When Joseph and Phebe Fessenden came to the peaceful village of South Bridgton, Maine to serve the newly founded Congregational church in 1829, they soon found themselves embroiled in controversy over the abolition of slavery and the evils of "demon rum." Tempers ran high and Parson Joe often found himself running counter to public opinion. Mobs threatened him with tar and feathers, cannonballs, and kidnapping. Still, he stood tall and fought tirelessly for the rights of all those who lived in chains beneath freedom's wing.