Unity is a

town A town is a human settlement. Towns are generally larger than villages and smaller than cities, though the criteria to distinguish between them vary considerably in different parts of the world. Origin and use The word "town" shares an o ...

in Waldo County, Maine, United States. The population was 2,292 at the 2020 census. The town is the service center for the northern portion of Waldo County. Outside of Waldo county, it is best known as the home of the

Maine Organic Farmers and Gardeners Association The Maine Organic Farmers and Gardeners Association (MOFGA) certifies organic food and products throughout the State of Maine. It is a voluntary organization whose office is located in Unity, Maine. As of 2016, MOFGA certifies 480 producers and gr ...

, its

Common Ground Country Fair The Common Ground Country Fair, also known as the Common Ground Fair, is an agricultural fair in Unity, Maine held the third weekend after Labor Day and sponsored by the Maine Organic Farmers and Gardeners Association (MOFGA). It was first held in ...

and Unity College. Unity College was founded in 1965 to offset the economic effects of the declining chicken farming industry. As of 2007, the college is the town's largest employer.

History

When originally settled by

Quakers Quakers are people who belong to a historically Protestant Christian set of denominations known formally as the Religious Society of Friends. Members of these movements ("theFriends") are generally united by a belief in each human's abili ...

, the town was known as Twenty-Five Mile Pond Plantation. The name came from its being located on a pond twenty-five miles from Fort Halifax in Winslow. The name was changed to Unity upon incorporation as a town in 1804. In 1898, the Village School was opened. It remained in operation until 1953 when it closed and a new elementary school was built. In 1996, the

(MOFGA) purchased 200 acres of land in Unity, where it is now based. The MOFGA-run

moved with the organization and annually brings more than 50,000 visitors to the town. During 2008–2009, eight

Amish The Amish (; pdc, Amisch; german: link=no, Amische), formally the Old Order Amish, are a group of traditionalist Anabaptist Christian church fellowships with Swiss German and Alsatian origins. They are closely related to Mennonite churc ...

families moved into the community. They belong to the "

Michigan Amish Churches The Michigan Amish Churches or Michigan related Amish Churches are a subgroup or affiliation of Old Order Amish. They emerged in 1970 in Michigan. This affiliation is more evangelical and more open to outsiders, so-called "seekers", than other Ol ...

", an Amish affiliation that is more open to outsiders than most other Amish affiliations."The Atypical Amish Community at Unity, Maine" at amishamerica.com
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Geography

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 th ...

, the town has a total area of , of which, of it is land and is water, chiefly

Unity Pond Unity Pond (Lake Winnecook) is the largest lake in Waldo County, Maine. It is within the towns of Unity, Burnham, and Troy. The main tributaries are Meadow Brook, Bithers Brook, and Carlton Stream. The sole outflow is Twenty-Five Mile Stream, v ...

. Principle rivers are Twentyfive Mile Stream (Unity Pond's sole outflow), Sandy Stream and Halfmoon Stream. The town is crossed by state routes 9, 220,

139 139 may refer to: * 139 (number), an integer * AD 139, a year of the Julian calendar * 139 BC, a year of the pre-Julian Roman calendar * 139 (New Jersey bus) See also * 139th (disambiguation) 139th may refer to: * 139th (Northumberland) Battal ...

and US route 202. Unity is bordered by

Burnham Burnham may refer to: Places Canada *Burnham, Saskatchewan England *Burnham, Buckinghamshire ** Burnham railway station **Burnham Grammar School *Burnham Green, Hertfordshire, location of The White Horse * Burnham, Lincolnshire **High Burnham, I ...

to the north,

Troy Troy ( el, Τροία and Latin: Troia, Hittite: 𒋫𒊒𒄿𒊭 ''Truwiša'') or Ilion ( el, Ίλιον and Latin: Ilium, Hittite: 𒃾𒇻𒊭 ''Wiluša'') was an ancient city located at Hisarlik in present-day Turkey, south-west of Ç ...

and Thorndike to the east, Knox to the southeast,

Freedom Freedom is understood as either having the ability to act or change without constraint or to possess the power and resources to fulfill one's purposes unhindered. Freedom is often associated with liberty and autonomy in the sense of "giving one ...

to the south,

Albion Albion is an alternative name for Great Britain. The oldest attestation of the toponym comes from the Greek language. It is sometimes used poetically and generally to refer to the island, but is less common than 'Britain' today. The name for Scot ...

to the southwest and Unity Township to the west.

