Belfast is a city in

Waldo County Waldo County is a county in the state of Maine, in the United States. As of the 2020 census, the population was 39,607. Its county seat is Belfast. The county was founded on 7 February 1827 from a portion of Hancock County and named after ...

Maine Maine () is a state in the New England and Northeastern regions of the United States. It borders New Hampshire to the west, the Gulf of Maine to the southeast, and the Canadian provinces of New Brunswick and Quebec to the northeast and north ...

, in the United States. As of the 2020 census, the city population was 6,938. Located at the mouth of the

Passagassawakeag River The Passagassawakeag River () is a U.S. Geological Survey. National Hydrography Dataset high-resolution flowline dataThe National Map accessed June 22, 2011 river in Waldo County, Maine in the United States. From the outlet of Lake Passagassawa ...

estuary An estuary is a partially enclosed coastal body of brackish water with one or more rivers or streams flowing into it, and with a free connection to the open sea. Estuaries form a transition zone between river environments and maritime environment ...

on Belfast Bay and

Penobscot Bay Penobscot Bay (french: Baie de Penobscot) is an inlet of the Gulf of Maine and Atlantic Ocean in south central Maine. The bay originates from the mouth of Maine's Penobscot River, downriver from Belfast, Maine, Belfast. Penobscot Bay has many ...

. Belfast is the

county seat A county seat is an administrative center, seat of government, or capital city of a county or civil parish. The term is in use in Canada, China, Hungary, Romania, Taiwan, and the United States. The equivalent term shire town is used in the US st ...

. Its

seaport A port is a maritime facility comprising one or more wharves or loading areas, where ships load and discharge cargo and passengers. Although usually situated on a sea coast or estuary, ports can also be found far inland, such as Ham ...

has a wealth of antique

architecture Architecture is the art and technique of designing and building, as distinguished from the skills associated with construction. It is both the process and the product of sketching, conceiving, planning, designing, and constructing building ...

in several

historic district A historic district or heritage district is a section of a city which contains older buildings considered valuable for historical or architectural reasons. In some countries or jurisdictions, historic districts receive legal protection from c ...

s, and remains popular with tourists.

History

The area was once territory of the

Penobscot The Penobscot (Abenaki: ''Pαnawάhpskewi'') are an Indigenous people in North America from the Northeastern Woodlands region. They are organized as a federally recognized tribe in Maine and as a First Nations band government in the Atlantic pr ...

tribe of

Abenaki The Abenaki (Abenaki: ''Wαpánahki'') are an Indigenous peoples of the Northeastern Woodlands of Canada and the United States. They are an Algonquian-speaking people and part of the Wabanaki Confederacy. The Eastern Abenaki language was predom ...

Native Americans, which each summer visited the seashore to hunt for

fish Fish are aquatic, craniate, gill-bearing animals that lack limbs with digits. Included in this definition are the living hagfish, lampreys, and cartilaginous and bony fish as well as various extinct related groups. Approximately 95% of li ...

shellfish Shellfish is a colloquial and fisheries term for exoskeleton-bearing aquatic invertebrates used as food, including various species of molluscs, crustaceans, and echinoderms. Although most kinds of shellfish are harvested from saltwater envir ...

and seafowl. In 1630, it became part of the Muscongus Patent, which granted rights for

English English usually refers to: * English language * English people English may also refer to: Peoples, culture, and language * ''English'', an adjective for something of, from, or related to England ** English national ide ...

trading post A trading post, trading station, or trading house, also known as a factory, is an establishment or settlement where goods and services could be traded. Typically the location of the trading post would allow people from one geographic area to tr ...

s with the Native Americans, especially for the lucrative

fur trade The fur trade is a worldwide industry dealing in the acquisition and sale of animal fur. Since the establishment of a world fur market in the early modern period, furs of boreal, polar and cold temperate mammalian animals have been the mos ...

. About 1720, General

Samuel Waldo Samuel Waldo (August 7, 1696 – May 23, 1759) was an American merchant, land speculator, army officer and politician in the Province of Massachusetts Bay. Biography He was born in Boston, the son of Jonathan Waldo and Hannah Mason. In 1722, h ...

