buffs to re-travel Arnold’s march

Small places with short histories such as Maine can point to few enough epic military events, let’s say on the order of Hannibal crossing the Alps, but Benedict Arnold’s calamitous expedition to Quebec City in 1775 qualifies as one such colossus of enduring interest.

Picked over by numerous historians and immortalized in one good novel, Arnold’s secret march through nearly unexplored wilderness remains a source of endless fascination, unmatched for audacity and fortitude, not just in Maine, but probably in all of what would become the nation.

The cast of characters – the enigmatic Arnold, the Virginian Daniel Morgan and his fabled riflemen, the slippery Aaron Burr, the elusive Indian Natanis – make this a first-class episode on the road to Saratoga and Yorktown. Names including the Great Carrying Place, Dead River, Chain of Ponds and the Height of Land resonate today because of the heroic events that occurred there .

Nevertheless, these men were flawed humans, not gods. There was something desperate about this affair, and something sloppy and naive that cost dozens of lives – the poor timing of going in late fall, the leaking boats, the uncoordinated retreat of more than a quarter of the Army, the starvation, the lack of communication.

There’s Capt. Henry Dearborn, for example, weeping disconsolately as his men butcher his pet dog for lack of anything else to eat. And did the leaders of this ultimately disastrous affair really think the British would leave the doors of one of the mightiest fortresses in North America open for them?

Now we have a handbook and trail guide for the reader who wants to do more than read Kenneth Robert’s novel, “Arundel,” or one of the many histories. Stephen Clark’s new book, “Following Their Footsteps: A Travel Guide & History of the 1775 Secret Expedition to Capture Quebec” (Clark Books, Shapleigh, Maine), is for the history devotee who wants to go to the scene of the action, to paddle the streams and remote ponds, to see the views, to visit the portages and campsites, to touch the ancient buildings where Arnold and his men slept, ate, argued, struggled, and died.

There are more than a few DAR plaques, DOT signboards and local town history pamphlets along the way, marking a host of places with Arnold’s name appended to them in Maine and southern Quebec – Arnold Road, Arnold Lane, Arnold Island, Arnold Landing, Arnold Point, Arnold Pond and Arnold River to name a few.

Yes, Arnold left his marks on Maine, and Clark is a connoiseur of all sorts of issues. There’s knotty ones such as why did Lt. Col. Roger Enos retreat from the Dead River taking a quarter of the little army with him? And obscure details: Enos had tears in his eyes as he said goodbye to fellow officers.

Clark explodes legends such as the one about Aaron Burr and the beautiful Indian maiden who allegedly accompanied him much of the way to Quebec. Probably didn’t happen, Clark suggests politely.

Clark’s lavishly illustrated book is two in one. The main text is his clear and straightforward recounting of the expedition’s history from Sept. 11, 1775 when the army left Cambridge, Mass. to Dec. 31 and the hopeless attack against the walls of Quebec City in a snowstorm. A past president of the Appalachian Trail Club, Clark is always careful to make sure the reader understands the all-important geography, the places and distances, the conditions of the rivers and streams, as well as the weather, which included a hurricane, a flood and plenty of snow.

Alongside the history, is a travel guide, including odometer readings, so the reader can find every geographic relic of the expedition known to historians as well as other sights along the journey, which wound its way through the remote sections of Maine along the Kennebec River and its tributaries, ending on the Chaudiere and St. Lawrence rivers in Quebec. Some of this territory remains wilderness today. The traveler can decide to make this a car tour or bring along his canoe and knapsack to explore some rugged backcountry.

I read “Arundel” as a teenager, and Clark’s book brought back some memories of that experience including Kenneth Robert’s wonderful ability to describe the excitement of autumn in Maine and to convince you of the near god-like heroism of certain questionable historical figures. By the time I was done reading Clark’s book, I was planning my own trip. Even the tarnished old DAR plaques seemed worth another look.

Wayne Reilly writes a history column each Monday in the Style section. During his 28 years at the Bangor Daily News, he worked as a reporter, editorial page writer and assignment editor. He can be reached at wreilly@bangordailynews.net.