Poland, Maine
Encyclopedia
Poland is a town
New England town
The New England town is the basic unit of local government in each of the six New England states. Without a direct counterpart in most other U.S. states, New England towns are conceptually similar to civil townships in other states, but are incorporated, possessing powers like cities in other...

 in Androscoggin County
Androscoggin County, Maine
Androscoggin County is a county located in the U.S. state of Maine. As of the 2010 U.S. census, the county's population was 107,702. Its county seat is Auburn...

, 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 4,866 at the 2000 census
United States Census, 2000
The Twenty-second United States Census, known as Census 2000 and conducted by the Census Bureau, determined the resident population of the United States on April 1, 2000, to be 281,421,906, an increase of 13.2% over the 248,709,873 persons enumerated during the 1990 Census...

. Home to Range Ponds State Park, Poland is a historic resort area. It is included in both the Lewiston
Lewiston, Maine
Lewiston is a city in Androscoggin County in Maine, and the second-largest city in the state. The population was 41,592 at the 2010 census. It is one of two principal cities of and included within the Lewiston-Auburn, Maine metropolitan New England city and town area and the Lewiston-Auburn, Maine...

-Auburn
Auburn, Maine
Auburn is a city in and the county seat of Androscoggin County, Maine, United States. The population was 23,055 at the 2010 census. It is one of two principal cities of and included in the Lewiston-Auburn, Maine metropolitan New England city and town area and the Lewiston-Auburn, Maine metropolitan...

, Maine metropolitan statistical area and the Lewiston-Auburn, Maine metropolitan New England city and town area
New England City and Town Area
A New England City and Town Area or NECTA is a geographic and statistical entity defined by the U.S. Office of Management and Budget, for use in describing aspects of the New England region of the United States...

.

History

It was granted by the Massachusetts General Court
Massachusetts General Court
The Massachusetts General Court is the state legislature of the Commonwealth of Massachusetts. The name "General Court" is a hold-over from the Colonial Era, when this body also sat in judgment of judicial appeals cases...

 in 1765 to officers and soldiers who served with Sir William Phipps
William Phipps
William Edward "Bill" Phipps is a retired American actor and producer, perhaps best known for his roles in dozens of classic sci-fi and westerns, both film and television, from the late 1940s through the mid 1960s. From then, until his retirement in 2000, his work was mainly in...

 in the 1690 Battle of Quebec
Battle of Quebec (1690)
The Battle of Quebec was fought in October 1690 between the colonies of New France and Massachusetts Bay, then ruled by the kingdoms of France and England, respectively. It was the first time Quebec's defences were tested....

. It replaced a 1736 grant made to them called Bakerstown (now Salisbury, New Hampshire
Salisbury, New Hampshire
Salisbury is a town in Merrimack County, New Hampshire, USA. The population was 1,382 at the 2010 census.-History:While still part of Massachusetts, the town was granted as Baker's Town after Captain Thomas Baker in 1736. After New Hampshire became a separate colony, the town was re-granted by the...

) which was ruled invalid in 1741 at the separation of New Hampshire
New Hampshire
New Hampshire is a state in the New England region of the northeastern United States of America. The state was named after the southern English county of Hampshire. It is bordered by Massachusetts to the south, Vermont to the west, Maine and the Atlantic Ocean to the east, and the Canadian...

 from Massachusetts
Massachusetts
The Commonwealth of Massachusetts is a state in the New England region of the northeastern United States of America. It is bordered by Rhode Island and Connecticut to the south, New York to the west, and Vermont and New Hampshire to the north; at its east lies the Atlantic Ocean. As of the 2010...

. The new plantation was also called Bakerstown (after Captain Thomas Baker), and included present-day Poland, Minot
Minot, Maine
Minot is a town in Androscoggin County, Maine, United States. The population was 2,248 at the 2000 census. The town includes the villages of West Minot and Minot Center...

