Mollyockett Day

Mollyockett Day

Third Saturday in July

Mollyockett was a Pequawket Indian who lived among the early settlers of western Maine. Born between 1730 and 1740, she lived in the area now known as Bethel after 1770 and made frequent trips throughout the Androscoggin Valley and into northern New Hampshire, Vermont, and Quebec. She was known as an "Indian doctress" who treated the white settlers of New England as well. One of her most famous patients was the infant Hannibal Hamlin, whom she found near death and cured with warm cow's milk. He grew up to become Abraham Lincoln's vice president. Mollyockett was also known as a storyteller, famous for her tales of buried Indian treasure.
The local festival that is currently known as Mollyockett Day in Bethel, Maine, started out in the 1950s as a fundraising event for families in need of assistance. In 1970 the name was changed in honor of the Indian woman whose generosity and self-reliance have become legendary. The festival includes a parade, foot races, rubber ducky race, and Maine lobsters.

CONTACTS:
Bethel Area Chamber of Commerce
8 Station Pl.
P.O. Box 1247
Bethel, ME 04217
800-442-5826 or 207-824-2282; fax: 207-824-7123
www.bethelmaine.com

Celebration days: Jul 16, 2011; Jul 21, 2012; Jul 20, 2013; Jul 19, 2014; Jul 18, 2015