Mexico, near Rumford, is a town in Oxford 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. Mexico is included in the Lewiston-Auburn, Maine metropolitan New England city and town area. The population was 2,756 at the 2020 census. Mexico is a small

mill town A mill town, also known as factory town or mill village, is typically a settlement that developed around one or more List of types of mill#Manufacturing facilities, mills or factories, often cotton mills or factories producing textiles. Europe ...

for the

papermaking Papermaking is the manufacture of paper and cardboard, which are used widely for printing, writing, and packaging, among many other purposes. Today almost all paper is Pulp and paper industry, made using industrial machinery, while handmade pape ...

industry.

History

The land was once part of Holmanstown Plantation, granted by the

Massachusetts General Court The Massachusetts General Court, formally the General Court of Massachusetts, is the State legislature (United States), state legislature of the Commonwealth (U.S. state), Commonwealth of Massachusetts located in the state capital of Boston. Th ...

in 1789 to Colonel Jonathan Holman of

Sutton Sutton (''south settlement'' or ''south town'' in Old English) may refer to: Places United Kingdom England In alphabetical order by county: * Sutton, Bedfordshire * Sutton, Berkshire, a List of United Kingdom locations: Stu-Sz#Su, location * S ...

, Massachusetts (now Millbury) and others. In 1803, Dixfield was set off and incorporated. The plantation's remaining portion, which had been first settled by Isaac Gleason, was incorporated on February 13, 1818, as the town of Mexico. The name was inspired by local sympathy for

Mexico Mexico, officially the United Mexican States, is a country in North America. It is the northernmost country in Latin America, and borders the United States to the north, and Guatemala and Belize to the southeast; while having maritime boundar ...

's 1810–1821 fight for independence from Spain.History of Mexico, Maine
Then known as Mexico Corner, it developed as a farming community with

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 U ...

at the streams. In 1894, George W. Ridlon, president of the Rumford Falls Brick Company, founded a settlement in the eastern part of the town called Ridlonville. He erected 30 cottages and The Hotel Ridlon. Mexico is located on several hills overlooking the

Androscoggin River The Androscoggin River (Abenaki: ''Ammoscongon'') is a river in the U.S. states of Maine and New Hampshire, in northern New England. It is U.S. Geological Survey. National Hydrography Dataset high-resolution flowline data''The National Map'', a ...

. Across the river is the town of Rumford, which has a large

paper mill A paper mill is a factory devoted to making paper from vegetable fibres such as wood pulp, old rags, and other ingredients. Prior to the invention and adoption of the Fourdrinier machine and other types of paper machine that use an endless belt ...

. The Swift River empties into the Androscoggin at Mexico's southwest corner, its historic business center positioned in the 19th century near the source of

water power Hydropower (from Ancient Greek -, "water"), also known as water power or water energy, 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 kin ...

. The Androscoggin forms Mexico's southern boundary with Rumford, while the smaller Swift River more or less follows its western boundary with that town. Mexico's downtown is located on land formed by the northeast corner of the right-angle junction of the two rivers. These low-lying riverbanks in Mexico have

flood A flood is an overflow of water (list of non-water floods, or rarely other fluids) that submerges land that is usually dry. In the sense of "flowing water", the word may also be applied to the inflow of the tide. Floods are of significant con ...

ed many times, including 1936, 1953 and 1987.

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. Mexico is drained by the Swift River and the

, the latter of which separates it from Rumford Falls.

Demographics

2010 census

As of the census of 2010, there were 2,681 people, 1,185 households, and 735 families living in the town. The population density was . There were 1,404 housing units at an average density of . The racial makeup of the town was 96.6%

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 ...

, 0.4%

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 ...

, 0.4% Native American, 0.9% Asian, 0.3% from other races, and 1.4% 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 0.9% of the population. There were 1,185 households, of which 26.0% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 41.3% were married couples living together, 15.2% had a female householder with no husband present, 5.6% had a male householder with no wife present, and 38.0% were non-families. 29.5% of all households were made up of individuals, and 12.8% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.26 and the average family size was 2.72. The median age in the town was 44.7 years. 19.4% of residents were under the age of 18; 8.8% were between the ages of 18 and 24; 22.1% were from 25 to 44; 32.1% were from 45 to 64; and 17.6% were 65 years of age or older. The gender makeup of the town was 49.3% male and 50.7% female.

2000 census

As of the census of 2000, there were 2,959 people, 1,298 households, and 820 families living in the town. The population density was . There were 1,448 housing units at an average density of . The racial makeup of the town was 97.84%

, 0.24%

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 ...

, 0.88% Asian, and 1.05% from two or more races.

or Latino of any race were 0.27% of the population. There were 1,298 households, out of which 28.4% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 44.5% were married couples living together, 13.0% had a female householder with no husband present, and 36.8% were non-families. 31.5% of all households were made up of individuals, and 15.5% 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 2.80. In the town, the population was spread out, with 24.0% under the age of 18, 6.7% from 18 to 24, 27.9% from 25 to 44, 21.8% from 45 to 64, and 19.6% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 40 years. For every 100 females, there were 95.6 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 91.4 males. The median income for a household in the town was $27,406, and the median income for a family was $33,776. Males had a median income of $38,214 versus $23,298 for females. The per capita income for the town was $16,322. About 10.9% of families and 15.9% of the population were below the poverty line, including 22.0% of those under age 18 and 5.1% of those age 65 or over.

Site of interest

Mexico Historical Society & Museum

Colleges and universities

The Town of Mexico has immediate access to the University of Maine System's seven universities through University College at Rumford/Mexico. University College delivers courses and programs through a variety of modalities, including the traditional classroom, interactive television (ITV), video conferencing, online, and blended classes that use a variety of these modalities. University College provides services to faculty and students that include off-campus library services, academic advising, career development, application and financial aid assistance, computer access, technical support, and a place for adults to meet and study. Its students may take a few courses for personal growth or complete any of a number of programs.

Notable people

* Chummy Broomhall, cross-country skier *

Ed McMahon Edward Leo Peter McMahon Jr. (March 6, 1923 – June 23, 2009) was an American announcer, game show host, comedian, actor, singer, and combat aviator. McMahon and Johnny Carson began their association in their first TV series, the American Bro ...

, entertainment personality * Charles W. Walton, US congressman

Climate

This climatic region has 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, Mexico 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.Climate Summary for Mexico, Maine
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References

External links

Town of Mexico, Maine

Mexico Public Library

Economic development info

Maine Genealogy: Mexico, Oxford County, Maine
{{Coord, 44, 33, 25, N, 70, 32, 35, W, type:city, display=title Towns in Oxford County, Maine Towns in Maine Pulp and paper industry in Maine 1818 establishments in Maine