, Mechanic Falls
Mechanic Falls, Maine
Mechanic Falls is a town in Androscoggin County, Maine, United States. The population was 3,138 at the 2000 census. It is included in both the Lewiston-Auburn, Maine metropolitan statistical area and the Lewiston-Auburn, Maine metropolitan New England city and town area.-History:It was originally...

 and the greater part of Auburn
Auburn, Maine
Auburn is a city in and the county seat of Androscoggin County, Maine, United States. The population was 23,055 at the 2010 census. It is one of two principal cities of and included in the Lewiston-Auburn, Maine metropolitan New England city and town area and the Lewiston-Auburn, Maine metropolitan...

.

Settled in 1767 by Nathaniel Bailey and Daniel Lane, Bakerstown Plantation would be incorporated as Poland on February 17, 1795. It was named after Indian
Indigenous peoples of the Americas
The indigenous peoples of the Americas are the pre-Columbian inhabitants of North and South America, their descendants and other ethnic groups who are identified with those peoples. Indigenous peoples are known in Canada as Aboriginal peoples, and in the United States as Native Americans...

 Chief Poland, who was killed with two of his warriors on May 14, 1756 during the last Indian raid against New Marblehead Plantation (now Windham
Windham, Maine
Windham is a town in Cumberland County, Maine, United States. The population was 17,001 at the 2010 census. It includes the villages of South Windham and North Windham...

).

At the beginning, Poland was an agricultural
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...

 town, with 600 acres (2.4 km²) of the best land farmed by the Shakers
Shakers
The United Society of Believers in Christ’s Second Appearing, known as the Shakers, is a religious sect originally thought to be a development of the Religious Society of Friends...

 who settled at Poland Hill above the Sabbathday Lake Shaker Village in New Gloucester
New Gloucester, Maine
New Gloucester is a town in Cumberland County, Maine, in the United States. It is home to the Sabbathday Lake Shaker Village, the last active Shaker Village in the U.S...

. Called the North Family of Shakers, the village was founded by members who removed from Gorham
Gorham, Maine
Gorham is a town in Cumberland County, Maine, United States. The population was 16,381 at the 2010 census. In addition to an urban village center known as Gorham Village or simply "the Village," the town also encompasses a number of smaller, unincorporated villages and hamlets with distinct...

 in 1819. It lasted until 1887.

Industry was attracted to Poland's water power sites. In 1859, when the population was 2,660, it had 4 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, a 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 :...

, a tannery
Tanning
Tanning is the making of leather from the skins of animals which does not easily decompose. Traditionally, tanning used tannin, an acidic chemical compound from which the tanning process draws its name . Coloring may occur during tanning...

 and a carriage
Carriage
A carriage is a wheeled vehicle for people, usually horse-drawn; litters and sedan chairs are excluded, since they are wheelless vehicles. The carriage is especially designed for private passenger use and for comfort or elegance, though some are also used to transport goods. It may be light,...

 factory. The St. Lawrence and Atlantic Railroad
St. Lawrence and Atlantic Railroad
The St. Lawrence and Atlantic Railroad , known as St-Laurent et Atlantique Quebec in Canada, is a short line railroad operating between Portland, Maine on the Atlantic Ocean and Montreal, Quebec on the St. Lawrence River. It crosses the Canada-U.S...

 passed through the northeastern corner of the town, spurring development and bringing tourists drawn to its scenic ponds and gentle hills. By 1893, when Mechanic Falls was set off as a separate town, Poland had evolved into a Gilded Age
Gilded Age
In United States history, the Gilded Age refers to the era of rapid economic and population growth in the United States during the post–Civil War and post-Reconstruction eras of the late 19th century. The term "Gilded Age" was coined by Mark Twain and Charles Dudley Warner in their book The Gilded...

 resort.

In 1797, The Wentworth Ricker Inn in South Poland opened at the homestead Jabez Ricker acquired from a 1794 land swap with Alfred Shaker Village in Alfred
Alfred, Maine
Alfred is a town in York County, Maine, in the United States. As of the 2000 census, the town population was 2,497. Alfred is the county seat of York County and home to part of the Massabesic Experimental Forest...

