Wells is a town in

York County, Maine York County is both the southernmost and the westernmost county in the U.S. state of Maine, along the state of New Hampshire's eastern border. It is divided from Strafford County, New Hampshire, by the Salmon Falls River and the connected ti ...

, United States. Founded in 1643, it is the third-oldest town in Maine. The population was 11,314 at the 2020 census. Wells Beach is a popular summer destination.

History

Edmund Littlefield, an immigrant from the wool regions of Titchfield,

England England is a Countries of the United Kingdom, country that is part of the United Kingdom. It is located on the island of Great Britain, of which it covers about 62%, and List of islands of England, more than 100 smaller adjacent islands. It ...

, built the first gristmill and later a woolen mill on the Webhannet River, becoming known as "The Father of Wells," where a monument commemorates his contribution. In 1622, the

Plymouth Company The Plymouth Company, officially known as the Virginia Company of Plymouth, was a company chartered by King James in 1606 along with the Virginia Company of London with responsibility for colonizing the east coast of America between latitud ...

in England awarded to Sir

Ferdinando Gorges Sir Ferdinando Gorges ( – 24 May 1647) was a naval and military commander and governor of the important port of Plymouth in England. He was involved in Essex's Rebellion against the Queen, but escaped punishment by testifying against the ma ...

, Lord Proprietor of Maine, territory which included the Plantation of Wells. His young cousin, Thomas Gorges, acting as deputy and agent, in 1641 granted to Rev.

John Wheelwright John Wheelwright (c. 1592–1679) was a Puritan clergyman in England and America, noted for being banished from the Massachusetts Bay Colony during the Antinomian Controversy, and for subsequently establishing the town of Exeter, New Hamps ...

and other settlers from

Exeter Exeter ( ) is a City status in the United Kingdom, cathedral city and the county town of Devon in South West England. It is situated on the River Exe, approximately northeast of Plymouth and southwest of Bristol. In Roman Britain, Exeter w ...

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 ...

the right to populate the land from northeast of the Ogunquit River to southwest of the

Kennebunk River The Kennebunk River is a U.S. Geological Survey. National Hydrography Dataset high-resolution flowline dataThe National Map , accessed June 30, 2011 river in York County, Maine in the United States. It drains a settled rural area southwest of ...

. Following the death of the elder Gorges in 1647, the

Massachusetts Bay Colony The Massachusetts Bay Colony (1628–1691), more formally the Colony of Massachusetts Bay, was an English settlement on the east coast of North America around Massachusetts Bay, one of the several colonies later reorganized as the Province of M ...

laid claim to Maine. On July 5, 1653, Wells was incorporated, the third town in Maine to do so, and named after Wells, England, a small

cathedral city City status in the United Kingdom is granted by the the Crown, monarch of the United Kingdom to specific centres of population, which might or might not meet the generally accepted definition of city, cities. , there are List of cities in the Un ...

in the county of

Somerset Somerset ( , ), Archaism, archaically Somersetshire ( , , ) is a Ceremonial counties of England, ceremonial county in South West England. It is bordered by the Bristol Channel, Gloucestershire, and Bristol to the north, Wiltshire to the east ...

. After the

restoration of Charles II The Stuart Restoration was the reinstatement in May 1660 of the Stuart monarchy in Kingdom of England, England, Kingdom of Scotland, Scotland, and Kingdom of Ireland, Ireland. It replaced the Commonwealth of England, established in January 164 ...

and a meeting in Wells of the trustees of the late Ferdinando Gorges, the British authorities gave a general outline for the local civil and military administration on December 7, 1661. Wells included

Kennebunk Kennebunk is a town in York County, Maine, United States. The population was 11,536 at the 2020 census. Kennebunk is home to several beaches, the Rachel Carson National Wildlife Refuge, the 1799 Kennebunk Inn, many historic shipbuilders' ho ...

, which was set off the year Maine became a state in 1820, and

Ogunquit Ogunquit ( ) is a resort town in York County, Maine, United States. As of the 2020 census, its population was 1,577. Ogunquit is part of the Portland-South Portland-Biddeford metropolitan area. History Ogunquit was first a village within ...

, designated a village within Wells by the

legislature A legislature (, ) is a deliberative assembly with the legal authority to make laws for a political entity such as a country, nation or city on behalf of the people therein. They are often contrasted with the executive and judicial power ...

in 1913, then set off in 1980. Wells was the resilient northeastern

frontier A frontier is a political and geographical term referring to areas near or beyond a boundary. Australia The term "frontier" was frequently used in colonial Australia in the meaning of country that borders the unknown or uncivilised, th ...

