John Forest Marsh, 81
West Gardiner, Maine
Col. John Forest Marsh MWS (retired), of West Gardiner, passed away surrounded by family on Sept. 25, 2023. John was born in 1942 to Maynard and Frances Marsh. He attended primary school in Gorham, Maine, and moved on to earn a degree in history from the University of Maine. John began his career as a history teacher in Greenville, Maine.
In 1966, he joined the Maine Warden Service as a safety officer, investigating hunting accidents and coordinating hunting safety courses. He served as a game warden for 25 years rising to the rank of colonel as the department’s chief warden. In the early 1970s, he attended the FBI National Academy in Quantico, Va.
Following retirement, John was elected to the state legislature and was appointed to the Board of Environmental Protection. He also embarked on a second career alongside Judy, his wife of 57 years. Together they built Paul’s Marina, a successful family business in Brunswick, Maine, that continues to serve boaters on Casco Bay.
John’s love of farming was rooted in his childhood on what is now Smiling Hill Farm in Westbrook, Maine. John and Judy established Bog Hill Tree Farm in West Gardiner in 1967. In his spare time, John loved to cut firewood, hunt, coastal fish, and shoot sporting clays. In full retirement, John dedicated himself to the quest for fly fishing brook trout in the ponds and streams around Jackman, Maine.
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