Pembroke, Maine
Encyclopedia
Pembroke is a town in Washington County
, Maine
, United States
. The population was 879 at the 2000 census. The town is home to reversing falls
on Mahar's Point.
Indians, the area was settled about 1774 as part of Dennysville
. It was set off and incorporated on February 4, 1832 by the legislature, which named it after Pembroke
in Wales
, a community with a history of wooden shipbuilding
stretching back to the Middle Ages
. With one of the finest harbors in Maine, Pembroke too became a shipbuilding center. Vessels were constructed here as early as 1825. By 1859, when the population was 1,712, there were seven shipyard
s operating. Most schooner
s constructed here were used either by the coasting
trade or fisheries
.
Pembroke also had a stone factory, three sawmill
s, one gristmill
, four shingle
mills and four lath
machines. Near the head of tide
stood the Pembroke Iron Company, established in 1832 and by 1856 producing almost 5,000 tons of iron
spikes, rivet
s and nails a year. Another occupation was agriculture
. In 1880, the town's population was 2,324.
, the town has a total area of 35.2 square miles (91.2 km²). 27.4 square miles (71 km²) of it is land and 7.8 square miles (20.2 km²) of it is water. The total area is 22.17% water. Drained by the Pennamaquan River
, Pembroke is on Cobscook Bay
.
The town is crossed by U.S. Route 1
and Maine State Route 214.
of 2000, there were 879 people, 376 households, and 263 families residing in the town. The population density
was 32.1 people per square mile (12.4/km²). There were 539 housing units at an average density of 19.7 per square mile (7.6/km²). The racial makeup of the town was 96.93% White, 0.11% African American, 0.91% Native American, 0.46% Asian, and 1.59% from two or more races. Hispanic or Latino of any race were 0.46% of the population.
There were 376 households out of which 27.9% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 57.4% were married couples
living together, 8.8% had a female householder with no husband present, and 29.8% were non-families. 26.1% of all households were made up of individuals and 13.3% 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 2.75.
In the town the population was spread out with 22.6% under the age of 18, 4.9% from 18 to 24, 26.5% from 25 to 44, 26.3% from 45 to 64, and 19.7% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 42 years. For every 100 females there were 89.4 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 89.4 males.
The median income for a household in the town was $23,365, and the median income for a family was $27,875. Males had a median income of $35,972 versus $21,544 for females. The per capita income
for the town was $12,382. About 14.6% of families and 20.7% of the population were below the poverty line, including 24.2% of those under age 18 and 30.1% of those age 65 or over.
Washington County, Maine
Washington County is a county located in the U.S. state of Maine. In 2010, its population was 32,856. Its county seat is Machias.Sometimes referred to as "Sunrise County" because it is the easternmost county in the United States, and it is often where the rising sun first shines on the 48...
, 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...
, United States
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
. The population was 879 at the 2000 census. The town is home to reversing falls
Waterfall
A waterfall is a place where flowing water rapidly drops in elevation as it flows over a steep region or a cliff.-Formation:Waterfalls are commonly formed when a river is young. At these times the channel is often narrow and deep. When the river courses over resistant bedrock, erosion happens...
on Mahar's Point.
History
Called Pennamaquan by the PassamaquoddyPassamaquoddy
The Passamaquoddy are the First Nations people who live in northeastern North America, primarily in Maine and New Brunswick....
Indians, the area was settled about 1774 as part of Dennysville
Dennysville, Maine
Dennysville is a town in Washington County, Maine, United States. The population was 319 at the 2000 census.-Geography:According to the United States Census Bureau, the town has a total area of , of which, of it is land and of it is water....
. It was set off and incorporated on February 4, 1832 by the legislature, which named it after Pembroke
Pembroke, Pembrokeshire
Pembroke is an historic settlement and former county town of Pembrokeshire in west Wales. The town and the county derive their name from that of the cantref of Penfro: Pen = "head" or "end", and bro = "region", "country", "land", and so it means essentially "Land's End".-History:The main point of...
in Wales
Wales
Wales is a country that is part of the United Kingdom and the island of Great Britain, bordered by England to its east and the Atlantic Ocean and Irish Sea to its west. It has a population of three million, and a total area of 20,779 km²...