Boston Boston (), officially the City of Boston, is the state capital and most populous city of the Commonwealth of Massachusetts, as well as the cultural and financial center of the New England region of the United States. It is the 24th- mo ...

bought the Muscongus Patent, which had evolved into outright ownership of the land, and was thereafter known as the

Waldo Patent The Waldo Patent, a letters patent also known as the Muscongus Patent or the Lincolnshire Patent, was a document granting title to of land in what is now the U.S. state of Maine. It is named variously for businessman Samuel Waldo, who eventually ...

. Waldo died in 1759, and his heirs would sell the plantation of Passagassawakeag (named after its river) to 35 Scots-Irish proprietors from

Londonderry, New Hampshire Londonderry is a town in western Rockingham County, New Hampshire, United States. It sits between Manchester and Derry, the largest and fourth-largest communities in the state. The population was 25,826 at the 2020 census. Londonderry is known f ...

. Renamed Belfast after

Belfast Belfast ( , ; from ga, Béal Feirste , meaning 'mouth of the sand-bank ford') is the capital and largest city of Northern Ireland, standing on the banks of the River Lagan on the east coast. It is the 12th-largest city in the United Kingdo ...

Northern Ireland Northern Ireland ( ga, Tuaisceart Éireann ; sco, label= Ulster-Scots, Norlin Airlann) is a part of the United Kingdom, situated in the north-east of the island of Ireland, that is variously described as a country, province or region. Nort ...

, it was first settled in 1770, and incorporated as a town in 1773. The village was mostly abandoned during the

Revolution In political science, a revolution (Latin: ''revolutio'', "a turn around") is a fundamental and relatively sudden change in political power and political organization which occurs when the population revolts against the government, typically due ...

while

British British may refer to: Peoples, culture, and language * British people, nationals or natives of the United Kingdom, British Overseas Territories, and Crown Dependencies. ** Britishness, the British identity and common culture * British English, ...

forces occupied Bagaduce (now Castine). The British military burned Belfast in 1779, then held it for five days in September 1814 during the

War of 1812 The War of 1812 (18 June 1812 – 17 February 1815) was fought by the United States of America and its indigenous allies against the United Kingdom and its allies in British North America, with limited participation by Spain in Florida. It bega ...

. Following the war, the seaport rebuilt and thrived. It was a

port of entry In general, a port of entry (POE) is a place where one may lawfully enter a country. It typically has border security staff and facilities to check passports and visas and to inspect luggage to assure that contraband is not imported. Internati ...

, and designated county seat of Waldo County in 1827, although land would be set off in 1845 to form part of Searsport. Belfast was incorporated on August 17, 1850, as a city, the 8th in Maine, adopting its charter on April 3, 1852. It developed into a

shipbuilding Shipbuilding is the construction of ships and other floating vessels. It normally takes place in a specialized facility known as a shipyard. Shipbuilders, also called shipwrights, follow a specialized occupation that traces its roots to befor ...

center, producing hundreds of three, four and five masted

schooner A schooner () is a type of sailing vessel defined by its rig: fore-and-aft rigged on all of two or more masts and, in the case of a two-masted schooner, the foremast generally being shorter than the mainmast. A common variant, the topsail schoon ...

s. Materials for wooden boat construction were shipped down the

Penobscot River The Penobscot River (Abenaki: ''Pαnawάhpskewtəkʷ'') is a U.S. Geological Survey. National Hydrography Dataset high-resolution flowline dataThe National Map, accessed June 22, 2011 river in the U.S. state of Maine. Including the river's We ...

from Bangor, the

lumber Lumber is wood that has been processed into dimensional lumber, including beams and planks or boards, a stage in the process of wood production. Lumber is mainly used for construction framing, as well as finishing (floors, wall panels, wi ...

capital of

North America North America is a continent in the Northern Hemisphere and almost entirely within the Western Hemisphere. It is bordered to the north by the Arctic Ocean, to the east by the Atlantic Ocean, to the southeast by South America and the Car ...

during the later 19th century. Shipbuilders became wealthy, and built the

Federal Federal or foederal (archaic) may refer to: Politics General *Federal monarchy, a federation of monarchies *Federation, or ''Federal state'' (federal system), a type of government characterized by both a central (federal) government and states or ...

