Oxford is a town in Oxford County, Maine, United States. The population was 4,229 at the 2020 census. Oxford is home to the

Oxford Plains Speedway Oxford Plains Speedway is a 3/8 mile racetrack located in Oxford, Maine. Established in 1950, the track was originally a half mile before being shortened to a 3/8 mile track. With 14,000 seats, the speedway has the largest seating capacity of ...

, the annual Oxford County Fair, and

Oxford Casino The Oxford Casino is a hotel and casino in Oxford, Maine, owned and operated by Churchill Downs Inc. Churchill Downs Incorporated is the parent company of Churchill Downs. The company has evolved from one racetrack in Louisville, Kentucky, to ...

. The town includes the village of Welchville.

History

The land was part of Plantation (also called Bog Brook Plantation), granted on March 8, 1777 by the

Massachusetts General Court The Massachusetts General Court (formally styled the General Court of Massachusetts) is the State legislature (United States), state legislature of the Massachusetts, Commonwealth of Massachusetts. The name "General Court" is a hold-over from th ...

to Alexander Shepard Jr. of

Newton, Massachusetts Newton is a city in Middlesex County, Massachusetts, United States. It is approximately west of downtown Boston. Newton resembles a patchwork of thirteen villages, without a city center. According to the 2020 U.S. Census, the population of Ne ...

. On March 6, 1792, the plantation was incorporated as

Hebron Hebron ( ar, الخليل or ; he, חֶבְרוֹן ) is a Palestinian. city in the southern West Bank, south of Jerusalem. Nestled in the Judaean Mountains, it lies above sea level. The second-largest city in the West Bank (after Eas ...

, with Oxford its southwesterly portion. First settled in 1794, Oxford was set off and incorporated on February 27, 1829. It annexed land from Otisfield in 1830, and from

Paris Paris () is the Capital city, capital and List of communes in France with over 20,000 inhabitants, most populous city of France, with an estimated population of 2,165,423 residents in 2019 in an area of more than 105 km² (41 sq mi), ma ...

in 1838. The town was named after

Oxford Oxford () is a city in England. It is the county town and only city of Oxfordshire. In 2020, its population was estimated at 151,584. It is north-west of London, south-east of Birmingham and north-east of Bristol. The city is home to the ...

, in England. Farmers grew mostly

hay Hay is grass, legumes, or other herbaceous plants that have been cut and dried to be stored for use as animal fodder, either for large grazing animals raised as livestock, such as cattle, horses, goats, and sheep, or for smaller domesticat ...

, and the town became noted for cattle.

Mills Mills is the plural form of mill, but may also refer to: As a name * Mills (surname), a common family name of English or Gaelic origin * Mills (given name) *Mills, a fictional British secret agent in a trilogy by writer Manning O'Brine Places Uni ...

were established at 2

water power Hydropower (from el, ὕδωρ, "water"), also known as water power, is the use of falling or fast-running water to produce electricity or to power machines. This is achieved by converting the gravitational potential or kinetic energy of a ...

sites; these developed in the 19th-century into principal villages within the town, especially after the arrival of the

Grand Trunk Railway The Grand Trunk Railway (; french: Grand Tronc) was a railway system that operated in the Canadian provinces of Quebec and Ontario and in the American states of Connecticut, Maine, Michigan, Massachusetts, New Hampshire, and Vermont. The rail ...

in the 1850s. Welchville was located on the

Little Androscoggin River } The Little Androscoggin River is a U.S. Geological Survey. National Hydrography Dataset high-resolution flowline dataThe National Map, accessed June 30, 2011 river in Maine. It flows from Bryant Pond in Woodstock () to its confluence with the And ...

, where the

woolen Woolen (American English) or woollen (Commonwealth English) is a type of yarn made from carded wool. Woolen yarn is soft, light, stretchy, and full of air. It is thus a good insulator, and makes a good knitting yarn. Woolen yarn is in contrast t ...

textile mill Textile Manufacturing or Textile Engineering is a major industry. It is largely based on the conversion of fibre into yarn, then yarn into fabric. These are then dyed or printed, fabricated into cloth which is then converted into useful goods ...

of the Harper Manufacturing Company was established. At the outlet of Thompson Lake was Oxford village, first called Craigie's Mill for the

sawmill A sawmill (saw mill, saw-mill) or lumber mill is a facility where logs are cut into lumber. Modern sawmills use a motorized saw to cut logs lengthwise to make long pieces, and crosswise to length depending on standard or custom sizes (dimensi ...

and

gristmill A gristmill (also: grist mill, corn mill, flour mill, feed mill or feedmill) grinds cereal grain into flour and middlings. The term can refer to either the grinding mechanism or the building that holds it. Grist is grain that has been separat ...

built by

Andrew Craigie Andrew Craigie (1754-1819) is best known for serving as the first Apothecary General of the Continental Army during the American Revolution. The one-time owner of the Longfellow House–Washington's Headquarters National Historic Site, Craigie dev ...