Demographics

2010 census

As of the census of 2010, there were 2,099 people, 750 households, and 429 families living in the town. The population density was . There were 939 housing units at an average density of . The racial makeup of the town was 96.9%

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 ...

, 0.4%

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 ...

, 0.3% Native American, 0.2% Asian, 0.2% from other races, and 1.9% from two or more races.

Hispanic The term ''Hispanic'' ( es, hispano) refers to people, 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 viceroyalties for ...

or Latino of any race were 1.3% of the population. There were 750 households, of which 26.3% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 40.7% were married couples living together, 12.4% had a female householder with no husband present, 4.1% had a male householder with no wife present, and 42.8% were non-families. 29.3% of all households were made up of individuals, and 11.4% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.34 and the average family size was 2.88. The median age in the town was 31.2 years. 17.8% of residents were under the age of 18; 26.4% were between the ages of 18 and 24; 19.1% were from 25 to 44; 24% were from 45 to 64; and 12.9% were 65 years of age or older. The gender makeup of the town was 48.8% male and 51.2% female.

2000 census

As of the census of 2000, there were 1,889 people, 713 households, and 419 families living in the town. The population density was 47.8 people per square mile (18.4/km²). There were 926 housing units at an average density of 23.4 per square mile (9.0/km²). The racial makeup of the town was 97.72%

, 0.32%

Black Black is a color which results from the absence or complete absorption of visible light. It is an achromatic color, without hue, like white and grey. It is often used symbolically or figuratively to represent darkness. Black and white ha ...

, 0.42% Native American, 0.26% Asian, 0.11% from other races, and 1.16% from two or more races.

or Latino of any race were 0.74% of the population. There were 713 households, out of which 27.5% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 44.6% were married couples living together, 10.7% had a female householder with no husband present, and 41.2% were non-families. 32.8% of all households were made up of individuals, and 12.9% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.27 and the average family size was 2.89. In the town, the population was spread out, with 20.1% under the age of 18, 22.8% from 18 to 24, 22.6% from 25 to 44, 21.4% from 45 to 64, and 13.2% who were 65 years of age or older. The

median In statistics and probability theory, the median is the value separating the higher half from the lower half of a data sample, a population, or a probability distribution. For a data set, it may be thought of as "the middle" value. The basic f ...

age was 32 years. For every 100 females there were 100.7 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 103.2 males. The median income for a household in the town was $26,927, and the median income for a family was $36,696. Males had a median income of $29,398 versus $22,708 for females. The per capita income for the town was $15,086. About 18.6% of families and 21.8% of the population were below the poverty line, including 26.3% of those under age 18 and 16.1% of those age 65 or over.

Notable people

Samuel Stillman Berry Samuel Stillman Berry (March 16, 1887 – April 9, 1984) was an American marine zoologist specialized in cephalopods. Early life Berry was born in Unity, Maine, but the family home was the Winnecook Ranch in Montana, which had been founded b ...

, marine zoologist, born in Unity (1887) * Walter M. Brackett, painter, born in Unity *

George Colby Chase George Colby Chase (March 15, 1844 - May 27, 1919) was an American intellectual and professor of English who served as the second President of Bates College succeeding its founder, Oren Burbank Cheney, from March 1894 to November 1919. Known as " ...

, English scholar; second president of

Bates College Bates College () is a private liberal arts college in Lewiston, Maine. Anchored by the Historic Quad, the campus of Bates totals with a small urban campus which includes 33 Victorian Houses as some of the dormitories. It maintains of nature p ...

References

External links

Unity, Maine

Maine Genealogy: Unity, Waldo County, Maine
{{Kennebec River Towns in Waldo County, Maine