Hallowell, Maine
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| Hallowell, Maine | |
  Hallowell, Maine
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| Coordinates: | |
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| Country | United States |
| State | Maine |
| County | Kennebec |
| Area | |
| - Total | 6.1 sq mi (15.8 km²) |
| - Land | 5.9 sq mi (15.2 km²) |
| - Water | 0.2 sq mi (0.6 km²) |
| Elevation | 39 ft (12 m) |
| Population (2000) | |
| - Total | 2,467 |
| - Density | 420.1/sq mi (162.2/km²) |
| Time zone | Eastern (EST) (UTC-5) |
| - Summer (DST) | EDT (UTC-4) |
| ZIP code | 04347 |
| Area code(s) | 207 |
| FIPS code | 23-30550 |
| GNIS feature ID | 0567519 |
Hallowell is a city in Kennebec County, Maine, United States. The population was 2,467 at the 2000 census.
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[edit] History
The City is named for Benjamin Hallowell, a Boston merchant and one of the Kennebec Proprietors, holders of land originally granted to the Plymouth Company by the British monarchy in the 1620s.
First to settle here was Deacon Pease Clark, who emigrated with his wife and son Peter from Attleborough, Massachusetts, in the spring of 1762. Legend has it that after disembarking on the west side of the Kennebec, near present-day Water Street, the Clarks took shelter in their overturned cart. On a riverfront lot measuring 50 rods (275 yards, about 250 meters), the Clark family raised corn, rye and other crops. The land on which the fire department now stands was the first to be cleared. In 1797, the modern city of Augusta split from Hallowell to be a separate town. The part of Hallowell that is the current city was then known as "The Hook".[1] Today, the City's population (2,467) is only slightly smaller than it was in 1820, the year Maine seceded from Massachusetts and became a state in its own right. Yet 183 years ago, Hallowell's inhabitants enjoyed the services of 71 stores along Water Street (by contrast, Augusta had a population of 1,000 and just 20 merchants). Thriving industries included ship building (between 1783 and 1901, 50 ships were launched from Hallowell's wharves), trading, publishing and logging. Two grist mills, five sawmills and two slaughterhouses served the needs of residents near and far.
In 1815, the first granite quarried near the Manchester town line signaled the birth of an industry that would support Hallowell until 1908, when cement displaced stone as the construction material of choice. In 1826, the ice industry began in earnest, employing thousands over the next 75 years. Frozen blocks loaded onto Hallowell's schooners travelled as far as Cuba and the West Indies. Other local products exported via the Kennebec (and, after 1857, by train) from Hallowell included sandpaper, textiles, rope, linseed oil, oilcloth, wire, books and shoes.
While the Kennebec River sustained the City from its inception, this mighty freeway also inspired fear. Spring floods terrorized shopkeepers and sometimes brought commerce to a standstill. Worse still, citizens eager to cross the river and unwary children skating and playing too far from the riverbank lost their lives when ice turned out to be thinner than it looked. The cold wreaked havoc in other ways, as well: On July 9, 1816, a freak frost destroyed crops and forced hungry families to sell their farms for half their worth.
Through good times and bad, however, Hallowell remained a center of learning and of intellectual accomplishment. Private academies and music conservatories attracted students from across the state. Publishers eager to join in the city's lucrative book trade migrated here, as did chemists, physicians, politicians, artists, and inventors (Maine's first automobile came from Hallowell, as did the first practical threshing machine). Today, a walk through Hallowell's mansion-studded streets provides clues to America's past, and to a world all but vanished.
[edit] Geography
Hallowell is located at (44.286802, -69.797884)[2].
According to the United States Census Bureau, the city has a total area of 6.1 square miles (15.8 km²), of which, 5.9 square miles (15.2 km²) of it is land and 0.2 square miles (0.6 km²) of it (3.76%) is water.
[edit] Demographics
As of the census[3] of 2000, there were 2,467 people, 1,145 households, and 604 families residing in the city. The population density was 420.1 people per square mile (162.3/km²). There were 1,243 housing units at an average density of 211.7/sq mi (81.8/km²). The racial makeup of the city was 97.20% White, 0.41% African American, 0.32% Native American, 0.89% Asian, 0.04% Pacific Islander, and 1.13% from two or more races. Hispanic or Latino of any race were 1.13% of the population.
There were 1,145 households out of which 25.2% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 40.7% were married couples living together, 8.6% had a female householder with no husband present, and 47.2% were non-families. 41.5% of all households were made up of individuals and 12.8% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.06 and the average family size was 2.80.
In the city the population was spread out with 21.0% under the age of 18, 6.5% from 18 to 24, 28.1% from 25 to 44, 29.1% from 45 to 64, and 15.4% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 42 years. For every 100 females there were 91.4 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 89.3 males.
The median income for a household in the city was $36,058, and the median income for a family was $50,643. Males had a median income of $32,199 versus $26,531 for females. The per capita income for the city was $20,457. About 3.8% of families and 8.0% of the population were below the poverty line, including 6.6% of those under age 18 and 4.0% of those age 65 or over.
[edit] Notable residents
- Martha Ballard, on whose diary the book A Midwife's Tale by Laurel Thatcher Ulrich was based.
- Jacob Abbott (1803-1879), born in Hallowell, school official and writer of children's books[4]
- Helen Jewett (1813-1836), New York City prostitute famous for having been murdered.
[edit] External links
- Hallowell, Maine is at coordinates Coordinates:
- Hallowell, Maine
- Board of Trade and local businesses, Hallowell
[edit] References
- ^ Maine League of Historical Societies and Museums (1970). in Doris A. Isaacson: Maine: A Guide 'Down East'. Rockland, Me: Courier-Gazette, Inc., 148-152.
- ^ US Gazetteer files: 2000 and 1990. United States Census Bureau (2005-05-03). Retrieved on 2008-01-31.
- ^ American FactFinder. United States Census Bureau. Retrieved on 2008-01-31.
- ^ (1967) Who Was Who in America, Historical Volume, 1607-1896. Marquis Who's Who.
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