Greek Revival The Greek Revival was an architectural movement which began in the middle of the 18th century but which particularly flourished in the late 18th and early 19th centuries, predominantly in northern Europe and the United States and Canada, but ...

and

Italianate The Italianate style was a distinct 19th-century phase in the history of Classical architecture. Like Palladianism and Neoclassicism, the Italianate style drew its inspiration from the models and architectural vocabulary of 16th-century Italian R ...

mansions and civic architecture for which the city is noted, including the 1818 First Church by master-builder Samuel French, and the 1857 Custom House and

Post Office A post office is a public facility and a retailer that provides mail services, such as accepting letters and parcels, providing post office boxes, and selling postage stamps, packaging, and stationery. Post offices may offer additional serv ...

by noted

architect An architect is a person who plans, designs and oversees the construction of buildings. To practice architecture means to provide services in connection with the design of buildings and the space within the site surrounding the buildings that h ...

Ammi B. Young Ammi Burnham Young (June 19, 1798 – March 14, 1874) was a 19th-century American architect whose commissions transitioned from the Greek Revival to the Neo-Renaissance styles. His design of the second Vermont State House brought him fame and su ...

. Wooden ship construction would fade about 1900, but with the advent of

refrigeration The term refrigeration refers to the process of removing heat from an enclosed space or substance for the purpose of lowering the temperature.International Dictionary of Refrigeration, http://dictionary.iifiir.org/search.phpASHRAE Terminology, ht ...

, the local economy shifted to harvesting

seafood Seafood is any form of sea life regarded as food by humans, prominently including fish and shellfish. Shellfish include various species of molluscs (e.g. bivalve molluscs such as clams, oysters and mussels, and cephalopods such as octopus an ...

, including

lobster Lobsters are a family (biology), family (Nephropidae, Synonym (taxonomy), synonym Homaridae) of marine crustaceans. They have long bodies with muscular tails and live in crevices or burrows on the sea floor. Three of their five pairs of legs ...

scallop Scallop () is a common name that encompasses various species of marine bivalve mollusks in the taxonomic family Pectinidae, the scallops. However, the common name "scallop" is also sometimes applied to species in other closely related families ...

sardine "Sardine" and "pilchard" are common names for various species of small, oily forage fish in the herring family Clupeidae. The term "sardine" was first used in English during the early 15th century, a folk etymology says it comes from the Ital ...

herring Herring are forage fish, mostly belonging to the family of Clupeidae. Herring often move in large schools around fishing banks and near the coast, found particularly in shallow, temperate waters of the North Pacific and North Atlantic Oceans, i ...

s and

mackerel Mackerel is a common name applied to a number of different species of pelagic fish, mostly from the family Scombridae. They are found in both temperate and tropical seas, mostly living along the coast or offshore in the oceanic environment. ...

for the

and

New York New York most commonly refers to: * New York City, the most populous city in the United States, located in the state of New York * New York (state), a state in the northeastern United States New York may also refer to: Film and television * '' ...

markets.

A county-wide connection to the main line of the

Maine Central Railroad The Maine Central Railroad Company was a U. S. Class I railroad in central and southern Maine. It was chartered in 1856 and began operations in 1862. By 1884, Maine Central was the longest railroad in New England. Maine Central had expanded to w ...

at Burnham, inland from Belfast, was established by the largely city-owned Belfast and Moosehead Lake Railroad with its opening in 1871. For the first 55 years the line was operated under lease by the MEC as its Belfast Branch but its operation reverted to the B&ML on January 1, 1926, when the lease was terminated by the larger road. Regular passenger service ended in 1960, and all operations in Belfast of any kind ceased in 2005, when the main yard was torn up. In 2011 the grounds of the former B&ML main yard and adjacent Stinson Seafood factory became the site of the Front Street Shipyard. The railroad's 1946 vintage engine house was torn down and its site is now occupied by the shipyard's , five-story boatbuilding and repair facility. In 2016 the city opened a

rail trail A rail trail is a shared-use path on railway right of way. Rail trails are typically constructed after a railway has been abandoned and the track has been removed, but may also share the right of way with active railways, light rail, or streetcar ...

