Madawaska is a

town A town is a type of a human settlement, generally larger than a village but smaller than a city. The criteria for distinguishing a town vary globally, often depending on factors such as population size, economic character, administrative stat ...

in Aroostook County,

Maine Maine ( ) is a U.S. state, state in the New England region of the United States, and the northeasternmost state in the Contiguous United States. It borders New Hampshire to the west, the Gulf of Maine to the southeast, and the Provinces and ...

, United States. The population was 3,867 at the 2020 census. Madawaska is opposite

Edmundston Edmundston () is a city in Madawaska County, New Brunswick, Canada. Established in 1850, it had a population of 16,437 as of 2021. On January 1, 2023, Edmundston amalgamated with the village of Rivière-Verte, New Brunswick, Rivière-Verte and ...

, Madawaska County in

New Brunswick New Brunswick is a Provinces and Territories of Canada, province of Canada, bordering Quebec to the north, Nova Scotia to the east, the Gulf of Saint Lawrence to the northeast, the Bay of Fundy to the southeast, and the U.S. state of Maine to ...

, Canada, to which it is connected by the Edmundston–Madawaska Bridge over the Saint John River. The majority of its residents speak French; 83.4% of the population speaks French at home.

History

During the early colonial period, Madawaska was a meeting place and hunting/fishing area for the Maliseet (Wolastoqiyik) nation. Later, it was at the center of the bloodless

Aroostook War The Aroostook War (sometimes called the Pork and Beans WarLe Duc, Thomas (1947). The Maine Frontier and the Northeastern Boundary Controversy. ''The American Historical Review'' Vol. 53, No. 1 (Oct., 1947), pp. 30–41), or the Madawaska War, w ...

. The final border between the two countries was established with the Webster-Ashburton Treaty of 1842, which gave Maine most of the disputed area, and gave the British a militarily vital connection between the province of

Quebec Quebec is Canada's List of Canadian provinces and territories by area, largest province by area. Located in Central Canada, the province shares borders with the provinces of Ontario to the west, Newfoundland and Labrador to the northeast, ...

and the province of

. Many families were left divided after the settlement.

Economy

Madawaska is a rural town whose economy centers on the Saint John River

paper Paper is a thin sheet material produced by mechanically or chemically processing cellulose fibres derived from wood, Textile, rags, poaceae, grasses, Feces#Other uses, herbivore dung, or other vegetable sources in water. Once the water is dra ...

industry. The river historically provided water power for the mills and was the route of log drives bringing

pulpwood Pulpwood can be defined as timber that is ground and processed into a fibrous pulp. It is a versatile natural resource commonly used for Papermaking, paper-making but also made into low-grade wood and used for chips, energy, pellets, and engineered ...

from upstream

forest A forest is an ecosystem characterized by a dense ecological community, community of trees. Hundreds of definitions of forest are used throughout the world, incorporating factors such as tree density, tree height, land use, legal standing, ...

s. The river still provides the water supply for paper manufacture, but environmental concerns encourage pulpwood delivery by

highway A highway is any public or private road or other public way on land. It includes not just major roads, but also other public roads and rights of way. In the United States, it is also used as an equivalent term to controlled-access highway, or ...

and rail. Canadian corporation Twin Rivers (originally Fraser Papers) has a large facility located in Madawaska which processes the pulp produced by the mill's other plant in Edmundston. The pulp is shipped across the border through a mile-long high pressure

pipeline A pipeline is a system of Pipe (fluid conveyance), pipes for long-distance transportation of a liquid or gas, typically to a market area for consumption. The latest data from 2014 gives a total of slightly less than of pipeline in 120 countries ...

running between both facilities, and is made into paper in Madawaska. The Madawaska mill specializes in fine-grade papers. The town's economy is highly dependent upon cross-border trade, to the extent that Madawaska and its larger sister city of Edmundston are considered by residents under many aspects, a single economic entity. Madawaska is also home to the '' St. John Valley Times'', a popular weekly newspaper circulated across Aroostook County.

Geography

According to the

United States Census Bureau The United States Census Bureau, officially the Bureau of the Census, is a principal agency of the Federal statistical system, U.S. federal statistical system, responsible for producing data about the American people and American economy, econ ...

, the town has a total area of , of which is land and is water. Madawaska is located beside the Saint John River, the

Canada–United States border The international border between Canada and the United States is the longest in the world by total length. The boundary (including boundaries in the Great Lakes, Atlantic, and Pacific coasts) is long. The land border has two sections: Canada' ...

. Four Corners Park commemorates its location as the most northeastern town in the contiguous United States. The town is served by U.S. Route 1.