, a community with a history of wooden shipbuilding
Shipbuilding
Shipbuilding is the construction of ships and floating vessels. It normally takes place in a specialized facility known as a shipyard. Shipbuilders, also called shipwrights, follow a specialized occupation that traces its roots to before recorded history.Shipbuilding and ship repairs, both...
stretching back to the Middle Ages
Middle Ages
The Middle Ages is a periodization of European history from the 5th century to the 15th century. The Middle Ages follows the fall of the Western Roman Empire in 476 and precedes the Early Modern Era. It is the middle period of a three-period division of Western history: Classic, Medieval and Modern...
. With one of the finest harbors in Maine, Pembroke too became a shipbuilding center. Vessels were constructed here as early as 1825. By 1859, when the population was 1,712, there were seven shipyard
Shipyard
Shipyards and dockyards are places which repair and build ships. These can be yachts, military vessels, cruise liners or other cargo or passenger ships. Dockyards are sometimes more associated with maintenance and basing activities than shipyards, which are sometimes associated more with initial...
s operating. Most schooner
Schooner
A schooner is a type of sailing vessel characterized by the use of fore-and-aft sails on two or more masts with the forward mast being no taller than the rear masts....
s constructed here were used either by the coasting
Ship transport
Ship transport is watercraft carrying people or goods . Sea transport has been the largest carrier of freight throughout recorded history. Although the importance of sea travel for passengers has decreased due to aviation, it is effective for short trips and pleasure cruises...
trade or fisheries
Fishery
Generally, a fishery is an entity engaged in raising or harvesting fish which is determined by some authority to be a fishery. According to the FAO, a fishery is typically defined in terms of the "people involved, species or type of fish, area of water or seabed, method of fishing, class of boats,...
.
Pembroke also had a stone factory, three sawmill
Sawmill
A sawmill is a facility where logs are cut into boards.-Sawmill process:A sawmill's basic operation is much like those of hundreds of years ago; a log enters on one end and dimensional lumber exits on the other end....
s, one gristmill
Gristmill
The terms gristmill or grist mill can refer either to a building in which grain is ground into flour, or to the grinding mechanism itself.- Early history :...
, four shingle
Roof shingle
Roof shingles are a roof covering consisting of individual overlapping elements. These elements are typically flat rectangular shapes laid in rows from the bottom edge of the roof up, with each successive higher row overlapping the joints in the row below...
mills and four lath
Lath
A lath is a thin, narrow strip of some straight-grained wood or other material, including metal or gypsum. A lattice, or lattice-work, is a criss-crossed or interlaced arrangement of laths, or the pattern made by such an arrangement...
machines. Near the head of tide
Head of tide
Head of tide is the farthest point upstream where a river is affected by tidal fluctuations. This applies to rivers which flow into tidal bodies such as oceans, bays and sloughs. Though this point may vary due to storms and seasonal or annual differences in water flows, there is generally an...
stood the Pembroke Iron Company, established in 1832 and by 1856 producing almost 5,000 tons of iron
Iron
Iron is a chemical element with the symbol Fe and atomic number 26. It is a metal in the first transition series. It is the most common element forming the planet Earth as a whole, forming much of Earth's outer and inner core. It is the fourth most common element in the Earth's crust...
spikes, rivet
Rivet
A rivet is a permanent mechanical fastener. Before being installed a rivet consists of a smooth cylindrical shaft with a head on one end. The end opposite the head is called the buck-tail. On installation the rivet is placed in a punched or pre-drilled hole, and the tail is upset, or bucked A rivet...
s and nails a year. Another occupation was agriculture
Agriculture
Agriculture is the cultivation of animals, plants, fungi and other life forms for food, fiber, and other products used to sustain life. Agriculture was the key implement in the rise of sedentary human civilization, whereby farming of domesticated species created food surpluses that nurtured the...