English English usually refers to: * English language * English people English may also refer to: Culture, language and peoples * ''English'', an adjective for something of, from, or related to England * ''English'', an Amish ter ...

colonial settlement. Except for a few forts and garrisons, early attempts to colonize Maine above Wells were abandoned because of attacks by Native Americans, who resented the encroachment on their territory. Wells endured three major attacks, most famously the Raid on Wells in 1692. The region became less dangerous, however, after the Battle of Louisburg in 1745. Many early Wells settlers joined the

Continental Army The Continental Army was the army of the United Colonies representing the Thirteen Colonies and later the United States during the American Revolutionary War. It was formed on June 14, 1775, by a resolution passed by the Second Continental Co ...

; some became Revolutionary War heroes, including Captains Samuel Gooch, Nathanial Littlefield, and Jeremiah Storer. Ocean View Cemetery on Post Road contains a

Civil War A civil war is a war between organized groups within the same Sovereign state, state (or country). The aim of one side may be to take control of the country or a region, to achieve independence for a region, or to change government policies.J ...

monument and plot honoring its service members. Visitors can walk to Founder's Park just off of Post Road onto Sanford Road, which includes a light walking trail, picnic area, and the first settlement home. Monuments list the names of Wells' founding families. The town developed as a

farming Agriculture encompasses crop and livestock production, aquaculture, and forestry for food and non-food products. Agriculture was a key factor in the rise of sedentary human civilization, whereby farming of domesticated species created ...

community, producing

hay Hay is grass, legumes, or other herbaceous plants that have been cut and dried to be stored for use as animal fodder, either for large grazing animals raised as livestock, such as cattle, horses, goats, and sheep, or for smaller domesticate ...

and

vegetables Vegetables are edible parts of plants that are consumed by humans or other animals as food. This original meaning is still commonly used, and is applied to plants collectively to refer to all edible plant matter, including flowers, fruits, ...

. Other industries included

shipbuilding Shipbuilding is the construction of ships and other Watercraft, floating vessels. In modern times, it normally takes place in a specialized facility known as a shipyard. Shipbuilders, also called shipwrights, follow a specialized occupation th ...

and

fisheries Fishery can mean either the enterprise of raising or harvesting fish and other aquatic life or, more commonly, the site where such enterprise takes place ( a.k.a., fishing grounds). Commercial fisheries include wild fisheries and fish farm ...

. In the 19th century, with the arrival of the

railroad Rail transport (also known as train transport) is a means of transport using wheeled vehicles running in railway track, tracks, which usually consist of two parallel steel railway track, rails. Rail transport is one of the two primary means of ...

, the town's sandy beaches attracted tourists. Many inns and hotels were built along the seashore. Today, tourism remains important to the economy. Wells celebrated its 350th anniversary in 2003. The year-long celebration included a New Year's Eve party with fireworks, parade, a visit by the traveling Russian circus, concerts, historical reenactments, and more. The town commissioned a member of the celebration committee, Kristi Borst, to design a town flag. Her design portrays historic aspects of the Town's settlement and agriculture as well as the 2003 Town Hall and focus on tourism represented by a train. Also included is the motto she penned for the project: "Proud of our Past, Ready for our Future".

Geography

Wells is on the southern coast of Maine, surrounded by

to the northeast, Sanford to the northwest,

North Berwick North Berwick (; ) is a seaside resort, seaside town and former royal burgh in East Lothian, Scotland. It is situated on the south shore of the Firth of Forth, approximately east-northeast of Edinburgh. North Berwick became a fashionable holi ...

to the west, South Berwick and

York York is a cathedral city in North Yorkshire, England, with Roman Britain, Roman origins, sited at the confluence of the rivers River Ouse, Yorkshire, Ouse and River Foss, Foss. It has many historic buildings and other structures, such as a Yor ...

to the southwest, and

to the south. 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. Wells is drained by the Webhannet River. The highest point in town is an unnamed hill located one-half mile south of the intersection of State Route 9 and Bragdon Road, which is above sea level. The lowest elevation is sea level, along the coastline with the Atlantic Ocean. Wells is part of the Portland-South Portland-Biddeford Metropolitan Statistical Area.

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 9,589 people, 4,120 households, and 2,734 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 8,557 housing units at an average density of . The racial makeup of the town was 97.2%

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 ...

, 0.5%

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, 0.6% Asian, 0.2% from other races, and 1.3% 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 1.2% of the population. There were 4,120 households, of which 24.5% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 54.6% 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, 8.1% had a female householder with no husband present, 3.6% had a male householder with no wife present, and 33.6% were non-families. Of all households, 26.2% were made up of individuals, and 11.4% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.30 and the average family size was 2.77. The median age in the town was 48.5 years. 18.6% of residents were under the age of 18; 5.4% were between the ages of 18 and 24; 20.2% were from 25 to 44; 34.8% were from 45 to 64; and 21% were 65 years of age or older. The gender makeup of the town was 48.3% male and 51.7% female.