Climate

This climatic region is typified by large seasonal temperature differences, with warm to hot (and often humid) summers and cold (sometimes severely cold) winters. According to the

Köppen Climate Classification The Köppen climate classification divides Earth climates into five main climate groups, with each group being divided based on patterns of seasonal precipitation and temperature. The five main groups are ''A'' (tropical), ''B'' (arid), ''C'' (te ...

system, Madawaska 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 cold ...

, abbreviated "Dfb" on climate maps.

Demographics

2010 census

As of the

census A census (from Latin ''censere'', 'to assess') is the procedure of systematically acquiring, recording, and calculating population information about the members of a given Statistical population, population, usually displayed in the form of stati ...

of 2010, there were 4,035 people, 1,983 households, and 1,128 families living in the town. The

population density Population density (in agriculture: Standing stock (disambiguation), 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 geog ...

was . There were 2,398 housing units at an average density of . The racial makeup of the town was 98.4%

White White is the lightest color and is achromatic (having no chroma). It is the color of objects such as snow, chalk, and milk, and is the opposite of black. White objects fully (or almost fully) reflect and scatter all the visible wa ...

, 0.2%

African American African Americans, also known as Black Americans and formerly also called Afro-Americans, are an Race and ethnicity in the United States, American racial and ethnic group that consists of Americans who have total or partial ancestry from an ...

, 0.5% Native American, 0.2% Asian, and 0.6% from two or more races.

Hispanic The term Hispanic () are people, Spanish culture, cultures, or countries related to Spain, the Spanish language, or broadly. In some contexts, Hispanic and Latino Americans, especially within the United States, "Hispanic" is used as an Ethnici ...

or Latino of any race were 0.5% of the population. There were 1,983 households, of which 20.1% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 47.2% were

married couples Marriage, also called matrimony or wedlock, is a culturally and often legally recognised union between people called spouses. It establishes rights and obligations between them, as well as between them and their children (if any), and b ...

living together, 6.5% had a female householder with no husband present, 3.2% had a male householder with no wife present, and 43.1% were non-families. 38.8% of all households were made up of individuals, and 19.6% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.00 and the average family size was 2.62. The median age in the town was 51.2 years. 16.7% of residents were under the age of 18; 4.4% were between the ages of 18 and 24; 18.5% were from 25 to 44; 34.1% were from 45 to 64; and 26.2% were 65 years of age or older. The gender makeup of the town was 49.1% male and 50.9% female.

2000 census

As of the

of 2000, there were 4,534 people, 1,993 households, and 1,301 families living in the town. The population density was . There were 2,362 housing units at an average density of . The racial makeup of the town was 98.08%

, 0.15%

Black Black is a color that results from the absence or complete absorption of visible light. It is an achromatic color, without chroma, like white and grey. It is often used symbolically or figuratively to represent darkness.Eva Heller, ''P ...

, 0.44% Native American, 0.68% Asian, 0.09% from other races, and 0.55% from two or more races.

or Latino of any race were 0.20% of the population. There were 1,993 households, out of which 26.0% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 56.8% were

living together, 6.0% had a female householder with no husband present, and 34.7% were non-families. 30.8% of all households were made up of individuals, and 13.2% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.22 and the average family size was 2.77. In the town, the population was spread out, with 20.4% under the age of 18, 5.2% from 18 to 24, 25.3% from 25 to 44, 30.1% from 45 to 64, and 19.0% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 44 years. For every 100 females, there were 91.3 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 91.1 males. The median income for a household in the town was $30,994, and the median income for a family was $42,269. Males had a median income of $46,117 versus $22,361 for females. The

per capita income Per capita income (PCI) or average income measures the average income earned per person in a given area (city, region, country, etc.) in a specified year. In many countries, per capita income is determined using regular population surveys, such ...

for the town was $18,552. About 7.5% of families and 11.5% 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 ...

, including 13.9% of those under age 18 and 11.8% of those age 65 or over. The median home value is $102,935.

Education

Madawaska's schools serve Madawaska, St. David, and Grand Isle. The Madawaska Elementary School has students from

pre-kindergarten Pre-kindergarten (also called pre-K or PK) is a voluntary classroom-based preschool program for children below the age of five in the United States, Canada, Turkey and Greece (when kindergarten starts). It may be delivered through a preschool ...

through the sixth grade. Madawaska Middle/High School contains grades seven through 12.

Notable people

* Roger Albert, Maine state legislator * Ashley Hebert, The Bachelorette Season 7 * Emilien Levesque, Maine state legislator * Charles Theriault, Maine state legislator * Roland White, bluegrass musician

References

External links

Town of Madawaska, Maine

Madawaska Public Library

Madawaska Historical Society

Madawaska Acadian Festival

Madawaska School Department

Madawaska Four Corners Park
{{authority control Towns in Aroostook County, Maine Towns in Maine Populated places on the Saint John River (Bay of Fundy) French-Canadian culture in Maine