Talk:Malaga Island

Untitled
I have a photo of the tombstone at Pineland Cemetary that indicates the burial of Malaga Island residents. I'd like to add it to this page, but don't have the ability to do that because of my account privileges. If your account allows that, please talk back and I will send it to you Jenny124 (talk) 20:15, 16 July 2008 (UTC)

Link to a documentary about Malaga Island


"WMPG-FM, in collaboration with the Salt Institute for Documentary Studies, announces the premier of Malaga Island: A Story Best Left Untold, a radio and photo documentary recounting this infamous event and its impact on several generations of descendants. The documentary is produced by Kate Philbrick, photographer, and Rob Rosenthal, radio producer."

70.71.95.110 (talk) 03:17, 7 November 2009 (UTC)

Flawed entry
Most of the details in this article are incorrect, including the sequence of events. Needs an overhaul. —Preceding unsigned comment added by Vincent pearse (talk • contribs) 00:19, 23 July 2010 (UTC)

I heard a very different story about the origin of this colony when I lived in Bath, Maine
The story about a black runaway slave named Benjamin Darling founding Malaga in 1790 has been repeated here and there in folk history but has no evidence, no backing, and no proof.

The story I heard in Bath, Maine, in the early '70's was a very different one that made every bit of bitter sense. It was reported to me that the Bath ship captains running slaves between West Africa and Virginia used regularly to keep one of the slave women for their own purposes on the trip back, and not sell her. She would remain on the ship until they were just outside of view of Bath, where the crew would put her on a boat and drop her off at Malaga island.

Hence the colony was an immense embarrassment to the city of Bath and the state of Maine. That was another reason pushing the state to mysteriously empty the island and clean it off.

It was further reported that the background of the inhabitants led them to prefer a government structure like the ones they knew in Africa, not like an American structure. They had a king! A runaway slave would never have started a monarchy, for goodness' sake.

I heard this story confirmed by an old resident who had spent a lot of time on Malaga Island in the '30s collecting the shells there for use in a golf course, Sebasco, near the island. I also knew a woman who was reported to have been born on the island just before everyone was evicted. Her name was Letty, and she lived on the mainland opposite the island, and indeed her skin color obviously testified to black ancestors.

I tried to confirm this story with the Bath Historical Society on the road to Sebasco, and was told politely that I had no business asking anything about it at all. ariabrams@gmail.com — Preceding unsigned comment added by 93.173.53.219 (talk • contribs) 10:04 August 3, 2010‎ UTC

Governor's depredations
I am no expert on this horrific story, but one source said just eight people were removed to the School for the Feeble Minded, the rest of the population melted into the surrounding communities. So it would be wrong to say they were ALL taken to the institution as this parapraph seems to say. And it is unclear whether any buildings remained to be torched after most were picked up and floated over to the mainland. So I would like to see the citation supporting this paragraph. ElijahBosley (talk &#9758;)  15:49, 24 September 2012 (UTC)

"Ranting and threats"
There may well have been ranting and threats but that kind of un-encyclopedic opinion needs a footnote, demands a footnote, aches for a footnote, and despite the "citation needed" sticker on this for a long time--as yet no footnote. The previous change was made by an IP address rather than an account, and for that reason it looked suspicious. But whoever it was at the "University of Canterbury" they were right to remove unsourced inflammatory material. So--if one would like to use words like "ranting and threats" when speaking of a Governor of Maine, okay IF one can cite a book saying ranting and threats. ElijahBosley (talk &#9758;)  19:37, 30 October 2012 (UTC)

"Founded By"
I'm new to Wikipedia editing and I apologize, in adcance, for any newbie error or ignorance in that regards. In any case, my ancestory (paternal line) includes native Malagites and, in fact, one of my ancestors, John "Jerry" Murphy, was one of two Malagites to receive the nickname "King of Malaga". I've always been intrigued with my family's Malaga history and have dug up as much information on Malaga as I could find (no easy task). There is alot about Malaga that has been left out of this article, but my reason for posting is in refards to the "Founded By" info. I'm not sure what exactly the Conant individual named in this article "founded", but after a couple decades of diligent research, I do know that he wasn't the individual who discovered Malaga Island, nor did he found the colony of Malaga. I understand that Wikipedia frowns on COI editing and I don't want to start on the wrong foot, but I hoped posting here would be okay. I just wanted to suggest that the "Founded By" piece be corrected or atleast have some sort of reference as to where that info came from. Thank you. MaidenOfMalaga (talk) 22:57, 23 January 2018 (UTC)

White washed
After reading this informative Twitter thread: link to thread, this entry seems literally "white washed". There is no mention that the folks living on this island were black. The characterization as "squatters" downplays what happened. This article is a mess and needs much more research and updating to be non-biased.

Here is what is published in the thread:

"'The history of Malaga Island begins with Benjamin Darling in 1794. Darling, an African American, purchased a small island off the coast of Maine near Malaga Island in 1794. His mixed -ace decedents began to settle on nearby islands building a community along the Maine shore. Darling's decedents were eventually nicknamed Malagites the Casco Bay's own racial slur that continues to this day. While Malaga Island was not a desired property in 1794, by the early 1900s interest grew in the island and its people. Namely, how to get them off the island. There were some efforts in the early 1900s to bring 'society' to Malaga. A school was built on a mission trip. But a thriving mixed-race community that kept to itself was something to be feared and despised. It eventually hurt the tourism industry in nearby Phippsburg. And the tourism industry had made the once relatively useless land of Malaga valuable. So a plan was hatched to make the island property of a Phippsburg resident, the Perry family, and the entire community was evicted from the island and institutionalized. It should be noted that the Perry family sold the property back to Maine before the evictions took place, and ultimately it was their own government that evicted them, forced them from homes they had lived in for generations, and forced them into mental institutions. So the state of Maine dug up the graves, dumped the contents of 17 graves into five caskets, and buried those caskets at the same asylum they had placed the former Malaga residents. All of this was done in the name of preserving tourism for a nearby white community of Phippsburg.'"

P Todd (talk) 17:01, 12 June 2020 (UTC)