. But when the railroad replaced stage
Stagecoach
A stagecoach is a type of covered wagon for passengers and goods, strongly sprung and drawn by four horses, usually four-in-hand. Widely used before the introduction of railway transport, it made regular trips between stages or stations, which were places of rest provided for stagecoach travelers...

 travel, patronage declined and the inn closed. Then a grandson, Hiram Ricker, began proclaiming that the mineral spring
Mineral spring
Mineral springs are naturally occurring springs that produce water containing minerals, or other dissolved substances, that alter its taste or give it a purported therapeutic value...

 on his family's property had cured his dyspepsia
Dyspepsia
Dyspepsia , also known as upset stomach or indigestion, refers to a condition of impaired digestion. It is a medical condition characterized by chronic or recurrent pain in the upper abdomen, upper abdominal fullness and feeling full earlier than expected when eating...

. People began arriving to sample the spring's curative waters, which flow 8 gallons a minute. Reopened in 1861, the inn was enlarged and renamed The Mansion House. But even that could not handle the crowds, so in 1875 the family built what was dubbed Ricker's Folly.

On July 4, 1876, The Poland Spring House opened atop Ricker's Hill, an elevation of 800 feet (244 m) above sea level with magnificent views to the White Mountains
White Mountains (New Hampshire)
The White Mountains are a mountain range covering about a quarter of the state of New Hampshire and a small portion of western Maine in the United States. Part of the Appalachian Mountains, they are considered the most rugged mountains in New England...

. The hotel would be augmented over the years by architects John Calvin Stevens
John Calvin Stevens
John Calvin Stevens was an American architect who worked in two related styles — the Shingle Style, in which he was a major innovator, and the Colonial Revival style, which dominated national domestic architecture for the first half of the 20th century...

, Albert Winslow Cobb and Harry Wilkerson. It became a self-contained and exclusive spa
Spa
The term spa is associated with water treatment which is also known as balneotherapy. Spa towns or spa resorts typically offer various health treatments. The belief in the curative powers of mineral waters goes back to prehistoric times. Such practices have been popular worldwide, but are...

, with guards at gatehouse
Gatehouse
A gatehouse, in architectural terminology, is a building enclosing or accompanying a gateway for a castle, manor house, fort, town or similar buildings of importance.-History:...

s instructed to turn away sightseers. With luxurious accommodations for 450 guests, the hotel attracted the rich and famous. Patrons included Gen. Benjamin Butler
Benjamin Franklin Butler (politician)
Benjamin Franklin Butler was an American lawyer and politician who represented Massachusetts in the United States House of Representatives and later served as the 33rd Governor of Massachusetts....

, Sen. James G. Blaine
James G. Blaine
James Gillespie Blaine was a U.S. Representative, Speaker of the United States House of Representatives, U.S. Senator from Maine, two-time Secretary of State...

, Joan Crawford
Joan Crawford
Joan Crawford , born Lucille Fay LeSueur, was an American actress in film, television and theatre....

, Jimmy Durante
Jimmy Durante
James Francis "Jimmy" Durante was an American singer, pianist, comedian and actor. His distinctive clipped gravelly speech, comic language butchery, jazz-influenced songs, and large nose helped make him one of America's most familiar and popular personalities of the 1920s through the 1970s...

, Jack Paar
Jack Paar
Jack Harold Paar was an author, American radio and television comedian and talk show host, best known for his stint as host of The Tonight Show from 1957 to 1962...

 and Robert Goulet
Robert Goulet
Robert Gerard Goulet was a Canadian American entertainer as a singer and actor. He played the role of Lancelot in the Broadway musical Camelot of 1960.-Early life:...

. But following World War II
World War II
World War II, or the Second World War , was a global conflict lasting from 1939 to 1945, involving most of the world's nations—including all of the great powers—eventually forming two opposing military alliances: the Allies and the Axis...