. In 1880, the town's population was 2,324.
Geography
According to the United States Census BureauUnited States Census Bureau
The United States Census Bureau is the government agency that is responsible for the United States Census. It also gathers other national demographic and economic data...
, the town has a total area of 35.2 square miles (91.2 km²). 27.4 square miles (71 km²) of it is land and 7.8 square miles (20.2 km²) of it is water. The total area is 22.17% water. Drained by the Pennamaquan River
Pennamaquan River
The Pennamaquan River is a short, river in the U.S. state of Maine, draining from medium-sized, low-elevation Pennamaquan Lake into Cobscook Bay.- Course :The river begins at the outlet of Pennamaquan Lake, which is located about northwest of Pembroke...
, Pembroke is on Cobscook Bay
Cobscook Bay
Cobscook Bay is located in Washington County in the state of Maine. It opens into the Bay of Fundy immediately south of the city of Eastport and adjacent to Passamaquoddy Bay...
.
The town is crossed by U.S. Route 1
U.S. Route 1 in Maine
In the U.S. state of Maine, U.S. Route 1 is a major north–south state highway serving the eastern part of the state. It parallels the Atlantic Ocean from New Hampshire north through Portland, Brunswick, and Belfast to Calais, and then the St. Croix River and the rest of the Canadian border...
and Maine State Route 214.
Demographics
As of the censusCensus
A census is the procedure of systematically acquiring and recording information about the members of a given population. It is a regularly occurring and official count of a particular population. The term is used mostly in connection with national population and housing censuses; other common...
of 2000, there were 879 people, 376 households, and 263 families residing in the town. The population density
Population density
Population density is a measurement of population per unit area or unit volume. It is frequently applied to living organisms, and particularly to humans...
was 32.1 people per square mile (12.4/km²). There were 539 housing units at an average density of 19.7 per square mile (7.6/km²). The racial makeup of the town was 96.93% White, 0.11% African American, 0.91% Native American, 0.46% Asian, and 1.59% from two or more races. Hispanic or Latino of any race were 0.46% of the population.
There were 376 households out of which 27.9% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 57.4% were married couples
Marriage
Marriage is a social union or legal contract between people that creates kinship. It is an institution in which interpersonal relationships, usually intimate and sexual, are acknowledged in a variety of ways, depending on the culture or subculture in which it is found...
living together, 8.8% had a female householder with no husband present, and 29.8% were non-families. 26.1% of all households were made up of individuals and 13.3% 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 2.75.
In the town the population was spread out with 22.6% under the age of 18, 4.9% from 18 to 24, 26.5% from 25 to 44, 26.3% from 45 to 64, and 19.7% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 42 years. For every 100 females there were 89.4 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 89.4 males.
The median income for a household in the town was $23,365, and the median income for a family was $27,875. Males had a median income of $35,972 versus $21,544 for females. The per capita income
Per capita income
Per capita income or income per person is a measure of mean income within an economic aggregate, such as a country or city. It is calculated by taking a measure of all sources of income in the aggregate and dividing it by the total population...
for the town was $12,382. About 14.6% of families and 20.7% of the population were below the poverty line, including 24.2% of those under age 18 and 30.1% of those age 65 or over.
Notable people
- Charles H. Best, medical scientist
- Styles BridgesStyles BridgesHenry Styles Bridges was an American teacher, editor, and Republican Party politician from Concord, New Hampshire. He served one term as 63rd Governor of New Hampshire before a twenty-four year career in the United States Senate.Bridges was born in West Pembroke, Maine. He attended the public...
, teacher, editor, 63rd governor of New Hampshire - William Robinson PattangallWilliam Robinson PattangallWilliam Robinson Pattangall was a Maine politician, particularly known for his support of public schools and opposition to the Ku Klux Klan. He was later the Chief Justice of the Maine Supreme Court retiring on July 16, 1935....
, Maine attorney general, chief justice of the Maine Supreme Court