Malta War
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The Malta War was an armed insurrection of rural settlers in what is now the U.S. state of Maine, reaching its peak in 1808 and 1809. The name historians have given this event comes from the town of Malta, now Windsor, Maine.
Settlers had been clearing trees on land owned by the Plymouth Company. From time to time these settlers were arrested. Surveyors, constables and other agents of the land owners’ interests were attacked in retaliation. Rumors were heard of a planned attack on Augusta, Maine. In January of 1808, the Deputy Sheriff Pitt Dilingham negotiated with a group of about 70 armed settlers, and agreed that any arrest warrant would be posted in advance at a tavern, allowing the suspect a chance to flee. As in the Boston Tea Party, the rebels disguised themselves as American Indians. One was killed. Local residents sympathized with the "White Indians" or jailed settlers and conspired to rescue them from the Augusta jail where they were being kept. The insurrection was averted by local militia members, who surrounded the jail before the citizens could do any damage. The jail in was Augusta burned down, believed to be by rural settlers' arson, despite the mobilization of militia to protect the town. Violence in the surrounding back country persisted. In 1809, seven settlers were tried but acquitted for the murder of a surveyor named Paul Chadwick. The affair resulted in a Betterment Act being passed to appease squatters.
Maine Public Broadcasting network (2003-2004). "Timeline of Maines History". Press release. Retrieved on 2007-12-18.
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