Forrest Edward Bartlett

Eastport – Forrest E. “Ed” Bartlett, passed away Saturday, August 1, 2015 at Quarry Hill in Camden. Born in Camden on October 17, 1919, Ed was the third son of Alta Joy (Smith), of Milo, and Royce Bartlett. He attended schools in Camden and after graduating Camden High School in 1937, moved to New Jersey where he worked for Western Electric Company.

In March 1942, Ed enlisted in the U.S. Army. He trained with Co. H, 110th Infantry, 28th Div. and later transferred to the 9th Ordinance Co., which was sent to North Africa in October 1942. Ed remained on foreign soil throughout WWII and after service in 13 countries, was discharged in September 1945. He then entered pre-veterinary studies at Middlesex University (which later merged with Brandeis University) in Waltham, MA, and transferred to the University of Maine in Orono, from which he graduated in 1951.

Ed joined the faculty of Shed Memorial High School in Eastport in late 1951, where he taught Physical Education and Social Studies and served as Vice-Principal for many years. He was well known in eastern Maine for the annual high school Gym Exhibition he presented each spring. He also coached basketball and baseball, and started the first soccer program in Washington County. Prior to moving to Eastport, Ed umpired for many years in the Knox-Lincoln county semi-pro baseball leagues and later at the U. of Maine in Orono. He refereed basketball in eastern and western Maine in the late 1940’s and around Washington County in the 1950s.

An avid outdoorsman, Ed enjoyed all kinds of fishing, but his favorite was the “sport of kings,” Atlantic salmon fishing. In addition to spending over 50 years on the Dennys River, he fished all the major salmon rivers in New Brunswick, Quebec, Nova Scotia, and Newfoundland. He once said that he had never fished a river in which he couldn’t catch a salmon, because he’d made such extensive studies of the fish’s habits – even climbing trees overhanging salmon poos to watch their behavior from above.

Ed also gardened and hunted all kinds of game – mostly deer. He wrote about his observations and experiences from these activities in hundres of “Outdoors With Ed” feature articles published by the Quoddy Tides newspaper in Eastport, beginning in 1986 and ending 24 years later, in 2010. Ed gathered many of his widely read bi-weekly columns into a book called Chasing Atlantic Salmon, copies of which are still available from The Quoddy Tides. Previously, he co-authored a history of the Dennys River Sportsman’s Club, Salmon on the Dennys, 1786-1988.

Ed was a longtime active member of the Dennys River Sportsman’s Club and served as treasurer for 40 years. He also belonged to the Atlantic Salmon Federation, Sportsman’s Alliance of Maine, Downeast Salmon Federation, American Legion Post #11 of Eastport (71 years), National Education Association, and Maine Teacher’s Association. Friends knew Ed to be a passionate and dedicated Boston Red Sox and Patriots fan, as well as an engaging story-teller.

Ed was predeceased by his parents; his wife of 50 years, Lillian (Peck) of Boston, MA; brothers Fred, Lee, and Clyde; and sisters, Frances, Thelma, and Jean. He is survived by his sister Mary (Jordan) and her husband Charles of Camden, and many nephews and nieces. He is also survived by two very special friends, Leslie Bowman of Trescott, and Linda Tokarz of Greenbelt, MD and St. Augustine, FL.

A celebration of Ed’s life will be held 1 p.m. Sunday, August 16, 2015 at Mays Funeral Home – Flagg Chapel, 72 High St., Eastport.

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