This township is in southern Piscataquis County, just west of Brownville. Originally Williamsburg and Barnard were within Number Six, Range Eight township, and adjoined Brownville on the west. In 1834 the original township was split when Barnard and Williamsburg each became incorporated towns. In 1939, in the midst of the Great Depression, Williamsburg gave up its incorporation and became an unorganized township.
According to Amasa Loring, in 1880, (edited)
Pleasant River passes through the north-east corner, and Roaring Brook empties into it from the western side, both affording good mill privileges (falls), which have not been improved. Near the center, Whetstone Brook, another tributary of Pleasant River, affords a good site on which a saw-mill and shingle machine have been built. A large quantity of slate is probably concealed beneath its soil. Moses Greenleaf Esq. discovered a large amount of slate, which led to work in of all the quarries in the county. William Dodd of Boston purchased the township, hence the name, Williamsburg. Moses Greenleaf was Mr. Dodd’s agent.
Probably settlement began soon after that of Brownville, and near its eastern border. John Crommett had settled there as early as 1808, Moses Head in 1810, and Mr. Greenleaf, probably, by this time. Mark Pitman and others were settled in the west part, now Barnard. Two families settled here early, one in Williamsburg, the other in Brownville, named Hemminway and Downing. They may have been the first settled there. They moved away soon after the cold seasons, but returned later. According to the census taken by Greenleaf, there were 71 persons here in 1810, more than in Milo, Foxcroft, or Guilford. From this date there was a slow, but gradual increase.
Williamsburg has a notable history. As early as 1816, the first map of Maine was plotted, and the first book written in the county, both by, Moses Greenleaf. The book “Statistics of Maine,” accompanied and explained his map. This book was enlarged, amended, and issued in 1829, as “Survey of Maine,” a work of 468 pages, and of great statistical value. At the same time he issued a new larger and improved map. Before Rev. Sidney Smith sneeringly asked: “Who reads an American book?”, and before John Neal crossed the ocean to contribute articles to British Reviews written on the British Isle, to win a reputation as an American author, here, in the back-woods of Maine.
In June, 1819, the township was organized as Williamsburg Plantation, Eben Greenleaf was plantation clerk. But on June 21, 1820, the first Legislature of the new State of Maine incorporated it as the town of Williamsburg, the second town incorporated by that body, Kennebunk being the first. At that time it had a population of 107, and about twenty votes.
In 1828, William Dodd, the proprietor, died. From that time a serious difficulty arose, in collecting the nonresident taxes, which embarrassed the town for many years. But a few years later, the population was increased by immigrants from [New?] Brunswick and vicinity, and its prospects were rising. In the town meeting of 1831, measures were taken to secure preaching in town. It voted to raise $30 for this purpose by taxation, with the condition a minister’s property would be exempt from taxes. The next year the reserved lots were selected by a town committee, and by Mr. Greenleaf as proprietor’s agent, three, of 160 acres each, in both the east and west half of the township.
In 1830, a small Congregational church was organized. In 1833, it invited Rev. Joseph Underwood to settle over it, with the understanding that he should spend one-half of his
time in Sebec. The town, at its next meeting, voted to concur with the church in this invitation, and to regard him as the minister of the town. This secured to Mr. Underwood the minister’s lot of land. But he left after two years and relinquished his right to it. But even from the sale of this and two other reserves, the town did not retained any funds for the support of ministry or schools in either town.
In 1833, it was voted to petition for a division of the town, and the terms were agreed upon, without a dissenting vote. The line of separation was to run through the low land, which naturally divided the township; the town’s poor was to be assigned to each, according to the location of their former homes; each town was to hold the equal part of the reserved lots, as located within it; the unpaid taxes and town debts were to be divided to each in proportion to their respective valuations, which finally fell, fifty-four per cent to Barnard, and forty-six to Williamsburg.
In February, 1834, the Legislature divided the town on these conditions, and incorporated the west part as the town of Barnard. At the next State election, Williamsburg cast only thirteen votes, and neither town has made much advance since. The town of Williamsburg, in a business point of view, is closely connected with Brownville. The inhabitants go to Brownville village for trade, and religious meetings. Though A. H. Merrill resides in Williamsburg, his slate quarry is nearly all in Brownville, and increases the valuation of that town. Another quarry opened within the limits of this town by the Piscataquis Central Slate Company, incorporated in 1874. Slate of an excellent quality has been produced here, some of which has been used on the most expensive mansions in Foxcroft.
Additional resources
Loring, Amasa. History of Piscataquis County, Maine: From Its Earliest Settlement to 1880. From Maine History Documents at https://digitalcommons.library.umaine.edu/mainehistory/33/ (accessed December 9, 2019.