Salem Township

                Salem, in Franklin County, was first settled by Benjamin Heath, who cleared land in what was then a portion of Phillips, Maine in 1814. The following year, Heath returned with two other men, who cleared additional lots, and permanently settled with their families in 1816. By 1821…

Lewiston Historic Register

Basilica of Saints Peter and Paul in Lewiston (2001)

National Register of Historic Places – Listings – Lewiston Photos by James Henderson, and edited text are from nominations to the National Register of Historic Places researched by Maine. Historic Preservation Commission. Full text and National Register photos are at https://npgallery.nps.gov/nrhp Androscoggin Mill Block [269-271 Park Street] Due primarily to demands for an increasing labor…

Woodstock

Not the site of the 1960’s rock concert (that was New York), Woodstock’s major village is Bryant Pond, named from the adjacent water body. The Pond outlet is the source of the Little Androscoggin River. See photos. South Woodstock is home to the small South Woodstock Meetinghouse and is the site of an old mill pond and mill on Andrews Brook.

Willimantic

Location Map for Willimantic

Located on the western end of Sebec Lake, the town offers many camping and fishing opportunities. Packard Landing was the location of Packard’s Camps in the late 19th and early 20th centuries. Maine Route 150 runs north from Guilford and terminates at the village of Sebec Lake, not to be confused with the town of Sebec at the far eastern end of the Lake.

Whitneyville

Location Map for Whitneyville

On the west bank of the Machias River, it was the site where the vessel Margaretta was hidden from the British after her capture in 1775. Lumbering and blueberry growing have been the mainstays of the local economy over the years. See photos. The town is a long, narrow north-south mile-wide strip of land on U.S. Route 1A between Jonesboro and Machias.

Waterville

Waterville is a regional service center for northern Kennebec and southern Somerset counties. See photos. Its downtown and the Kennedy Memorial Drive commercial strip provide business and professional services. It has been home to several U.S. Senators and Maine governors. Colby College is here.

Warren

Farm on Route 235 on the shore of Seven Tree Pond (2003)

The village lies off the heavily traveled highways: U.S. Route 1 and Maine Routes 90, 131, and 235. See photos. Adjacent to Thomaston, long a synonym for “State Prison,” Warren is now the site of its replacement. Meadow Mountain is a 259 acre town forest that serves as a nature preserve.

Union

Union (see photos) became the subject of Ben Ames Williams’ historical novel Come Spring, which chronicles the early settlement of the town through the lives of the Robbins family, whose home is now that of the Vose Library and the Union Historical Society. Most of the 591-acre Crawford Pond and the 523-acre Seven Tree Pond are shared with Warren to the south.

Topsham

Recently the downtown (see photos) has witnessed a renewal with modern buildings. Topsham has been a very rapidly growing community both in population and in commercial development.The area of the Topsham Fair Mall is located adjacent to Interstate 95. Pejepscot Village was once an active community when the Pejepscot Paper Mill was in full production. Falls in the Androscoggin River between Topsham and Brunswick encouraged the development of paper and textile mills which dominated the economy into the 20th century.

Strong

Canoe on the Shore of the Sandy River in Strong (2013)

The main village is located about eleven miles north of Farmington on a big bend in the Sandy River at the junction of Maine Routes 4, 145, 149 and 234. Maine’s Republican Party was founded here on August 7, 1854 by a coalition of anti-slavery Democrats, other Democrats, and Whigs.

Standish

Daniel Marrett House (one of several historic buildings) in Standish, on East Ossippee Trail (2018)

Named in honor of Captain Miles Standish, the military leader of the Plymouth Colony, the town has a very long shoreline on Sebago Lake in its southwest corner, including its Lower Bay. See photos. In the 19th century, the Oxford-Cumberland Canal allowed passage of boats from Harrison to Portland. Steep Falls was a thriving village historically, with its excellent water power on the Saco River and the railroad station in its midst. Both a recreational area and suburb of Portland, the town is served by six Maine highway routes.

Stacyville

Mount Katahdin and Hunt Mountain from Swift Brook Road in Stacyville (2017)

Its main village is Sherman Station on the Bangor and Aroostook Railroad line and Maine Route 11 just across the town line from the Town of Sherman. Stacyville Village is in the southwest of the township; Siberia village is in the center on the Grindstone Road. That portion of Route 11 in Sherman Station Village serves as the “Main Street” for the town, with community buildings and businesses.

Springfield

Wind Turbines on Rollins Mountain from Weatherby Hill on Route 6 in Springfield (2014)

Located on the east-west Maine Route 6 crossing eastern Penobscot and northern Washington counties, the town has a substantial area in wetlands. See photos. One account has the name commemorating “extensive fields abounding in springs.” The village is centered around the crossroads of Route 6, Park Street (Routes 169/170), and Shep Road.

South Berwick

Counting House Day Lily Memorial Park at the Salmon Falls River (2018)

Maine’s oldest educational institution, Berwick Academy, was established here in 1791 when the town was part of Berwick. See photos. South Berwick is the birthplace of Sarah Orne Jewett, who attended Berwick Academy for four years — her only formal education. The town is accessible to the coastal communities of York and Kittery via Maine Routes 91 and 236.

Smyrna

Farm Buildings in Smyrna (2003)

Named for a famous city in ancient Turkey, the town is west of Houlton on Interstate 95 and on U.S. Route 2, where the village of Smyrna Mills straddles the town line with Merrill. See photos. The town has become home to a substantial number of Amish people, who farm and work using simple, low technology methods. The Mattawamkeag River flows through the village. In the river is the ruins of an old dam and mill.

Sanford

Sanford, with Springvale Village, is the seventh largest town or city in Maine by population according to the 2010 Census, up from a ranking of ninth in 1990. Traditionally an industrial town, primarily with textile mills and shoe making, Sanford has diversified and continues to be a growing community.

Saco

One half of the Biddeford-Saco metropolitan area, the city has its own extensive beach and Ferry Beach State Park. See photos. It is one stop on AMTRAK’s Downeaster rail service. Occupying the east side of the Saco River as it enters Saco Bay, the city is the eleventh largest community in Maine.

Rumford

Deacon Hutchins House (1979)

Year Population 1970 9,363 1980 8,240 1990 7,078 2000 6,472 2010 5,841 Geographic Data N. Latitude 44:31:19 W. Longitude 70:35:50 Maine House District 115 Maine Senate District 18 Congress District 2 Area sq. mi. (total) 69.9 Area sq. mi. (land) 68.6 Population/sq.mi. (land) 85.2 County: Oxford   Total=land+water; Land=land only [RUM-frd] a town in Oxford…