Abner Coburn
Encyclopedia
Abner Coburn was the 30th Governor
Governor of Maine
The governor of Maine is the chief executive of the State of Maine. Before Maine was admitted to the Union in 1820, Maine was part of Massachusetts and the governor of Massachusetts was chief executive....

 of Maine
Maine
Maine is a state in the New England region of the northeastern United States, bordered by the Atlantic Ocean to the east and south, New Hampshire to the west, and the Canadian provinces of Quebec to the northwest and New Brunswick to the northeast. Maine is both the northernmost and easternmost...

 from 1863 to 1864 and a prominent individual in Skowhegan, Maine
Skowhegan, Maine
Skowhegan is the county seat of Somerset County, Maine, United States. As of the 2000 census, the town population was 8,824. Every August, Skowhegan hosts the annual Skowhegan State Fair, the oldest continuous state fair in the United States...

 until his death.

Born on a farm in Old Canaan (later renamed to Skowhegan), Maine, Coburn served three years in the Maine House of Representatives before being elected Governor in 1863.

He became prominent in Skowhegan society, serving as the president of Skowhegan Savings Bank and becoming president and director of the Maine Central Railroad
Maine Central Railroad
The Maine Central Railroad Company was a railroad in central and southern Maine. It was chartered in 1856 and began operations in 1862. It operated a mainline between South Portland, Maine, east to the Canada-U.S...

.

He was the uncle of the writer Louise Helen Coburn
Louise Helen Coburn
Louise Helen Coburn was one of the five founders of Sigma Kappa sorority, a pioneer for women's education at Colby College, where she served as the first female trustee, and an accomplished scientist and writer known for writing the two volumes of "Skowhegan on the Kennebec."She was the niece of...

. Many of his historical items can be seen in a museum she began, the Skowhegan History House.

Upon his death in 1885, Coburn left 12 acres (48,562.3 m²) to the town of Skowhegan to make a public park. Coburn Park was opened in 1907.

Abner Coburn's life and achievements were honored with the naming of a sailing ship after the governor.
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