Mr. President, I rise today to wish the town of Freedom, ME, a very happy 200th birthday. The people of Freedom are proud of their hometown and the generations of hard-working and caring people who have made it such a wonderful place to live, work, and raise families. The name of this town is more than a word; it describes its history. Originally part of the Plymouth Patent, this community can trace its roots to the brave Pilgrims who came to the New World to secure freedom. Its first permanent settler was Stephen Smith, a soldier of the American Revolution who fought for freedom. When the town was incorporated in 1813, American independence was again under attack, and the town's name--first Smithtown, then Beaverhill Plantation--became Freedom. Decades later, when the Civil War threatened to divide our Nation and condemn millions to continued slavery, many young men from the town enlisted in the Union Army to fight for the freedom of all. One of them, Daniel Franklin Davis, became the 37th governor of our great State of Maine. And when the town's oldest citizen, Roy Ward, is recognized at the bicentennial celebration on July 5th, his friends and neighbors will honor his courageous Navy service during World War II in freedom's cause. Through the years, the people who built this community demonstrated the qualities that make freedom possible--determination, energy, and self-reliance. They harnessed the waters of Sandy Stream to power mills for grain, lumber, and textiles.…
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