Woodstock is a

town A town is a type of a human settlement, generally larger than a village but smaller than a city. The criteria for distinguishing a town vary globally, often depending on factors such as population size, economic character, administrative stat ...

in Oxford County, Maine, United States. Woodstock is included in the Lewiston-Auburn, Maine metropolitan New England city and town area. The population was 1,352 at the 2020 census. The village of Bryant Pond, on State Route 26 in the northern part of Woodstock, is the town's urban center and largest settlement.

History

Whitman Memorial Library Oxford Maine sign 2013

Woodstock was first settled in about 1808 as Plantation Number Three. In 1814, a petition was sent to 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 ...

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 ...

that requested the plantation be incorporated into a town called Sparta. Massachusetts Governor Caleb Strong approved the petition on February 7, 1815, to establish the town of Woodstock. It is unclear why the name Woodstock was chosen. The village of Bryant Pond is believed to be the last telephone exchange in the U.S. to convert from operator-based hand-crank service to direct-dial service. The conversion occurred on October 11, 1983.

Geography

The area within the town limits of Woodstock is forested and mountainous. The town includes most of Lake Christopher (Bryant Pond). 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.

Adjacent municipalities

* Milton (north) *

Peru Peru, officially the Republic of Peru, is a country in western South America. It is bordered in the north by Ecuador and Colombia, in the east by Brazil, in the southeast by Bolivia, in the south by Chile, and in the south and west by the Pac ...

(northeast) *

Sumner Sumner may refer to: Places Antarctica * Mount Sumner, a mountain in the Rare Range, Antarctica * Sumner Glacier, southern Graham Land, Antarctica Australia * Sumner, Queensland, a suburb of Brisbane New Zealand * Sumner, New Zealand, a seasi ...

(east) * West Paris (southeast) * Greenwood (west) *

Bethel Bethel (, "House of El" or "House of God",Bleeker and Widegren, 1988, p. 257. also transliterated ''Beth El'', ''Beth-El'', ''Beit El''; ; ) was an ancient Israelite city and sacred space that is frequently mentioned in the Hebrew Bible. Bet ...

(northwest)

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 1,277 people, 546 households, and 377 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 974 housing units at an average density of . The racial makeup of the town was 98.4%

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 ...

, 0.1%

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, 0.1% Asian, and 1.0% 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 0.4% of the population. There were 546 households, of which 27.1% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 55.1% 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, 7.7% had a female householder with no husband present, 6.2% had a male householder with no wife present, and 31.0% were non-families. 24.4% of all households were made up of individuals, and 11.6% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.34 and the average family size was 2.71. The median age in the town was 46.2 years. 19.1% of residents were under the age of 18; 5.5% were between the ages of 18 and 24; 23.2% were from 25 to 44; 33.6% were from 45 to 64; and 18.5% were 65 years of age or older. The gender makeup of the town was 50.0% male and 50.0% female.

2000 census

As of the

of 2000, there were 1,307 people, 525 households, and 371 families living in the town. The population density was . There were 842 housing units at an average density of 18.4 per square mile (7.1/km). The racial makeup of the town was 98.85%

, 0.15% Native American, 0.08% Asian, and 0.92% from two or more races.

or Latino of any race were 0.54% of the population. There were 525 households, out of which 30.1% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 59.0% were

living together, 7.6% had a female householder with no husband present, and 29.3% were non-families. 23.8% of all households were made up of individuals, and 7.4% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.47 and the average family size was 2.89. In the town, the population was spread out, with 24.6% under the age of 18, 5.9% from 18 to 24, 28.0% from 25 to 44, 26.2% from 45 to 64, and 15.2% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 40 years. For every 100 females, there were 106.8 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 99.0 males. The median income for a household in the town was $35,642, and the median income for a family was $38,750. Males had a median income of $28,889 versus $22,273 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 $16,698. About 5.5% of families and 9.3% 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 14.3% of those under age 18 and 5.9% of those age 65 or over.

Education

Woodstock is in the "Oxford Unorganized Territory" school district.

References

External links

Community historyBryant Pond Telephone Museum

Maine Genealogy: Woodstock, Oxford County, Maine
{{authority control Towns in Oxford County, Maine Towns in Maine