on a portion of the railroad right-of-way. Shoe manufacture became an important business. After World War II, however, the Belfast economy was driven by its

poultry Poultry () are domesticated birds kept by humans for their eggs, their meat or their feathers. These birds are most typically members of the superorder Galloanserae (fowl), especially the order Galliformes (which includes chickens, quails, a ...

industry, including two of the state's larger processors, Maplewood and Penobscot Poultry. Waldo County farms supplied the factories with up to 200,000 birds a day. The annual

Broiler A broiler is any chicken (''Gallus gallus domesticus'') that is bred and raised specifically for meat production. Most commercial broilers reach slaughter weight between four and six weeks of age, although slower growing breeds reach slaught ...

Festival became a popular summer event, attracting both local people and tourists. But the poultry business collapsed in the mid-1970s during a national

recession In economics, a recession is a business cycle contraction when there is a general decline in economic activity. Recessions generally occur when there is a widespread drop in spending (an adverse demand shock). This may be triggered by various ...

, devastating the city and surrounding towns. In the early 1980s, the defunct chicken-feed

silo A silo (from the Greek σιρός – ''siros'', "pit for holding grain") is a structure for storing bulk materials. Silos are used in agriculture to store fermented feed known as silage, not to be confused with a grain bin, which is used t ...

s at the foot of Main Street, that once fed millions of chickens, were demolished. There was an exodus of people seeking employment prospects elsewhere through the 1960s, 1970s and 1980s. But as they left, people attracted to the natural beauty of the coast of Maine, inexpensive land and homes, some who came to go "back to the land", artists and young college graduates moved in starting a renaissance. In the early 1990s, credit card giant

MBNA MBNA Corporation was a bank holding company and parent company of wholly owned subsidiary MBNA America Bank, N.A., headquartered in Wilmington, Delaware, prior to being acquired by Bank of America in 2006. History The former Maryland National ...

established two facilities in Belfast, one considerably larger than the other. The company was instrumental in establishing the Hutchinson Center of the

University of Maine The University of Maine (UMaine or UMO) is a Public university, public Land-grant university, land-grant research university in Orono, Maine. It was established in 1865 as the land-grant college of Maine and is the Flagship universities, flagshi ...

, an outpost of the

University of Maine System The University of Maine System (UMaine System or UMS) is a state university system in the U.S. state of Maine. It was created in 1968 by the Maine Legislature and consists of eight institutions, each with a distinct mission and regional character. ...

, less than a mile from the main MBNA campus. Jobs provided by MBNA, which was recently acquired by the

Bank of America The Bank of America Corporation (often abbreviated BofA or BoA) is an American multinational investment bank and financial services holding company headquartered at the Bank of America Corporate Center in Charlotte, North Carolina. The bank w ...

, helped increase Belfast's population significantly. Bank of America consolidated former MBNA operations in the larger of the two facilities. The smaller complex was eventually taken over by

athenahealth Athenahealth (stylized as athenahealth) is a private American company that provides network-enabled services for healthcare and point-of-care mobile apps in the United States. The company was founded in 1997 in San Diego and is now headquarte ...

. In 1996, shipbuilding was re-established on the Belfast waterfront with the opening of French & Webb, Inc., classic wooden yacht builders and restorers. Following in their footsteps, Front Street Shipyard opened a major boatyard on the Belfast Bay in 2013. Together, the two boatbuilding companies have restored Belfast's working waterfront and helped revive the city economy as well as appeal to tourists. Movies filmed in Belfast include '' Peyton Place'' (1957), '' Thinner'' (1996) and ''

In the Bedroom ''In the Bedroom'' is a 2001 American independent drama film directed by Todd Field from a screenplay written by Field and Robert Festinger, based on the 1979 short story " Killings" by Andre Dubus. It stars Sissy Spacek, Tom Wilkinson, Nick Stah ...

