Sebago is a town in

Cumberland County, Maine Cumberland County is a county in the U.S. state of Maine. As of the 2020 census, the population was 303,069, making it the most populous county in Maine. Its county seat is Portland. Cumberland County was founded in 1760 from a portion of ...

, United States. The population was 1,911 at the 2020 census. It is part of the

Portland-South Portland-Biddeford metropolitan area The city of Portland, Maine, is the hub city of a metropolitan area in southern Maine. The region is commonly known as Greater Portland or the Portland metropolitan area. For statistical purposes, the U.S. federal government defines three differ ...

History

Originally called Flintstown, it was granted in 1774 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 ...

to survivors of Captain John Flint's company of soldiers from

Concord, Massachusetts Concord () is a town in Middlesex County, Massachusetts, United States. In the 2020 United States census, 2020 census, the town population was 18,491. The United States Census Bureau considers Concord part of Greater Boston. The town center is n ...

. It replaced a grant of 1735 that awarded them Township No. 3 (now

Walpole, New Hampshire Walpole is a town in Cheshire County, New Hampshire, United States. The population was 3,633 at the 2020 census. The town's central village, where 573 people resided at the 2020 census, is defined as the Walpole census-designated place (CDP) a ...

), but which was ruled invalid when the border between

Massachusetts Massachusetts ( ; ), officially the Commonwealth of Massachusetts, is a U.S. state, state in the New England region of the Northeastern United States. It borders the Atlantic Ocean and the Gulf of Maine to its east, Connecticut and Rhode ...

and

New Hampshire New Hampshire ( ) is a U.S. state, state in the New England region of the Northeastern United States. It borders Massachusetts to the south, Vermont to the west, Maine and the Gulf of Maine to the east, and the Canadian province of Quebec t ...

was redrawn to satisfy prior claims by the descendants of John Mason. On June 23, 1802, Flintstown was incorporated as Baldwin. Then on February 10, 1826, Sebago was set off from Baldwin and incorporated as a separate town. It took the name of Sebago Lake. Land was annexed from

Denmark Denmark is a Nordic countries, Nordic country in Northern Europe. It is the metropole and most populous constituent of the Kingdom of Denmark,, . also known as the Danish Realm, a constitutionally unitary state that includes the Autonomous a ...

in 1830, and taken in 1834 to help form

Naples Naples ( ; ; ) is the Regions of Italy, regional capital of Campania and the third-largest city of Italy, after Rome and Milan, with a population of 908,082 within the city's administrative limits as of 2025, while its Metropolitan City of N ...

Lumberjack Lumberjack is a mostly North American term for workers in the logging industry who perform the initial harvesting and transport of trees. The term usually refers to loggers in the era before 1945 in the United States, when trees were felled us ...

s and woodsmen were the first European inhabitants of the area, but they left as soon as the first growth of

pine A pine is any conifer tree or shrub in the genus ''Pinus'' () of the family Pinaceae. ''Pinus'' is the sole genus in the subfamily Pinoideae. ''World Flora Online'' accepts 134 species-rank taxa (119 species and 15 nothospecies) of pines as cu ...

was cut. It 1790, Joseph Lakin from Groton, Massachusetts, built a cabin, then returned with his family and possessions. The surface of the town is very uneven and generally rocky, so it was hard work to clear a

farm A farm (also called an agricultural holding) is an area of land that is devoted primarily to agricultural processes with the primary objective of producing food and other crops; it is the basic facility in food production. The name is used fo ...

for cultivation. But the soil was good and yielded abundant crops. Mills were built at

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 ...

sites, and products included long and short

lumber Lumber is wood that has been processed into uniform and useful sizes (dimensional lumber), including beams and planks or boards. Lumber is mainly used for construction framing, as well as finishing (floors, wall panels, window frames). ...

, shooks, and

boot A boot is a type of footwear. Most boots mainly cover the foot and the ankle, while some also cover some part of the lower calf. Some boots extend up the leg, sometimes as far as the knee or even the hip. Most boots have a heel that is clearl ...

s and

shoes A shoe is an item of footwear intended to protect and comfort the human foot. Though the human foot can adapt to varied terrains and climate conditions, it is vulnerable, and shoes provide protection. Form was originally tied to function, but ...

