Settled in about 1794, the town is on the old stage route from Bangor through China to Vassalboro near Augusta. Newburgh Center village is on combined U.S. Route 202 and Maine Route 9. See photos. The Kennard Road hiking trail, originally developed by the Newburgh Heritage Trust, is a one-mile walk, with parking available.
The town hosts the Wyman Hydroelectric Station, with its impressive Wyman Dam and its consequence: Wyman Lake, a bulge in the Kennebec River extending about six miles to the north between Moscow and Pleasant Ridge. See photos. Bingham and Moscow constitute a single population center at the junction of U.S. Route 201 (leading north to the Province of Quebec).
Located about six miles west of Belfast, this growing community is served by Maine Routes 3 and 131. See photos. Two small ponds offer canoeing and wildlife viewing.
Several small streams, marshes, and ponds fill the landscape in this still rural community. In 1880, with a population of 1,366, Monroe supported thirteen schoolhouses. See photos. In 2003 the Town office building also housed the library. Monroe is served by Maine Routes 139, between Brooks and Winterport, and 141 from Swanville.
Minot a growing community in recent decades, has become a residential commuter area for nearby Lewiston-Auburn with its location just west of Auburn. West Minot village is tucked away at the northwest edge of the community at the junction of Maine routes 119 and 124, adjacent to Hebron. The village once had an active railroad station and a grist mill. The old grange hall, community church, and railroad station keep the flavor of earlier times.
Historically a collection of small villages, some on islands, the closest to a town center is the town office and the recycling center on the Mountain Road. See photos. Its population doubles in summer as seasonal residents return. Several easy hiking trails and nature preserves are at hand. A historic park is at Harpswell Center.
Located on the east bank of the Penobscot River, Greenbush includes several islands, the largest of which, Olamon, abuts Olamon Stream as it empties into the river. Olamon, the name of a village near the island, means “red paint.” The Indians traveled up the stream to retrieve the red ochre they used as paint for decorating their bodies. Greenbush village is on the River and U.S. Route 2. A smaller village, Cardville, is in the middle of the township on the Cardville Road.
The sparsely populated area has its main village, Grand Lake Stream, on the stream of the same name that connects West Grand Lake with Big Lake to the south. The surrounding lakes offer a fishing and wilderness experience prized by those who visit them.
The Island once had been governed by a semi-autonomous village corporation. It is primarily a summer vacation home destination. See photos. The Frye Island Ferry operates between the end of Raymond Neck, in the town of Raymond, to the ferry dock on the island. Vehicles, supplies, and people make the trip in about fifteen minutes every half hour.
in Penobscot County, incorporated in 1811. In 1886 it had three saw-mills, three shingle, one stave, two planing and two grist mills, one cheese-factory, one carriage and sleigh factory. Recently, Corinth Wood Pellets mill has taken advantage of this new form of heating fuel. Its population has had steady growth 1970-2010.
in Hancock County, incorporated in 1817. Its Cape Rosier recalls James Rosier who accompanied George Weymouth in explorations of 1605. Brooksville boasts one of the best harbors for small boats: Bucks Harbor. Helen and Scott Nearing lived here. See photos.
Home of long time resident and author E. B. White, the Hancock County coastal town hosts a general store and library at the intersection of Route 175 and the road to Naskeag Point and Naskeag Harbor. It lies across Eggemoggin Reach from Little Deer Isle.
![Fine House and Barn on the Storer Road [Route 155] in Bradford (2014)](https://maineanencyclopedia.com/wp-content/uploads/140129189-Copy-2.jpg)
Bradford is a rural community with no lakes or mountains. In the early 20th century, Bradford Corner hosted an auto garage and wagon shop and Kingsbury’s Store, which housed a post office. A blacksmith had his shop where the library now sits. See photos.
Named for Belgrade, Serbia, it is a center for the Belgrade Lakes Region that attracts summer visitors to enjoy fishing, boating and lakeside cottages. Great Pond dominates the town. Belgrade Lakes village at the north end of the pond stands between Great Pond on the east and Long Pond on the west. Belgrade’s population has showed continuous growth for the past several decades, slowly changing from a rural resort community to a residential suburb of Waterville and Augusta. See photos.
Amish Baskets for Sale, Golden Ridge Road, Sherman (2014) People of the Old Order Amish community have moved to the town of Smyrna in substantial numbers. Arriving in 1996, the Amish community had grown from just a few settlers to approximately 80 people in 12 families by 2002. Their shed-building business, Sturdi-Built, has…
A web of dirt roads leads into the hinterland where several streams, the West Branch of the Union River, and a half dozen small ponds attract fishermen, hunters, and vacationers. Amherst was the site of an unsolved a homicide, in 1976. Video. Named for Amherst, New Hampshire, it is located on the east-west Maine Route 9, known as the Airline.
Located between Sheepscot Bay and Booth Bay, it is connected by a swing bridge to the town of Boothbay Harbor, and the casual visitor might not assume the town with two lighthouses was on an island. See photos. At the height of the summer, traffic is often backed up at the bridge as boats pass. Townsend Gut is the narrow waterway that separates the two towns. It is a shortcut from Boothbay Harbor to the Sheepscot River. The general store in West Southport village has been an institution for over a century.