[AH-thens]

 

 

 

 

 

The Somerset Academy Building has a twin in Skowhegan,  a replica of the old Bloomfield Academy. Athens is about 12 miles north of Skowhegan on Route 150.

Settled by Revolutionary War soldiers, this town in Somerset County was, incorporated on March 7, 1804. In 1821 it annexed land from Hartland, and later from Brighton in 1838 and 1862. Somerset Academy, the early educational institution, now acts as the town office, the American Legion hall, and a Christian Fellowship meeting place.

Athens is just east of Solon, which was incorporated five years later. As Ava Chadbourne put it, “When Athens was incorporated the name of the capital of Union Meetinghouse, incorporated 1840 ancient Greece was chosen for it by its inhabitants.

At the incorporation of Solon, the name selected was that of one of the seven sages of Greece. Some lovers of ancient Greece and its lawgivers must have lived in this little town in Maine.” It had a Greek Revival style meeting house at one point. The Union Meetinghouse, not a Greek Revival style, has served the community since 1840.

As have many rural communities, Athens has hosted a small agricultural fair for many years, including animal pulling contests, 4-H and other exhibits vying for blue ribbons. People from surrounding towns visit and enjoy the social gathering just after harvest time.

 

 

 

 

 

Form of Government: Town Meeting-Select Board.

The main village in the town is north of Skowhegan following Route 150 to the junction with state routes 43 and 151. It is located at the fork of the East and West branches of Wesserunsett Stream, which joins the Kennebec River just below Skowhegan.

The 110 year old Grange Hall (below) is in the middle of the village.

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The northeast corner of the township near the Brighton and Harmony town lines is accessible primarily by primitive dirt roads. The names “Klondike Road” and “Vanishing Lane” suit the landscape.

The East Branch of Wesserunsett Stream flows through the area. A crude wooden roadbed makes a bridge over the Stream barely navigable. Nevertheless the quiet space, known also to deer hunters, provides for a pleasant “walk in the woods” for some.

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Additional resources

Athens Victory Club (Me.) A Historical Sketch of Athens, Maine: Commemorative of its Sesquicentennial July 2-5, 1804-1954. Athens, Me. Published by the Athens Victory Club, 1954. (Skowhegan, Me. The Skowhegan Press)

Ava Harriet Chadbourne, Maine Place Names and The Peopling of its Towns.

Chatto, Clarence I. History of Athens. Auburn, Me. Chatto and Turner. 1911. (Extracted from: East Somerset County Register 1911-12; Maine State Library]

*Maine. Historic Preservation Commission. Augusta, Me.  See additional text and photos from National Register of Historic Places: http://pdfhost.focus.nps.gov/docs/nrhp/text/84001499.PDF, http://pdfhost.focus.nps.gov/docs/nrhp/photos/84001499.PDF

Maine. Justice of the Peace Court (Athens). Isaiah Dore, Justice of the Peace docket, 1818-1830. [Maine State Archives. Augusta, ME]

Maine. Trial Justice Court (Athens). John F. Holman, Trial Justice docket, 1896 June 20-1917 Nov. 3. [Maine State Archives. Augusta, ME]

National Register of Historic Places – Listings

Somerset Academy

[Academy Street] Somerset Academy  is a fine example of mid-19th century Greek Revival academic architecture designed by a noted architect of the period. It also reflects the strong emphasis placed on high quality education even in rural Maine during this period.

The Academy was built in 1846, the money for it being raised by subscription. John Ware gave $200 and a half acre of land. The architect was Joseph Bigelow of Skowhegan who apparently also the Greek Revival designed the Bloomfield Academy and the handsome Abner Coburn Mansion in Skowhegan. *