, the era of grand hotels waned. When the Rickers sold The Poland Spring House, its new owners allowed the sprawling facilities to deteriorate. On July 3, 1975, the vacant hotel burned. Today, the famous water is bottled by Poland Spring
Poland Spring
Poland Spring is a brand of bottled water manufactured by a subsidiary of Nestlé and sold in the United States. It was founded in 1845 by Hiram Ricker. Despite the name, the water does not come from the country of Poland...

.

Geography

According to the United States Census Bureau
United 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 47.2 square miles (122.2 km²), of which, 42.3 square miles (109.6 km²) of it is land and 4.8 square miles (12.4 km²) of it (10.28%) is water. Poland is drained by the Little Androscoggin River
Little Androscoggin River
The Little Androscoggin River is a river in Maine. It flows from Bryant Pond in Woodstock to its confluence with the Androscoggin River in Auburn...

.

The town is crossed by state routes 11, 26
Maine State Route 26
State Route 26 is a 96.7 mile-long state highway in southwestern Maine. It was first commissioned in 1925, as part of the New England road marking system. Route 26 in Maine, as well as New Hampshire and the short stub in Vermont, covers the route of the old New England Interstate Route 26...

 and 122. It is bordered by the towns of Mechanic Falls
Mechanic Falls, Maine
Mechanic Falls is a town in Androscoggin County, Maine, United States. The population was 3,138 at the 2000 census. It is included in both the Lewiston-Auburn, Maine metropolitan statistical area and the Lewiston-Auburn, Maine metropolitan New England city and town area.-History:It was originally...

 to the north, Minot
Minot, Maine
Minot is a town in Androscoggin County, Maine, United States. The population was 2,248 at the 2000 census. The town includes the villages of West Minot and Minot Center...

 to the northeast, Auburn
Auburn, Maine
Auburn is a city in and the county seat of Androscoggin County, Maine, United States. The population was 23,055 at the 2010 census. It is one of two principal cities of and included in the Lewiston-Auburn, Maine metropolitan New England city and town area and the Lewiston-Auburn, Maine metropolitan...

 to the east, New Gloucester
New Gloucester, Maine
New Gloucester is a town in Cumberland County, Maine, in the United States. It is home to the Sabbathday Lake Shaker Village, the last active Shaker Village in the U.S...

 to the southeast, Casco
Casco, Maine
Farmers found the surface of the town uneven, its hard and rocky soil "tolerably productive." Outlets of ponds, however, provided Casco with good sites for water powered mills. The town had four sawmills, four gristmills, a shook mill, a barrel stave mill, four shingle factories, a carriage factory...

 and Raymond
Raymond, Maine
Raymond is a town in Cumberland County, Maine, United States. The population was 4,299 at the 2000 census. It is a summer recreation area and is part of the Portland–South Portland–Biddeford, Maine metropolitan statistical area...

 to the southwest, and Otisfield
Otisfield, Maine
Otisfield is a town in Oxford County, Maine, United States. The population was 1,560 at the 2000 census. Otisfield is a summer recreation area and home to Seeds of Peace Camp and Camp Arcadia.-History:...

 and Oxford to the northwest.

Demographics

As of the census
Census
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 4,866 people, 1,845 households, and 1,437 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 115.0 people per square mile (44.4/km²). There were 2,316 housing units at an average density of 54.7 per square mile (21.1/km²). The racial makeup of the town was 98.54% White, 0.33% African American, 0.12% Native American, 0.14% Asian, 0.08% Pacific Islander, 0.02% from other races
Race (United States Census)
Race and ethnicity in the United States Census, as defined by the Federal Office of Management and Budget and the United States Census Bureau, are self-identification data items in which residents choose the race or races with which they most closely identify, and indicate whether or not they are...

, and 0.76% from two or more races. Hispanic or Latino of any race were 0.31% of the population.

