South Aroostook is an unorganized territory in

Aroostook County Aroostook County ( ; ) is the northernmost county in the U.S. state of Maine. It is located along the Canada–United States border. As of the 2020 census, the population was 67,105. The county seat is Houlton, with offices in Caribou and Fo ...

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 579 at the 2020 census.

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 unorganized territory has a total area of , of which is land and , or 3.06%, is water. There are 13

townships A township is a form of human settlement or administrative subdivision. Its exact definition varies among countries. Although the term is occasionally associated with an urban area, this tends to be an exception to the rule. In Australia, Canad ...

in the unorganized territory, including Molunkus, Benedicta, Silver Ridge, Bancroft, Upper Molunkus, North Yarmouth Academy Grant, Forkstown, and Bragg Tract.

Demographics

South Aroostook experienced a 50% growth in population for the 2020 census, largely due to the addition in 2019 of the former plantation of Cary, which had a population of 218 as of the 2010 census. As of the 2000 census, there were 486 people, 188 households, and 134 families living in the unorganized territory. 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 471 housing units, at an average density of . The racial makeup was 99.79%

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 ...

and 0.21% Black 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 ...

. There were 188 households, of which 29.8% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 62.2% were married couples living together, 3.2% had a female householder with no husband present, and 28.7% were non-families. In the unorganized territory, 18.6% of all households were made up of individuals, and 9.6% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.58, and the average family size was 3.03. In the unorganized territory, 25.3% of the population were under the age of 18, 6.8% were 18 to 24, 25.5% were 25 to 44, 28.0% were 45 to 64, and 14.4% were 65 or older. The median age was 42 years. For every 100 females, there were 102.5 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 103.9 males. The median income for a household in the unorganized territory was $28,750, and the median income for a family was $34,167. Males had a median income of $32,222 versus $28,125 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 unorganized territory was $13,718. About 9.6% of families and 14.6% 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 15.0% of those under age 18 and 21.3% of those age 65 or over.

History

Bishop

Benedict Joseph Fenwick Benedict Joseph Fenwick (September 3, 1782 – August 11, 1846) was an American Catholic prelate, Jesuit, and educator who served as the Bishop of Boston from 1825 until his death in 1846. In 1843, he founded the College of the Holy Cross in ...

founded Benedicta in 1834 as a colony of Irish Catholics from Boston. They began arriving in 1838 and built a small village surrounding St. Benedict Church. Fenwick later considered Benedicta as a home for the planned

College of the Holy Cross The College of the Holy Cross is a private Jesuit liberal arts college in Worcester, Massachusetts, United States. It was founded by educators Benedict Joseph Fenwick and Thomas F. Mulledy in 1843 under the auspices of the Society of Jesus. ...

, but settled on

Worcester, Massachusetts Worcester ( , ) is the List of municipalities in Massachusetts, second-most populous city in the U.S. state of Massachusetts and the list of United States cities by population, 113th most populous city in the United States. Named after Worcester ...

, instead.

References

{{authority control Unorganized territories in Maine Populated places in Aroostook County, Maine