Pittsfield, Maine
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Pittsfield is a town in Somerset 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 3,908 at the 2020 census. Pittsfield is home to the Maine Central Institute, a semi-private
boarding school A boarding school is a school where pupils live within premises while being given formal instruction. The word "boarding" is used in the sense of "room and board", i.e. lodging and meals. They have existed for many centuries, and now extend acr ...
, and the annual Central Maine Egg Festival.


History

The area was part of the Kennebec Purchase. First called Plymouth Gore, it was settled in 1794 by Moses Martin and his family from Norridgewock. In 1815, the town was organized as the Plantation of Sebasticook, but was incorporated on June 18, 1819, as Warsaw after
Warsaw Warsaw, officially the Capital City of Warsaw, is the capital and List of cities and towns in Poland, largest city of Poland. The metropolis stands on the Vistula, River Vistula in east-central Poland. Its population is officially estimated at ...
, Poland. In 1824, the name was changed to Pittsfield after William Pitts of
Boston Boston is the capital and most populous city in the Commonwealth (U.S. state), Commonwealth of Massachusetts in the United States. The city serves as the cultural and Financial centre, financial center of New England, a region of the Northeas ...
, a large landowner after Maine's independence as there was a Pittsfield incorporated already in Massachusetts. Pittsfield was noted for fine orchards, and became an agricultural trade center. Water power from the Sebasticook River attracted industry, and a gristmill and sawmill were built at the falls. Blacksmith shops and a carriage shop were established. In 1855, the Penobscot and Kennebec Railroad arrived, and Pittsfield developed into a small mill town. In 1869, the first woolen mill was established. The Riverside Woolen Company was the first mill in the state to sell cloth direct from loom to wearer. Fire destroyed the downtown in 1881, but it was soon rebuilt. Woodworking plants and a canning factory were established. The Waverly Woolen Mill was built in 1891–1892, together with 52 dwellings the company rented to workers. Pittsfield was also home to the Sebasticook and the Pioneer woolen mills. In 1914, the Waverly and the Pioneer mills were sold to the American Woolen Company, which would close in 1934 during the
Great Depression The Great Depression was a severe global economic downturn from 1929 to 1939. The period was characterized by high rates of unemployment and poverty, drastic reductions in industrial production and international trade, and widespread bank and ...
. The Pioneer Mill, the largest, remained in operation until after
World War II World War II or the Second World War (1 September 1939 – 2 September 1945) was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War II, Allies and the Axis powers. World War II by country, Nearly all of the wo ...
, but as the
New England New England is a region consisting of six states in the Northeastern United States: Connecticut, Maine, Massachusetts, New Hampshire, Rhode Island, and Vermont. It is bordered by the state of New York (state), New York to the west and by the ...
textile business moved to Southern states. The Waverly mill was converted into a shoe factory in the 1940s, with the Pioneer mill converted to manufacture doorbells in the 1950s.Town of Pittsfield, Maine, "Our History"
/ref> Pittsfield was mentioned in the movie Dreamcatcher by
Stephen King Stephen Edwin King (born September 21, 1947) is an American author. Dubbed the "King of Horror", he is widely known for his horror novels and has also explored other genres, among them Thriller (genre), suspense, crime fiction, crime, scienc ...
. File:Perkin's & Vickery Blocks, Pittsfield, ME.jpg, Perkin's and Vickery blocks File:Somerset Avenue, Pittsfield, ME.jpg, Somerset Avenue File:Public Library, Pittsfield, ME.jpg, Public Library in 1906, a Carnegie library


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. Pittsfield is drained by the Sebasticook River. The town is located at approximately
latitude In geography, latitude is a geographic coordinate system, geographic coordinate that specifies the north-south position of a point on the surface of the Earth or another celestial body. Latitude is given as an angle that ranges from −90° at t ...
44° 46' 57" North;
longitude Longitude (, ) is a geographic coordinate that specifies the east- west position of a point on the surface of the Earth, or another celestial body. It is an angular measurement, usually expressed in degrees and denoted by the Greek lett ...
69° 23' 2" West.


Demographics


2010 census

As of the census of 2010, there were 4,215 people, 1,639 households, and 1,095 families living in the town. The population density was . There were 1,828 housing units at an average density of . The racial makeup of the town was 94.4%
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 ...
, 0.7%
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 ...
, 0.2% Native American, 2.6% Asian, 0.1%
Pacific Islander Pacific Islanders, Pasifika, Pasefika, Pacificans, 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 th ...
, 0.3% from other races, and 1.8% 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 2.3% of the population. There were 1,639 households, of which 32.1% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 48.9% were married couples living together, 12.4% had a female householder with no husband present, 5.6% had a male householder with no wife present, and 33.2% were non-families. 26.1% of all households were made up of individuals, and 11.5% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.45 and the average family size was 2.92. The median age in the town was 40.2 years. 24.2% of residents were under the age of 18; 9.1% were between the ages of 18 and 24; 23.8% were from 25 to 44; 28.1% were from 45 to 64; and 14.9% were 65 years of age or older. The gender makeup of the town was 48.0% male and 52.0% female.


2000 census

As of the 2000 United States Census, there were 4,214 people, 1,627 households, and 1,147 families living in the town. The population density was . There were 1,808 housing units at an average density of . The racial makeup of the town was 96.27%
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 ...
, 0.88%
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 ...
or
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 ...
, 0.40% Native American, 1.09% Asian, 0.12%
Pacific Islander Pacific Islanders, Pasifika, Pasefika, Pacificans, 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 th ...
, 0.09% from other races, and 1.14% 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 0.69% of the population. There were 1,627 households, out of which 36.8% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 53.6% were married couples living together, 13.2% had a female householder with no husband present, and 29.5% were non-families. 24.3% of all households were made up of individuals, and 11.2% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.50 and the average family size was 2.96. In the town, the population was spread out, with 27.9% under the age of 18, 7.7% from 18 to 24, 28.6% from 25 to 44, 22.1% from 45 to 64, and 13.8% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 36 years. For every 100 females, there were 92.9 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 88.2 males. The median income for a household in the town was $32,868, and the median income for a family was $40,612. Males had a median income of $31,673 versus $22,283 for females. The per capita income for the town was $16,065. About 10.0% of families and 12.6% of the population were below the poverty line, including 17.0% of those under age 18 and 7.6% of those age 65 or over.


Notable people

* Harold Furness, cricketer * Nathaniel Mervin Haskell, 62nd governor of Maine * Mary Mayhew, lobbyist and politician * Arthur Millett, silent movie actor * Carl Milliken, 51st governor of Maine * Llewellyn Powers, 44th governor of Maine


References


External links

*
Pittsfield Public Library

Pittsfield Historical Society
{{Coord, 44.784, N, 69.382, W, display=title, source:dewiki Towns in Somerset County, Maine