'' (2001) and the

Frederick Wiseman Frederick Wiseman (born January 1, 1930) is an American filmmaker, documentarian, and theater director. His work is "devoted primarily to exploring American institutions". He has been called "one of the most important and original filmmakers wor ...

documentary "Belfast, Maine" (1999) about everyday life in the city. File:Main Street, Belfast, ME.jpg, Main Street in 1921 File:A Bit of Belfast Scenery, Belfast, ME.jpg, General view File:Waterfront, Belfast, ME.jpg, Shipyards in 1905 File:Memorial Hall in Belfast, ME.jpg, City Hall in 1914 File:Belfast, ME Panoramic View from Post Office Square 2014.jpg, Panoramic view from Post Office Square in 2014 File:Belfast sunrise.jpg, Belfast Bay File:Belfast Shipyard.jpg, Shipyard on Belfast Bay File:Belfast ME Sign ME3.jpg, Sign on Maine 3

Geography

Belfast is located at (44.425896, −69.011646). According to the

United States Census Bureau The United States Census Bureau (USCB), officially the Bureau of the Census, is a principal agency of the U.S. Federal Statistical System, responsible for producing data about the American people and economy. The Census Bureau is part of the ...

, the city has a total area of , of which is land and is water. Situated on Belfast Bay and

, Belfast is drained by the

. Other smaller rivers include Goose River and

Little River Little River may refer to several places: Australia Streams New South Wales *Little River (Dubbo), source in the Dubbo region, a tributary of the Macquarie River * Little River (Oberon), source in the Oberon Shire, a tributary of Coxs River (Haw ...

. Belfast is bordered by

Waldo Waldo may refer to: People * Waldo (given name), a list of people and fictional characters * Waldo (surname), a list of people * Waldo (footballer) (1934-2019), full name Waldo Machado da Silva, Brazilian footballer Places Canada * Waldo, ...

and Swanville to the north, Searsport to the east, Northport to the south, Belmont to the southwest and Morrill to the west. It is served by

US Route 1 U.S. Route 1 or U.S. Highway 1 (US 1) is a major north–south United States Numbered Highway that serves the East Coast of the United States. It runs from Key West, Florida, north to Fort Kent, Maine, at the Canadian border, making i ...

, Maine State Routes SR 3, SR 7, SR 52. SR 137 and SR 141.

Climate

This

climatic Climate is the long-term weather pattern in an area, typically averaged over 30 years. More rigorously, it is the mean and variability of meteorological variables over a time spanning from months to millions of years. Some of the meteorologic ...

region is typified by large seasonal temperature differences, with hot and humid summers and cold and dry winters. According to the

Köppen Climate Classification The Köppen climate classification is one of the most widely used climate classification systems. It was first published by German-Russian climatologist Wladimir Köppen (1846–1940) in 1884, with several later modifications by Köppen, notabl ...

system, Belfast has a

humid continental climate A humid continental climate is a climatic region defined by Russo-German climatologist Wladimir Köppen in 1900, typified by four distinct seasons and large seasonal temperature differences, with warm to hot (and often humid) summers and freezing ...

, abbreviated "Dfb" on climate maps.

Demographics

2010 census

As of the

census A census is the procedure of systematically acquiring, recording and calculating information about the members of a given population. This term is used mostly in connection with national population and housing censuses; other common censuses incl ...

of 2010, there were 6,668 people, 3,049 households, and 1,729 families residing in the city. The

population density Population density (in agriculture: standing stock or plant density) is a measurement of population per unit land area. It is mostly applied to humans, but sometimes to other living organisms too. It is a key geographical term.Matt RosenberPopul ...

was . There were 3,582 housing units at an average density of . The racial makeup of the city was 96.7%

White White is the lightest color and is achromatic (having no hue). It is the color of objects such as snow, chalk, and milk, and is the opposite of black. White objects fully reflect and scatter all the visible wavelengths of light. White on ...

, 0.5%

African American African Americans (also referred to as Black Americans and Afro-Americans) are an ethnic group consisting of Americans with partial or total ancestry from sub-Saharan Africa. The term "African American" generally denotes descendants of ens ...

, 0.4% Native American, 0.4%

Asian Asian may refer to: * Items from or related to the continent of Asia: ** Asian people, people in or descending from Asia ** Asian culture, the culture of the people from Asia ** Asian cuisine, food based on the style of food of the people from Asi ...