There were 1,845 households out of which 35.4% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 64.8% 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, 8.6% had a female householder with no husband present, and 22.1% were non-families. 16.1% of all households were made up of individuals and 5.6% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.63 and the average family size was 2.92.

In the town the population was spread out with 25.3% under the age of 18, 5.7% from 18 to 24, 31.6% from 25 to 44, 27.5% from 45 to 64, and 10.0% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 38 years. For every 100 females there were 102.8 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 100.5 males.

The median income for a household in the town was $47,824, and the median income for a family was $55,427. Males had a median income of $33,284 versus $23,926 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 $22,346. About 1.8% of families and 3.4% of the population were below the poverty line, including 2.0% of those under age 18 and 4.7% of those age 65 or over.

Education

The Town of Poland is a member of Regional School Unit 16
Regional School Unit 16
Regional School Unit 16, a consolidated school district serving Poland, Mechanic Falls and Minot, Maine, operates three elementary schools , one middle school and one high school in Androscoggin County in the U.S. state of Maine. The district has 154 teachers serving approximately 1,700 students....

 (RSU 16). Poland Regional High School (PRHS) serves as the district high school of RSU 16 and is open to all high school age students of Poland, Mechanic Falls
Mechanic Falls, Maine
Mechanic Falls is a town in Androscoggin County, Maine, United States. The population was 3,138 at the 2000 census. It is included in both the Lewiston-Auburn, Maine metropolitan statistical area and the Lewiston-Auburn, Maine metropolitan New England city and town area.-History:It was originally...

, and Minot
Minot, Maine
Minot is a town in Androscoggin County, Maine, United States. The population was 2,248 at the 2000 census. The town includes the villages of West Minot and Minot Center...

, Maine. Students from Raymond
Raymond, Maine
Raymond is a town in Cumberland County, Maine, United States. The population was 4,299 at the 2000 census. It is a summer recreation area and is part of the Portland–South Portland–Biddeford, Maine metropolitan statistical area...

, Maine, as well, attend PRHS on a tuition basis. The school's athletic teams compete in Maine class "B" athletics. The school's mascot
Mascot
The term mascot – defined as a term for any person, animal, or object thought to bring luck – colloquially includes anything used to represent a group with a common public identity, such as a school, professional sports team, society, military unit, or brand name...

 is the knight and the school colors
School colors
School colors are the colors chosen by a school to represent it on uniforms and other items of identification. Most schools have two colors, which are usually chosen to avoid conflicts with other schools with which the school competes in sports and other activities...

 are blue and silver. Connected to the high school is Bruce M. Whittier Middle School. This school serves all three town's 7th and 8th grade students (as of 2010). Both schools opended in 1999. Poland Community School, last expanded in 2002, serves Poland's K-6 students.

Elan School
Elan School
Élan School was a private, coeducational, controversial residential behavior modification program and therapeutic boarding school in Poland, Androscoggin County, Maine...

, a private 8-12 school, opened in Poland in 1976.

Sites of interest


Notable people

  • Bert M. Fernald
    Bert M. Fernald
    Bert Manfred Fernald was a United States Senator and the 47th Governor of Maine.Born in West Poland, Maine, he attended the public schools, Hebron Academy and a business and preparatory school in Boston. He then taught school , and then engaged in the canning, dairy, and telephone businesses...

    , senator and 47th governor of Maine
  • John Nevins Andrews, minister, missionary, writer, editor and scholar
  • Moncena Dunn
    Moncena Dunn (soldier)
    for the inventor of the fraud proof coupon ballot, please see Moncena DunnMoncena Dunn , was a bookkeeper and cutler inducted into the Union Army...

    , bookkeeper and army officer

Further reading

  • Bryant F. Tolles, Jr., The Grand Resort Hotels of the Wite Mountains, 1998, David R. Godine, publishers, Boston, Massachusetts

External links

The source of this article is wikipedia, the free encyclopedia.  The text of this article is licensed under the GFDL.
 
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