Searsmont 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 ...

Waldo County Waldo County is a county in the state of Maine, United States. As of the 2020 census, the population was 39,607. Its county seat is Belfast. The county was founded on February 7, 1827, from a portion of Hancock County and named after Briga ...

Maine Maine ( ) is a U.S. state, state in the New England region of the United States, and the northeasternmost state in the Contiguous United States. It borders New Hampshire to the west, the Gulf of Maine to the southeast, and the Provinces and ...

, United States. The population was 1,400 at the 2020 census.

History

Located at the junction of several well-marked

Indian Indian or Indians may refer to: Associated with India * of or related to India ** Indian people ** Indian diaspora ** Languages of India ** Indian English, a dialect of the English language ** Indian cuisine Associated with indigenous peoples o ...

trails, Searsmont was originally called Quantabacook. The town was a part of the

Waldo Patent The Waldo Patent, a letters patent also known as the Muscongus Patent or the Lincolnshire Patent, was a document granting title to of land in what is now the U.S. state of Maine. It is named variously for businessman Samuel Waldo, who eventually ...

purchased by a consortium of wealthy

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 ...

investors that included David Sears. First settled in 1804 and called Fraternity Village by Ben Ames Williams, it was incorporated on February 5, 1814, as Searsmont, named after its proprietor. The town was noted for its productive soil,

water power Hydropower (from Ancient Greek -, "water"), also known as water power or water energy, is the use of falling or fast-running water to produce electricity or to power machines. This is achieved by converting the gravitational potential or kin ...

and abundant forests of

white pine ''Pinus'', the pines, is a genus of approximately 111 extant tree and shrub species. The genus is currently split into two subgenera: subgenus ''Pinus'' (hard pines), and subgenus ''Strobus'' (soft pines). Each of the subgenera have been further ...

. By 1859, when the population was 1,693, it had 15

sawmill A sawmill (saw mill, saw-mill) or lumber mill is a facility where logging, logs are cut into lumber. Modern sawmills use a motorized saw to cut logs lengthwise to make long pieces, and crosswise to length depending on standard or custom sizes ...

s and two

gristmill A gristmill (also: grist mill, corn mill, flour mill, feed mill or feedmill) grinds cereal grain into flour and Wheat middlings, middlings. The term can refer to either the grinding mechanism or the building that holds it. Grist is grain that h ...

s. In 1886, it had five lumber mills; three

cooperage A cooper is a craftsman who produces wooden casks, barrels, vats, buckets, tubs, troughs, and other similar containers from timber staves that were usually heated or steamed to make them pliable. Journeymen coopers also traditionally made w ...

s; a

sash A sash is a large and usually colorful ribbon or band of material worn around the human body, either draping from one shoulder to the opposing hip and back up, or else encircling the waist. The sash around the waist may be worn in daily attire, ...

; blind and

pump A pump is a device that moves fluids (liquids or gases), or sometimes Slurry, slurries, by mechanical action, typically converted from electrical energy into hydraulic or pneumatic energy. Mechanical pumps serve in a wide range of application ...

factory; four

carriage A carriage is a two- or four-wheeled horse-drawn vehicle for passengers. In Europe they were a common mode of transport for the wealthy during the Roman Empire, and then again from around 1600 until they were replaced by the motor car around 1 ...

factories; a

tannery Tanning, or hide tanning, is the process of treating skins and hides of animals to produce leather. A tannery is the place where the skins are processed. Historically, vegetable based tanning used tannin, an acidic chemical compound derived fr ...

; a boot and shoe factory; and a

coffin A coffin or casket is a funerary box used for viewing or keeping a corpse, for burial, entombment or cremation. Coffins are sometimes referred to as caskets, particularly in American English. A distinction is commonly drawn between "coffins" a ...

and

bedstead A bed frame or bedstead is the part of a bed used to position the bed base, the flat part which in turn directly supports the mattress(es). The frame may also stop the mattress from sliding sideways, and it may include means of supporting a cano ...

factory. Today, Searsmont continues its lumbering heritage with one mill in town.