, 0.2% from

other races Other often refers to: * Other (philosophy), a concept in psychology and philosophy Other or The Other may also refer to: Film and television * ''The Other'' (1913 film), a German silent film directed by Max Mack * ''The Other'' (1930 film), a ...

, and 1.8% from two or more races.

Hispanic The term ''Hispanic'' ( es, hispano) refers to people, Spanish culture, cultures, or countries related to Spain, the Spanish language, or Hispanidad. The term commonly applies to countries with a cultural and historical link to Spain and to Vic ...

Latino Latino or Latinos most often refers to: * Latino (demonym), a term used in the United States for people with cultural ties to Latin America * Hispanic and Latino Americans in the United States * The people or cultures of Latin America; ** Latin A ...

of any race were 1.2% of the population. There were 3,049 households, of which 24.1% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 41.4% were

married couples Marriage, also called matrimony or wedlock, is a culturally and often legally recognized union between people called spouses. It establishes rights and obligations between them, as well as between them and their children, and between t ...

living together, 11.5% had a female householder with no spouse present, 3.8% had a male householder with no spouse present, and 43.3% were non-families. 35.9% of all households were made up of individuals, and 17.8% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.14 and the average family size was 2.73. The median age in the city was 46.9 years. 19.9% of residents were under the age of 18; 6.1% were between the ages of 18 and 24; 21.4% were from 25 to 44; 30.6% were from 45 to 64; and 21.9% were 65 years of age or older. The city's population was 46.2% male and 53.8% female.

2000 census

As of the

of 2000, there were 6,381 people, 2,765 households, and 1,692 families residing in the city. The population density was . There were 3,121 housing units at an average density of . The racial makeup of the city was 97.56%

, 0.28%

, 0.27% Native American, 0.28%

, 0.02%

Pacific Islander Pacific Islanders, Pasifika, Pasefika, or rarely Pacificers are the peoples of the list of islands in the Pacific Ocean, Pacific Islands. As an ethnic group, ethnic/race (human categorization), racial term, it is used to describe the original p ...

, 0.27% from

, and 1.33% from two or more races.

of any race were 0.69% of the population. There were 2,765 households, out of which 25.8% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 46.8% were

living together, 10.8% had a female householder with no spouse present, and 38.8% were non-families. 31.5% of all households were made up of individuals, and 13.3% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.23 and the average family size was 2.77. Blaisdell Residence, Belfast, ME

In the city, the population was spread out, with 20.9% under the age of 18, 7.5% from 18 to 24, 24.2% from 25 to 44, 27.3% from 45 to 64, and 20.0% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 43 years. For every 100 females, there were 87.4 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 83.0 males. The median income for a household in the city was $32,400, and the median income for a family was $43,253. Males had a median income of $30,514 versus $27,518 for females. The

per capita income Per capita income (PCI) or total income measures the average income earned per person in a given area (city, region, country, etc.) in a specified year. It is calculated by dividing the area's total income by its total population. Per capita i ...

for the city was $19,276. About 10.0% of families and 13.2% of the population were below the

poverty line The poverty threshold, poverty limit, poverty line or breadline is the minimum level of income deemed adequate in a particular country. The poverty line is usually calculated by estimating the total cost of one year's worth of necessities for t ...

, including 19.5% of those under age 18 and 9.1% of those age 65 or over.

