Baldwin

Field near Valley Lodge with a small cemetery in the woods (2018)

Baldwin is the only one of the towns surrounding Sebago Lake that has no frontage on that lake. East Baldwin village is located in the southeast corner of the town. West Baldwin village sits at the western edge of the Saddleback Hills, which span the width of the town. See photos.

Bailey, Jeremiah

U.S. Capitol with Snow

(1773-1853) a U.S. Representative was born in Little Compton, Rhode Island on May 1, 1773. He attended the common schools and was graduated from Brown University in 1794, studied law, was admitted to the bar, and began his practice in Wiscasset in 1798. A presidential elector on the Federalist ticket in 1808, a member of…

Avon

Mount Blue and Webb Lake in Weld (2017)

in Franklin County, named for the river in England and incorporated in 1802. Settled after the American Revolution, by 1886 Avon had two saw mills and eleven public schools, supported by an 1880 census population of 571. The 3,000-foot Mount Blue is located in the southwest corner of the town in Mount Blue State Park.

Aurora

Blueberry Barrens in Aurora on Route 179 April 2013)

is north of Ellsworth on Route 9 – “The Airline.” Silsby Plain is a sandy remnant of glaciers and a favorable site for blueberries. Another glacial feature, The Whalesback, is located east of the village, which is on the Old Airline Road.

Atkinson

In 1807 the Colcord brothers from Bangor built a grist mill and a saw mill on Alder Stream. Named for Judge Atkinson, the major landowner, it incorporated in 1819. Atkinson also donated a small library to the community, which is just east of Dover-Foxcroft in Piscataquis County.

Athens

Somerset Academy Building (2003)

Settled by Revolutionary War soldiers, Athens incorporated in 1804. Somerset Academy now serves as town office, American Legion hall, and Christian Fellowship meeting place. The Union Meetinghouse has served the community since 1840. Athens has hosted a small agricultural fair for many years.

Arundel

A town “Arundel” formed in 1719. In 1821 it became Kennebunk Port, from which, in 1915 a new town emerged: “North Kennebunkport.” In 1957 it changed to Arundel. Kenneth Roberts’ historical novel “Arundel” recounts the early life of the area and influenced the reemergence of the name. See video and photos.

Arrowsic

Doubling Point Light on the Kennebec River in Arrowsic (2014)

Arrowsic Island in the Kennebec River separates Georgetown from Phippsburg, which was settled in 1607. In 1625 Europeans moved to Arrowsic, five years after the Pilgrim landing. Two lighthouses have been established on Arrowsic’s Kennebec shore. See videos and photos.

Aroostook War

"Site of U.S. Arsenal, June, 1828-December, 1903" (2004)

It was the nation’s only war declared by a state and the nation’s only bloodless war. Its roots were planted in the Treaty of Paris of 1783 ending the Revolutionary War.  With inaccurate maps and uncertainty about with local river was the French named St. Croix River, the treaty language left the British termed “Disputed…

Veterans

Houlton Veterans Memorial

The Maine Department of Defense, Veterans and Emergency Management was established to coordinate and improve the discharge of the State Government’s responsibility relating to military, veterans and civil emergency management through the authorization, planning, provision of resources, administration, operation and audit activities in these areas. It contains the Office of Adjutant General, which has existed…