Geography

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 an area of , of which is land and is water. Adjacent to Quantabacook Lake (665 acres), Searsmont is drained by the St. George River. Other ponds include Levenseller Pond (34 acres), Lawry Pond (85 acres), Ruffingham Meadow (51 acres) and Little Pond (42 acres). The town is served by state routes 3,

131 131 may refer to: *131 (number) *AD 131 *131 BC *131 (album), the album by Emarosa *131 (MBTA bus), the Massachusetts Bay Transportation Authority bus. For the MBTA bus, see 131 (MBTA bus). *131 (New Jersey bus), the New Jersey Transit bus *131 Val ...

and

173 Year 173 ( CLXXIII) was a common year starting on Thursday of the Julian calendar. At the time, it was known as the Year of the Consulship of Severus and Pompeianus (or, less frequently, year 926 ''Ab urbe condita''). The denomination 173 for th ...

. It is bordered on the northeast by Morrill, on the east by Belmont, on the south by Lincolnville, on the southwest by

Appleton Appleton may refer to: People and fictional characters * Appleton (surname), including a list of people and fictional characters * Appleton family, an American political, religious and mercantile family * Appleton P. Clark Jr. (1865–1955), Am ...

and on the northwest by

Liberty Liberty is the state of being free within society from oppressive restrictions imposed by authority on one's way of life, behavior, or political views. The concept of liberty can vary depending on perspective and context. In the Constitutional ...

and Montville. Searsmont is home to part of the James Dorso (Ruffingham Meadow) WMA.

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 1,392 people, 577 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 741 housing units at an average density of . The racial makeup of the town was 96.8%

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 ...

, 0.6% Native American, 0.6% Asian, 0.2% from other races, and 1.4% 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 0.3% of the population. There were 577 households, of which 32.1% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 49.9% 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, 9.9% had a female householder with no husband present, 5.5% had a male householder with no wife present, and 34.7% were non-families. 26.9% of all households were made up of individuals, and 6.6% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.41 and the average family size was 2.95. The median age in the town was 41 years. 24.6% of residents were under the age of 18; 5.3% were between the ages of 18 and 24; 27.1% were from 25 to 44; 31.9% were from 45 to 64; and 11.1% were 65 years of age or older. The gender makeup of the town was 49.5% male and 50.5% female.

2000 census

As of the

of 2000, there were 1,174 people, 478 households, and 319 families living in the town. The population density was . There were 617 housing units at an average density of 16.3 per square mile (6.3/km). The racial makeup of the town was 98.55%

, 0.77% Native American, 0.09% Asian, 0.09% from other races, and 0.51% from two or more races.

or Latino of any race were 0.68% of the population. There were 478 households, out of which 29.9% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 54.8% were

living together, 8.2% had a female householder with no husband present, and 33.1% were non-families. 23.8% of all households were made up of individuals, and 6.5% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.46 and the average family size was 2.91. In the town, the population was spread out, with 24.9% under the age of 18, 6.1% from 18 to 24, 31.9% from 25 to 44, 26.3% from 45 to 64, and 10.7% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 38 years. For every 100 females, there were 100.7 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 97.8 males. The median income for a household in the town was $36,708, and the median income for a family was $40,000. Males had a median income of $28,088 versus $24,750 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 $18,118. About 7.0% of families and 8.4% 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 3.9% of those under age 18 and 14.5% of those age 65 or over.

Notable people

Peter Broderick Peter Broderick (born January 20, 1987) is an American musician and composer from Carlton, Oregon. He has released solo material under his own name, been a member of Efterklang, and played with several ensembles as a session musician. Biography ...

, musician and composer * Edwin Denby, poet, dance critic, and novelist * Charles West Kendall, lawyer, editor, and US congressman

References

External links

Town of Searsmont, Maine

Searsmont Town Library

Maine Genealogy: Searsmont, Waldo County, Maine
{{authority control Towns in Waldo County, Maine Towns in Maine