Frances (Fanny) Caroline Adams Chamberlain (1825-1905) was a musician and the wife of Civil War General Joshua Lawrence Chamberlain. She was adopted as a small child by her father’s nephew, Reverend George Adams and his wife. He was minister of the First Parish Congregational Church in Brunswick. Fanny, as she was called, was artistic and…
now an unorganized township, was a town in Aroostook County. In 1886 it had a rail freight connection, now a recreational trail, with Machias. The economy was based on two shingle mills, potatoes and hay. 1870 population stood at 145; by 1880 it had plunged to 32, from which level it never recovered. The town deorganized in 2004.
in Aroostook County, organized in 1879, includes a major portion of the Aroostook National Wildlife Refuge. It also hosts a tract of Maine’s Public Reserved Land just north of Mud Lake. Closing of Loring Air Force Base has sharply reduced its population.
in Aroostook County, incorporated in 1903. The 1,341 foot high Haystack Mountain is the only exception to the relatively flat, potato growing area. Castle Hill is on Maine Route 227, ten miles west of Presque Isle. It shares a town manager with Mapleton and Chapman.
In 1629 the British authorized a trading post at what was then Pentagoet. The post was destroyed by the French in 1631 and in 1634. Two forts are among the many historic sites. Maine Maritime Academy, and its training ship are located in the town.
The Bay contains about 200 islands (depending on what one counts as an “island” but only about 138 “good sized” islands). The Bay is bounded by Cape Elizabeth in the south and Cape Small in the north. Halfway Rock is about half way between the two capes which are about twenty miles apart, and about…
settled by Europeans in 1771, in Cumberland County, incorporated in 1841, is on the north shore of Sebago Lake. The Songo Lock, built about 1830, linked Long Pond and Brandy Pond with Sebago Lake, allowing boat passage from Harrison to Portland. Nathaniel Hawthorne, author and Bowdoin College graduate was its most prominent resident.
(1805-1866) a U.S. Representative was born in New Salem, Massachusetts, July 3, 1805. He attended the common schools; moved with his parents to Houlton in 1822. Cary engaged in extensive lumber operations and also in agricultural and mercantile pursuits. A member of the Maine House of Representatives in 1832, 1833, 1839-1842, 1848, 1849, and 1862,…
in Aroostook County was established in 1895. The name is in honor of Shepard Cary, a prominent lumberman in the area, State Legislator and member of Congress. The small community has about 200 residents. A substantial portion of the Lt. Gordon Manuel Wildlife Management Area, shared with Hodgdon, lies in the northwestern portion..
in Franklin County incorporated in 1826 has a small but growing population. It has has many pleasant views of the western mountains and several historic buildings. The village of Berry Mills, on the Webb River, has a sawmill, as it did in the 1880s. See photos.
(1800-1838) a U.S. Representative was born in Bethel on August 18, 1800. He attended the town schools of Bethel, studied law at Northampton, Massachusetts, was admitted to the bar in 1826, and began his practice in Rumford. Carter moved to Paris, Maine in 1827 and continued the practice of law. He was Secretary of the…
(1907-1964) biologist, environmentalist, and nature writer was born in Springdale, Pennsylvania, near Pittsburgh, on May 27, 1907. From the mid-1940s, she and her mother spent summers near West Southport, and in 1952 Carson built a summer cottage along the Sheepscot River. As a child, Carson was interested in nature and, after majoring in biology at…
incorporated in 1845, lies on the old stage line (Maine Route 6) from Lincoln, through Lee, Springfield to Princeton. Named for Daniel Carroll, member of the Continental Congress and signer of the Articles of Confederation and of the Constitution, it is home to an extensive maple sugar harvesting operation. See photos.
Her memoir, Growing Up Shaker, provides a glimpse into life in the Sabbathday Lake community in New Gloucester. Many orphans, or children whose parents could not afford to care for them, were brought to Shaker communities instead of to orphanages. Carr arrived at the Sabbathday Lake Shaker community in the 1930’s when she was ten…
near Interstate 95 and an easy commute to Bangor, Carmel sustained substantial population growth of 19 percent in the 1990-2000 decade, and nearly 16 percent in the ten years ending in 2010. First settled in 1798, it incorporated in1811. See photos.
in Aroostook County incorporated in 1859. European settlers awaited the conclusion of the northern boundary dispute with Canada before arriving in force in 1843. Home to the Nylander Museum of Natural History, Caribou’s depends significantly on the potato industry. See photos.
The statue on the dome of the State House, designed by W. Clark Noble of Gardiner, is reputed to be “the figure of wisdom” according to the report of the commission on enlargement of the State House. It is about twelve feet high and fifteen feet to the torch. However, according to a 1927 article…
was abolished in 1876, restored in 1883, and abolished again in 1887, although attempts to restore it have continued to the present. (Michigan was the first state to do so, in 1847.) Nevertheless, Maine has one of the lowest murder rates in the United States, while large “death penalty states” such as Texas and California…
in Cumberland County, first settled by Europeans in the 1630’s, incorporated in 1765. The clipper ship Snow Squall was built here in 1851. A wealthy suburb of Portland, it has a scenic coastline; attractions include lighthouses at Two Lights State Park, Crescent Beach State Park, Fort Williams, and Portland Head Light. See photos.
village in Oxford County, incorporated in 1821, overlooks Lake Anasagunticook at the junction of Rts. 108 and 140. The Androscoggin River winds through the town just north of the village. The historical society, old railroad station and masonic building grace this residential, agricultural community. See video and photos.