Voter registration

Education

Mascot – Belfast Lions Colors – Royal Blue, and Gold These three public elementary schools closed down in early 2000s (decade): * Pierce School – Grades K–3 (Brief use as a private school) * Anderson School – Grades K–3 (Now Waterfall Arts) * Robertson School – Grades 3–5 (Not in use) Schools Part of Belfast's MSAD #34 District : * Captain Albert Stevens Elementary School – Grades K–5 Consolidation of Pierce, Anderson and Robertson Schools (Located in Belfast) * Ames School – Grades 3–5 (Located in Searsmont) * Weymouth School – Grades K–2 (Located in Morrill) * Drinkwater School – Grades K–5 (Located in Northport) * Nickerson School – Grades K–5 (Located in Swanville) * East Belfast School – Grades K–5 (Located in East Belfast, nicknamed "East Side School") * Troy A. Howard Middle School – Grades 6–8(Located in Belfast) * Belfast Area High School – Grades 9–12 (Located in Belfast) Towns in Regional School Unit #71 as of winter 2020: * Belfast * Belmont * Swanville * Searsmont * Morrill In order to save money, many schools in the state of Maine were forced to combine with other districts. Due to consolidation, MSAD #34 (Belfast) combined with MSAD #56 (Searsport) in the fall of 2009. The MSAD's no longer existed; they became one regional school unit, RSU #20. The RSU Superintendent was former Troy A. Howard Middle School and Belfast Area High School Vice Principal Bruce Mailloux. The former MSAD #56 towns of Searsport, Frankfort, and Stockton also became part of RSU #20. Towns in the new RSU #20 District as of fall 2009 that were combined with MSAD #56: * Belfast * Belmont * Swanville * Searsmont * Northport * Morrill * Searsport * Frankfort * Stockton Springs Disagreements over inflating costs and the lack of local control over their students education caused several towns across Maine to consider withdrawing from these larger consolidated districts. One of these towns included Stockton Springs, which voted on March 25, 2014, to withdraw from RSU #20. At that time all eight municipalities within RSU #20 were at various points in the withdrawal process. These communities included Belfast, Searsmont, Stockton Springs, Belmont, Morrill, Northport, Searsmont and Swanville. Belfast voted in February 2014 to spend $25,000 to put together a report on the educational and financial impacts of leaving RSU 20. Although consolidation was originally done to save money and increase the educational value of students from smaller towns, the consolidation was not widely perceived to be beneficial. Belfast, Belmont, Swanville, Searsmont, and Morrill withdrew from RSU #20 and established RSU #71.

Sites of interest

Belfast Historical Society & Museum
* Belfast Free Library, a public library established in 1887 * Front Street Shipyard * Perry's Nut House

Belfast City Park

Belfast City Park is an

urban park An urban park or metropolitan park, also known as a municipal park (North America) or a public park, public open space, or municipal gardens ( UK), is a park in cities and other incorporated places that offer recreation and green space to resi ...

located on of land overlooking

. It is heavily used during the spring, summer and fall months and closed during the winter. When it was founded in 1904 by the Belfast Village Improvement Society, a local women's group, it was considered the group's biggest accomplishment.

Notable people

Nehemiah Abbott Nehemiah Abbott (March 29, 1804 – July 26, 1877) was a United States representative from Maine. He was born in Sidney, studied law at the Litchfield, Connecticut Law School, was admitted to the bar in 1836 and began his practice at Calais, ...

, U.S. Congressman and mayor * Hugh J. Anderson, U.S. Congressman and 20th

governor of Maine The governor of Maine is the head of government of the U.S. state of Maine. Before Maine was admitted to the Union in 1820, Maine was part of Massachusetts and the governor of Massachusetts was chief executive. The current governor of Maine is Ja ...

* Charles G. Bryant, architect, soldier and adventurer * Hodgdon C. Buzzell, State Senate President, probate judge and mayor * Dorothy Cannell, novelist, mysteries writer * William G. Crosby, poet and 23rd

Donald DePoy Donald DePoy (born August 10, 1949, in Harrisonburg, Virginia) is an American bluegrass musician, music educator, and music event organizer. He is a fifth-generation bluegrass musician from the Shenandoah Valley and a multi-instrumentalist. He ...

, fifth-generation bluegrass musician, music educator, and music event organizer. *

Herbert L. Foss Herbert Louis Foss (October 12, 1871 – September 1, 1937) was a Seaman in the United States Navy who received the Medal of Honor for his actions during the Spanish–American War. Spanish–American War Foss joined in the United States Navy in ...

, Medal of Honor recipient (Navy), Spanish–American War *

Jonathan Frakes Jonathan Scott Frakes (born August 19, 1952) is an American actor and director. He is best known for his portrayal of Commander William Riker in the television series '' Star Trek: The Next Generation'' and subsequent films and series. Frakes als ...

, actor (former resident) *

Genie Francis Eugenie Ann Francis (born May 26, 1962) is an American actress. She is best known for playing the role of Laura Spencer (General Hospital), Laura Spencer on the television soap opera ''General Hospital'' from 1977 to present, for which she won a ...