2000 Census

As of the 2000 United States Census, there were 9,400 people, 4,004 households, and 2,690 families living in the town. The population density was . There were 7,794 housing units at an average density of . The racial makeup of the town was 98.18%

, 0.23%

, 0.20% Native American, 0.48% Asian, 0.01%

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 ...

, 0.14% from other races, and 0.76% from two or more races.

or Latino of any race were 0.64% of the population. There were 4,004 households, out of which 25.6% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 57.7% were

living together, 6.7% had a female householder with no husband present, and 32.8% were non-families. Of all households, 26.3% were made up of individuals, and 11.0% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.35 and the average family size was 2.85. In the town, the population was spread out, with 21.0% under the age of 18, 5.6% from 18 to 24, 26.4% from 25 to 44, 30.2% from 45 to 64, and 16.9% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 43 years. For every 100 females, there were 94.8 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 92.0 males. The median income for a household in the town was $46,314, and the median income for a family was $53,644. Males had a median income of $39,682 versus $28,463 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 $23,130. About 3.1% of families and 5.4% 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 3.8% of those under age 18 and 5.6% of those age 65 or over.

Arts and culture

Points of interest

* Drakes Island Beach, East Shore Beach, Wells Beach, and Moody Beach. * Division 9 Schoolhouse Museum * Meetinghouse Museum and Library, located on the premises of what was originally the First Congregational Church of Wells * Maine Diner *

Rachel Carson National Wildlife Refuge The Rachel Carson National Wildlife Refuge is a National Wildlife Refuge made up of several parcels of land along of Maine's southern coast. Created in 1966, it is named for environmentalist and author Rachel Carson, whose book ''Silent Sprin ...

* Wells National Estuarine Research Reserve and Laudholm Farm * Wells Public Library

Parks and recreation

The Eastern Trail, a multi-use trail, part of the

East Coast Greenway The East Coast Greenway is a pedestrian and bicycle route between Maine and Florida along the East Coast of the United States. The nonprofit East Coast Greenway Alliance was created in 1991 with the goal to use the entire route with off-road, s ...

Education

Wells High School Wells Maine 1937 Postcard

There are four educational institutions in Wells: Wells Elementary School (kindergarten through fourth grade), Wells Junior High School (fifth grade through eighth grade),

Wells High School Wells High School is a public school located in Wells, Maine, United States. It has an enrollment of 423 students in grades 9 through 12. The school primarily serves students from Wells, as well as smaller numbers of students from Ogunquit, Ma ...

(ninth grade through twelfth grade, as well as adult education programs), and

York County Community College York County Community College (YCCC) is a Public college, public community college in Wells, Maine. YCCC is part of the Maine Community College System. History York County Community College was established in 1994 as York County Technical Colleg ...

. Wells is a member of the

Wells-Ogunquit Community School District The Wells-Ogunquit Community School District (also known as Wells-Ogunquit CSD or CSD 18) provides education for students of all ages in the coastal southern Maine towns of Wells, Maine, Wells and Ogunquit, Maine, Ogunquit. History The district ...

. The Wells High School Football team has won seven combined state championships between Classes B, C, and D.

Infrastructure

Transportation

Highways: *

Interstate 95 Interstate 95 (I-95) is the main north–south Interstate Highway on the East Coast of the United States, running from U.S. Route 1 (US 1) in Miami, Florida, north to the Houlton–Woodstock Border Crossing between Maine and the ...

(

Maine Turnpike Interstate 95 (I-95) is a part of the Interstate Highway System that runs north–south from Miami, Florida to Houlton, Maine. The highway enters Maine from the New Hampshire state line in Kittery, Maine, Kittery and runs for to the Cana ...

Exit 19) *

U.S. Route 1 U.S. Route 1 or U.S. Highway 1 (US 1) is a major north–south United States Numbered Highway that serves the East Coast of the United States. It runs from Key West, Florida, north to Fort Kent, Maine, at the Canadian border, ...

Maine State Route 9 State Route 9 (SR 9) is a numbered state highway (US), state highway in Maine, running from the New Hampshire border at Berwick, Maine, Berwick in the west to the Canada–United States border, Canada–US border with New Brunswick at Calai ...

* Maine State Route 9A *

Maine State Route 109 State Route 109 (SR 109) is a state highway in the United States, U.S. state of Maine. It is a regional route connecting the southern coastal area to inland areas to the north and west. Its southern terminus is at U.S. Route 1 in Maine, U.S. R ...

