The name Monhegan derives from Monchiggon, Algonquian for "out-to-sea
island." European explorers Martin Pring visited in 1603, Samuel de
Champlain in 1604, George Weymouth in 1605 and Captain John Smith in 1614. The
island got its start as a British fishing camp prior to settlement of the
Plymouth Colony. Cod was harvested from the rich fishing grounds of the Gulf of
Maine, then dried on fish flakes before shipment to Europe. A trading post was
built to conduct business with the Indians, particularly in the lucrative fur
trade. It was Monhegan traders who taught English to Samoset, the sagamore who
in 1621 startled