, actress (former resident) * Linden Frederick, painter * Harriet L. Hartley, public health doctor and medical school professor (20c resident) * Harrison M. Hayford, scholar of American literature, top authority on Herman Melville *

Erin Herbig Erin D. Herbig is an American serving as the city manager of the city of Belfast, Maine. She previously served as a member of the Maine Senate and Maine House of Representatives. Herbig earned a Bachelor of Arts degree in English from Boston Colle ...

, Maine house majority leader * Albert G. Jewett, diplomat (U.S. Chargé d'Affaires in Peru, 1845–1847; later Mayor of Belfast) * Clara Savage Littledale, journalist, first editor of ''

Parents A parent is a caregiver of the offspring in their own species. In humans, a parent is the caretaker of a child (where "child" refers to offspring, not necessarily age). A ''biological parent'' is a person whose gamete resulted in a child, a male t ...

'' magazine, born in Belfast. * Hugh Dean McLellan, Federal judge *

Seth L. Milliken Seth Llewellyn Milliken (December 12, 1831 – April 18, 1897) was a U.S. Representative from Maine. Early life Born in Montville, Maine, the son of William Milliken and Lucy P. Perrigo. Milliken attended the common schools and Waterville Col ...

, U.S. Congressman *

Bern Porter Bernard Harden Porter (born February 14, 1911, Porter Settlement in Houlton, Aroostook County, Maine – died June 7, 2004, in Belfast, Maine) was an American artist, writer, publisher, performer, and physicist. He was a representative of the avan ...

, scientist, artist, writer * William Veazie Pratt, admiral; Chief of Naval Operations (Navy's highest rank) *

Phineas Quimby Phineas Parkhurst Quimby (February 16, 1802 – January 16, 1866) was an American clockmaker, mentalist and mesmerist. His work is widely recognized as foundational to the New Thought spiritual movement. Biography Born in the small town of Leba ...

, mesmerist *

Nathan Read Nathan Read (July 2, 1759 – January 20, 1849) was an American engineer and steam pioneer. Nathan Read was the true inventor of the high-pressure steam engine in 1789, this was twelve years before the steam-engine was known to be used in th ...

, inventor, educator, steam-power trailblazer, Congressman, judge *

Dudley Allen Sargent Dudley Allen Sargent (September 29, 1849 – July 21, 1924) was a United States educator, lecturer and director of physical training. Biography Dudley Allen Sargent was born in Belfast, Maine on September 29, 1849, the son of a ship carpenter and ...

, Harvard professor, physical fitness pioneer * Robert P. Skinner, diplomat, U.S. Ambassador to Greece, the Baltic States, Turkey * Joseph B. Smith, Naval officer *

Albert William Stevens Albert William Stevens (March 13, 1886 – March 26, 1949) was an officer of the United States Army Air Corps, balloonist, and aerial photographer. Biography He was born on March 13, 1886 in Belfast, Maine. He graduated from the Univer ...

, Army officer, balloonist, photographer; took first photos of Earth's curvature * Live Oak Taylor, (George Edward Taylor), professional baseball player *

Edward Wilson Very Edward Wilson Very (October 26, 1847 – March 1, 1910) was an American naval officer who adopted and popularized a single-shot breech-loading snub-nosed flare gun that fired flares that bear his name ( Very lights). During his naval career he capt ...

, naval officer, inventor of the Very signal flare gun * Neil Welliver, artist, died in Belfast * James Clarke White, M.D., physician, "Father of American Dermatology" * William H. Wilder, U.S. Congressman, expert on world monetary policies * Joseph Williamson, State Senate President * John Wilson, U.S. Congressman *

Wendall Woodbury Wendall J. Woodbury (June 20, 1942 – October 20, 2010) was an American television journalist and news anchor. He spent much of his career as a reporter for WGAL-TV in Lancaster, Pennsylvania, from 1968 until his retirement from broadcast news ...

, television journalist and anchor

References

Notes

External links

City of Belfast, Maine

Belfast Free Library

{{authority control Cities in Maine Cities in Waldo County, Maine County seats in Maine Populated places established in 1770 Populated coastal places in Maine 1770 establishments in Maine