Milford, Maine

Milford, Maine
—  Town  —
Nickname(s): "Best Town in Maine"
Milford, Maine Location within the state of Maine
Coordinates: 44°57′0″N 68°38′24″W / 44.95°N 68.64°W / 44.95; -68.64Coordinates: 44°57′0″N 68°38′24″W / 44.95°N 68.64°W / 44.95; -68.64
Country	United States
State	Maine
County	Penobscot County
Area
– Total	45.8 sq mi (118.6 km2)
– Land	45.6 sq mi (118.1 km2)
– Water	0.2 sq mi (0.5 km2)
Population (2000)
– Total	2,950
– Density	64.4/sq mi (24.9/km2)
Time zone	Eastern (UTC+5)
ZIP code	04461
Area code(s)	207

Milford is a town in Penobscot County, Maine, United States. It is located across the Penobscot River from Old Town, Maine. The population was 2,950 at the 2000 census. The town's slogan is "The Best Dam Town in Maine," referring to the dam abutting Milford on the Penobscot River, south of the Penobscot Indian Island Reservation.

History

Milford was a major sawmill site in the 19th century, with most of its lumber shipped from nearby Bangor, Maine. The large Bodwell Water Power Co. Saw-mills (1889), owned by Maine Governor Joseph Robinson Bodwell burned in 1891, almost taking the village with it.^[1] The present Bodwell Water Power Co. Plant, also known as the Milford Plant of the Bangor Hydro, was built in 1906 and is listed on the National Register of Historic Places. It was designed by Wallace C. Johnson, a civil engineer who also worked on hydro-power projects at Niagara Falls.

The Milford Congregational Church, designed and built by Asa T. Wing, is also listed on the National Register.

Geography

According to the United States Census Bureau, the town has a total area of 45.8 square miles (118.6 km²), of which, 45.6 square miles (118.1 km²) of it is land and 0.2 square miles (0.5 km²) of it (0.44%) is water.

The Sunkhaze Meadows National Wildlife Refuge is located in Milford.

Demographics

See also: Milford (CDP), Maine

As of the census^[2] of 2000, there were 2,950 people, 1,180 households, and 797 families residing in the town. The population density was 64.7 people per square mile (25.0/km²). There were 1,248 housing units at an average density of 27.4 per square mile (10.6/km²). The racial makeup of the town was 96.51% White, 0.10% Black or African American, 1.32% Native American, 0.47% Asian, 0.03% Pacific Islander, 0.41% from other races, and 1.15% from two or more races. Hispanic or Latino of any race were 0.54% of the population.

There were 1,180 households out of which 33.1% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 54.7% were married couples living together, 9.2% had a female householder with no husband present, and 32.4% were non-families. 21.7% of all households were made up of individuals and 6.9% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.50 and the average family size was 2.93.

In the town the population was spread out with 23.7% under the age of 18, 10.7% from 18 to 24, 32.8% from 25 to 44, 21.9% from 45 to 64, and 10.8% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 36 years. For every 100 females there were 98.4 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 95.3 males.

The median income for a household in the town was $39,500, and the median income for a family was $46,542. Males had a median income of $33,359 versus $25,758 for females. The per capita income for the town was $17,649. About 9.7% of families and 10.8% of the population were below the poverty line, including 9.6% of those under age 18 and 13.8% of those age 65 or over.

Notable people

• Jane Weinberger, author, publisher, wife of Secretary of Defense Caspar Weinberger.
• Lulu Hunt Peters, doctor and syndicated health columnist

References

1. ^ New York Times, June. 21, 1891
2. ^ "American FactFinder". United States Census Bureau. http://factfinder.census.gov. Retrieved 2008-01-31.