. In 1832, the Cumberland and Oxford Canal opened, increasing

trade Trade involves the transfer of goods and services from one person or entity to another, often in exchange for money. Economists refer to a system or network that allows trade as a market. Traders generally negotiate through a medium of cr ...

between Sebago Lake and Portland. In the early 1870s, the

Portland and Ogdensburg Railroad The Portland & Ogdensburg Railroad was a railroad planned to connect Portland, Maine, Portland, Maine to Ogdensburg, New York. The plan failed, and in 1880 the Vermont section was reorganized and leased by the Boston and Lowell Railroad, Boston ...

carried tourists and freight to Sebago Lake Station in Standish, where

steamboat A steamboat is a boat that is marine propulsion, propelled primarily by marine steam engine, steam power, typically driving propellers or Paddle steamer, paddlewheels. The term ''steamboat'' is used to refer to small steam-powered vessels worki ...

s took them to various landings around the lake. Inns,

hotel A hotel is an establishment that provides paid lodging on a short-term basis. Facilities provided inside a hotel room may range from a modest-quality mattress in a small room to large suites with bigger, higher-quality beds, a dresser, a re ...

s and summer camps opened, and the town became a recreation area, which it remains today. In 1906, the Order of Sir Galahad, an Episcopal youth organization, established Camp O-AT-KA in East Sebago.

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. Situated beside Sebago Lake, Sebago is drained by the Northwest River and Mill Brook. Douglas Mountain has an elevation of

above sea level Height above mean sea level is a measure of a location's vertical distance (height, elevation or altitude) in reference to a vertical datum based on a historic mean sea level. In geodesy, it is formalized as orthometric height. The zero level ...

, the highest point in both the town and southwestern Maine. The town is crossed by state routes 11,

107 107 may refer to: *107 (number), the number *AD 107, a year in the 2nd century AD *107 BC, a year in the 2nd century BC *107 (New Jersey bus) *107 Camilla, a main-belt asteroid *Peugeot 107, a city car See also

*10/7 (disambiguation) *Bohrium, ...

and

114 114 may refer to: *114 (number) *AD 114 *114 BC *114 (1st London) Army Engineer Regiment, Royal Engineers, an English military unit *114 (Antrim Artillery) Field Squadron, Royal Engineers, a Northern Irish military unit *114 (MBTA bus) *114 (New Je ...

. It is bordered by the towns of Bridgton to the north,

to the northeast, Baldwin and Standish to the south, and

and Hiram to the west.

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 1,719 people, 724 households, and 484 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 1,464 housing units at an average density of . The racial makeup of the town was 97.1%

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 ...

, 0.3%

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 ...

, 0.9% Native American, 0.2% Asian, and 1.5% 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 0.3% of the population. There were 724 households, of which 26.1% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 54.1% 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, 6.2% had a male householder with no wife present, and 33.1% were non-families. Of all households 25.8% were made up of individuals, and 7.6% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.37 and the average family size was 2.80. The median age in the town was 44.7 years. 20.2% of residents were under the age of 18; 6.7% were between the ages of 18 and 24; 23.5% were from 25 to 44; 33.7% were from 45 to 64; and 15.8% were 65 years of age or older. The gender makeup of the town was 51.2% male and 48.8% female.

2000 census

As of the

of 2000, there were 1,433 people, 584 households, and 412 families living in the town. The population density was . There were 1,240 housing units at an average density of . The racial makeup of the town was 98.33%

, 0.35%

, 0.07% Native American, 0.14% Asian, 0.07% from other races, and 1.05% from two or more races.

or Latino of any race were 0.35% of the population. There were 584 households, out of which 27.6% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 61.3% were

living together, 5.8% had a female householder with no husband present, and 29.3% were non-families. Of all households 22.4% were made up of individuals, and 9.4% 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 2.86. In the town, the population was spread out, with 23.1% under the age of 18, 4.7% from 18 to 24, 27.8% from 25 to 44, 29.7% from 45 to 64, and 14.8% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 42 years. For every 100 females, there were 98.2 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 95.4 males. The median income for a household in the town was $40,391, and the median income for a family was $43,512. Males had a median income of $33,083 versus $25,139 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 $18,995. About 4.0% of families and 5.8% 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 7.6% of those under age 18 and 3.3% of those age 65 or over.

Sites of interest

* Douglas Mountain * Sebago Historical Society & MuseumSebago Historical Society & Museum
/ref>

Notable people

* George Herbert Babb, state legislator * Vinal G. Good, state legislator and insurance agent

References

External links

Town of Sebago official website

Spaulding Memorial Library

Town Information from Maine.gov

Epodunk Profile

Maine Genealogy: Sebago, Cumberland County, Maine
{{Saco River Portland metropolitan area, Maine Towns in Cumberland County, Maine