[BURN-uhm] Town in Waldo County, incorporated on February 4, 1824 from Twenty Five Mile Plantation. In 1873 it annexed part of Clinton Gore to complete its current area.

Burnham, on the Sebasticook River, lies between Pittsfield and Clinton connected by Maine Routes 11 and 100. The town, which saw a 19 percent population growth rate in the 1990-2000 decade, fronts on the northwestern shore of Unity Pond where its second largest settlement is located.

 

 

 

 

 

Pride Manufacturing is a wood products company. Founded in 1930, it bought an empty factory in Guilford in 1956. Then in 1992 it purchased the Ethan Allen complex in Burnham. With this acquisition, the Guilford facility was able to gain some much needed space, and a new, state-of-the-art Sawmill was built in Burnham.

 

 

 

 

 

Burnham Junction marks the

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

intersection of the Maine Central with the northern terminus of the Belfast and Moosehead Lake Railroad. The storage silos and the aging rail cars linger at the Junction.

Burnham’s Veterans Memorial consists of a small park remembering those who served, including a special recognition of Clair Goodblood, its Congressional Medal of Honor recipient.

 

Clair Goodblood Memorial (2006)

 

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Form of Government: Town Meeting-Select Board-Administrative Assistant.

 

National Register of Historic Places – Listings

Springdale Farm

[ Horseback Road, 0.5 miles south of Troy Road] Springdale Farm includes an 1870s connected farm complex and several detached buildings that are set in open fields. The farm was occupied for most of the 20th century by members of the Reynolds family. The 19th history of Springdale Farm is unclear, but an 1859 map of Waldo County shows a building in the general vicinity, referring to C. Reynolds. It is unlikely that the existing house and barn are of that vintage. In all likelihood, these were built about 1870. By the early 20th century, the farm was owned by Mary M. Reynolds and Joseph E. Reynolds. Until the 1970s various members of the Reynolds family owned or operated the farm.  

 

The interior of the house and its wing have been completely remodeled with little evidence of the historic finish remaining. However, the area behind the track-mounted door in the wing appears to retain its historic appearance.

Springdale Farm exemplifies the common 19th and early 20th century practice on Maine farms of connecting house, ell and barn which improved the efficiency of farm and domestic processes. Such buildings are increasingly rare on Maine farmsteads, particularly where agricultural activities have ceased. Finally, the complex is part of a setting of open fields and woodlot that have escaped encroachment from late 20th century development.

The outbuildings include an equipment storage shed, a summer house, a garage, and the remains of an ice house and blacksmith shop (the latter having been recently enlarged). Such buildings are increasingly rare on Maine farmsteads, particularly where agricultural activities have ceased.