Railways: * The

Pan Am Railways Pan Am Railways, Inc. (PAR) is a subsidiary of CSX Corporation that operates Class II regional railroads covering northern New England from Mattawamkeag, Maine, to Rotterdam Junction, New York. Pan Am Railways is primarily made up of former C ...

mainline (formerly the

Boston & Maine Railroad The Boston and Maine Railroad was a U.S. Class I railroad in northern New England. It was chartered in 1835, and became part of what was the Pan Am Railways network in 1983 (most of which was purchased by CSX in 2022). At the end of 1970, B&M ...

) *

Amtrak The National Railroad Passenger Corporation, Trade name, doing business as Amtrak (; ), is the national Passenger train, passenger railroad company of the United States. It operates intercity rail service in 46 of the 48 contiguous United Stat ...

is accessible at the

Wells Regional Transportation Center Wells Regional Transportation Center is an Amtrak train station in Wells, Maine. The station sits next to the Pan Am Railways mainline, formerly the Western Route mainline of the Boston and Maine Railroad The Boston and Maine Railroad was ...

, served by the '' Downeaster'' train.

Notable people

George Burroughs George Burroughs ( 1650August 19, 1692) was a non-ordained Puritan preacher who was the only minister executed for witchcraft during the course of the Salem witch trials. He is remembered especially for reciting the Lord's Prayer during his e ...

, clergyman, victim of the

Salem witch trials The Salem witch trials were a series of hearings and prosecutions of people accused of witchcraft in Province of Massachusetts Bay, colonial Massachusetts between February 1692 and May 1693. More than 200 people were accused. Not everyone wh ...

* Kathleen Chase, Maine state representative * Ronald F. Collins, Maine state senator *

Jonathan Courtney Jonathan Courtney (born July 16, 1966) is an American politician from Maine. Courtney served as a Republican state senator from Maine's 3rd District, representing part of York County including Sanford and his home in Springvale. He was first e ...

, Maine state senator *

Nate Dingle Nathan Hunter Dingle (born July 23, 1971) is an American former professional football player who was a linebacker for three years in the National Football League (NFL). Dingle played for the Philadelphia Eagles, Jacksonville Jaguars and St. Lou ...

NFL The National Football League (NFL) is a professional American football league in the United States. Composed of 32 teams, it is divided equally between the American Football Conference (AFC) and the National Football Conference (NFC). The N ...

football player * Daniel W. Gooch, US congressman * Ivory Kimball, judge * Steve Lavigne, comic book illustrator *

Nathaniel Littlefield Nathaniel Littlefield (September 20, 1804 – August 15, 1882) was a United States representative from Maine. Biography Nathaniel Swett Littlefield was born in Wells, Massachusetts (now in Maine) on September 20, 1804. He attended the common s ...

, U.S. congressman; captain, Revolutionary War, Coast Guard at Wells and Kittery * Ryan Peters (stage name ''Spose''), rapper * John Fairfield Scamman, US congressman *

John Storer John Storer (January 18, 1796 – October 23, 1867) was a merchant and philanthropist from Sanford, Maine, who was the namesake of Storer College in Harpers Ferry, West Virginia. Life and career Storer was born in 1796 in Wells, Maine, Wells, Ma ...

, founder of

Storer College Storer College was a historically Black college in Harpers Ferry, West Virginia, that operated from 1867 to 1955. A national icon for Black Americans, in the town where the 'end of American slavery began', as Frederick Douglass famously put i ...

Luis Tiant Luis Clemente Tiant Vega () (November 23, 1940 – October 8, 2024), nicknamed "El Tiante", was a Cuban professional baseball pitcher who played in Major League Baseball (MLB) for 19 years, primarily for the Cleveland Indians and the Boston R ...

Boston Red Sox The Boston Red Sox are an American professional baseball team based in Boston. The Red Sox compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the American League (AL) American League East, East Division. Founded in as one of the Ameri ...

* Guy Tripp, Business executive and U.S. Army brigadier general *

Esther Wheelwright Esther Wheelwright (31 March 1696 – 28 November 1780), also known as Mère Marie-Joseph de l'Enfant-Jésus, was born in Wells, Massachusetts (present day Maine). Wheelwright was captured during an attack of her village during Queen Anne's War ...

, Mother Superior of the Ursuline order in Quebec City *

, clergyman, original settler of Wells *

Bob Winn Bob Winn is an American distance runner, coach, and local politician. He was inducted into the Maine Running Hall of Fame in 1997, and he served on the town of Ogunquit Select Board for over a decade. Early life Winn grew up in Wells, Maine, a ...

, distance runner and local politician

References

External links

*
Wells Chamber of Commerce
{{authority control Populated places established in 1641 Portland metropolitan area, Maine Towns in York County, Maine 1641 establishments in the Thirteen Colonies Towns in Maine Populated coastal places in Maine Resort towns