, a

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 ...

apothecary ''Apothecary'' () is a mostly archaic term for a medical professional who formulates and dispenses '' materia medica'' (medicine) to physicians, surgeons, and patients. The modern chemist (British English) or pharmacist (British and North Amer ...

and land speculator. This was also the site of a grisly murder that, to this day, goes unsolved. Here were erected a barrel stave mill, a shovel handle factory, and the woolen textile mills of the Robinson Manufacturing Company. The railroad brought seasonal tourists to Thompson Lake, where inns and hotels opened. Today, Oxford is a recreational area with fine architecture remaining from its prosperous mill town past. The Congregational Church, built in 1842–1843, is listed on the

National Register of Historic Places The National Register of Historic Places (NRHP) is the United States federal government's official list of districts, sites, buildings, structures and objects deemed worthy of preservation for their historical significance or "great artistic ...

. The town was hit by an F1 tornado on Saturday, June 5, 2010, causing some serious damage. Image:Old Covered Bridge, Oxford, ME.jpg, Covered bridge Image:Oxford Spring House, Oxford, ME.jpg, Oxford Spring House in 1907 Image:Public Library, Oxford, ME.jpg, Freeland Holmes Library in 1916

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 t ...

, the town has a total area of , of which, of it is land and is water. Oxford is drained by the

. Thompson Lake, the community's largest, is about long. The town is crossed by state routes 26 and 121. It borders the towns of

to the north,

to the northeast,

Norway Norway, officially the Kingdom of Norway, is a Nordic country in Northern Europe, the mainland territory of which comprises the western and northernmost portion of the Scandinavian Peninsula. The remote Arctic island of Jan Mayen and the ...

to the northwest,

Poland Poland, officially the Republic of Poland, is a country in Central Europe. It is divided into 16 administrative provinces called voivodeships, covering an area of . Poland has a population of over 38 million and is the fifth-most populou ...

to the southeast, and Otisfield to the southwest.

Demographics

2010 census

As of the census of 2010, there were 4,110 people, 1,657 households, and 1,107 families living in the town. The population density was . There were 2,170 housing units at an average density of . The racial makeup of the town was 97.2%

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 o ...

, 0.3%

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, 0.1%

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 1.7% 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 forme ...

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 1.1% of the population. There were 1,657 households, of which 31.0% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 50.6% were married couples living together, 10.2% had a female householder with no husband present, 6.0% had a male householder with no wife present, and 33.2% were non-families. 23.2% of all households were made up of individuals, and 8.5% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.48 and the average family size was 2.88. The median age in the town was 42.4 years. 21.8% of residents were under the age of 18; 6.9% were between the ages of 18 and 24; 25.4% were from 25 to 44; 32.2% were from 45 to 64; and 13.8% were 65 years of age or older. The gender makeup of the town was 50.1% male and 49.9% female.

2000 census

As of the census of 2000, there were 3,960 people, 1,487 households, and 1,094 families living in the town. The population density was 102.3 people per square mile (39.5/km). There were 1,926 housing units at an average density of 49.8 per square mile (19.2/km). The racial makeup of the town was 97.88%

, 0.25%

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 ...

, 0.25% Native American, 0.28%

, 0.03%

Pacific Islander Pacific Islanders, Pasifika, Pasefika, or rarely Pacificers are the peoples of the Pacific Islands. As an ethnic/racial term, it is used to describe the original peoples—inhabitants and diasporas—of any of the three major subregions of O ...

, 0.23% from

, and 1.09% from two or more races.

of any race were 0.63% of the population. There were 1,487 households, out of which 36.0% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 58.8% were married couples living together, 9.1% had a female householder with no husband present, and 26.4% were non-families. 19.0% of all households were made up of individuals, and 8.2% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.66 and the average family size was 3.00. In the town, the population was spread out, with 26.5% under the age of 18, 6.6% from 18 to 24, 30.4% from 25 to 44, 24.4% from 45 to 64, and 12.1% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 38 years. For every 100 females, there were 96.6 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 94.5 males. The median income for a household in the town was $36,670, and the median income for a family was $38,438. Males had a median income of $27,957 versus $20,392 for females. The per capita income for the town was $15,480. About 2.8% of families and 7.1% of the population were below the poverty line, including 4.6% of those under age 18 and 12.0% of those age 65 or over.

Government

The town of Oxford is governed by an elected, five-person Board of Selectmen and an appointed town manager. The town's police department consists of one Chief of Police, one captain, two sergeants, four full-time patrol officers and several reserve (part-time) patrol officers. The town has an on-call fire rescue department made up of several dedicated members. It is run by a fire chief, two deputy chiefs, and several officers. The fire department also employs fire police for traffic control at various calls and events.

People

References

External links

Town of Oxford, Maine

Freeland Holmes Library

Oxford County Fair

Oxford Plains Speedway

Maine.gov – Oxford

Maine Genealogy: Oxford, Oxford County, Maine
{{Coord, 44, 07, 37, N, 70, 29, 42, W, display=title, region:US_type:city(1300)_source:nlwiki Towns in Oxford County, Maine Towns in Maine