Milton Township

Corn Field in Milton Township on Route 232 in Autumn (2014)

This small township is surrounded by organized towns: Rumford, Bethel, Woodstock and Peru – all in Oxford County. About one mile of Route 232 is in the western corner and serves as the “Main Street” serving Milton Village. Several mountains, most of which are under 2,000 feet high, mark the landscape: Bean, Bryant, Chamberlain, Davis,…

Turner

Sunset view from Lower Street (2004)

Turner (see photos and video) lies directly north of Auburn on Maine Route 4, and is served by routes 117 in the south and 219 in the north. South Turner is a smaller village near the Auburn city line. Bounded by the Androscoggin River on the east, Turner has its share of ponds, including Bear Pond and its amusement park.

Starks

The New Vineyard Mountains from Route 43 (2003)

A farming town, Starks once boasted a canning factory to which farmers would bring corn, squash, pumpkins, and other produce each fall. See photos. The “corn shop,” as it was known, closed in 1964. The now abandoned Grange Hall was the site of many community dances and socials at least through the 1950’s. The winding Sandy River, the site of several ferry crossings, constitutes the town’s eastern boundary. A small chapel is located near an old cemetery on the River Road.

Concord

Lily Pond in Concord on the Kennebec River Road (2014)

is now an unorganized township in Somerset County after having been a town for over 100 years. Incorporated on January 25, 1821 from Plantation Number One, R1, BKP., WKR., it surrendered its organized status on July 6, 1935, and thus became deorganized. The Great Depression of the 1930’s forced many marginal towns, unable to raise…

Agriculture

As Maine communities began to lose some of their frontier aspects in the early 19th century and assumed a more settled appearance, civic improvements were initiated. Among these was the regulation of livestock which, in contrast to earlier times, were becoming numerous. Swine, although useful for consuming garbage, in themselves provided a health hazard. No…

Vassalboro

has sufficient space to support farming as well as serving as a residential area for people working in Augusta and Waterville. See video and photos. Benedict Arnold stopped here to obtain a canoe on his way to Quebec. Site of Oak Grove Seminary in 1844, then Oak Grove Coburn school in 1970, then the Maine Criminal Justice Academy in 2001.