Norway, Maine
259272
223089544
2008-07-02T14:54:43Z
Nyttend
1960810
County template, cut blog
[[Image:Bird's Eye View from Pikes Hill, Norway, ME.jpg|thumb|right|285px|Bird's-eye view in c. 1912]]
'''Norway''' is a [[New England town|town]] in [[Oxford County, Maine|Oxford County]], [[Maine]], [[United States]]. The population was 4,611 at the 2000 census. It is home to Lake Pennesseewassee, a recreation area.
==History==
[[Image:Main Street from Opera House, Norway, ME.jpg|thumb|left|Main Street in 1908]]
The town was first called Rustfield after Henry Rust of [[Salem, Massachusetts|Salem]], [[Massachusetts]], a large landowner. It was cleared and settled after 1786 by Joseph Stevens, followed by George Leslie, Amos Hobbs, Jeremiah Hobbs, Jonas Stevens and Nathaniel Stevens, together with their families from [[Gray, Maine|Gray]]. Many who moved here had been soldiers in the [[American Revolutionary War|Revolutionary War]], including Phineas Whitney, who fought at the [[Battle of Bunker Hill]]. A [[sawmill]] and [[gristmill]] were established in 1789, and in 1796 the first road was built. Rustfield Plantation was incorporated on [[March 9]], [[1797]] as Norway. The town had petitioned the [[Massachusetts General Court]] to be named Norage, although what the word signified, and why it was changed, is unknown -- fire destroyed the town records in 1843. During the [[American Civil War|Civil War]], Norway and other municipalities in Oxford County provided a [[militia]] company to the [[1st Maine Volunteer Infantry Regiment]] under the command of [[George Lafayette Beal]], who would later rise to the rank of [[major general]] and serve as [[State Treasurer|state treasurer]] from 1888 to 1894.
The town had fertile soil for cultivation. The Pennesseewassee Stream, which drains Lake Pennesseewassee into the Little Androscoggin River, provided [[water power]] for industry. At the [[waterfall|falls]] were established 2 [[grain]] mills, a cloth and [[carding]] mill, [[furniture]] factory, box factory and a [[shovel]] handle factory. There was a [[tanning|tannery]], with other businesses making [[horse harness|harness]] and [[trunk (luggage)|trunks]]. A [[shoemaking|shoe]] manufactory was established in 1872. The busy [[stagecoach|stage]] route from [[Paris, Maine|Paris]], the [[county seat]], to [[Fryeburg, Maine|Fryeburg]] passed through Norway. By 1878, there were 32 stores in the town, which for a number of years had the fastest growing population of any similar town in the state. On [[December 30]], [[1879]], the Norway Branch Railroad opened, running from Norway village on a line 1.45 miles long to connect with the [[Atlantic and St. Lawrence Railroad]] (later [[Grand Trunk Railroad]]) at [[South Paris, Maine|South Paris]]. But the Great Norway Fire of [[May 9]], [[1894]] would destroy a substantial portion of the [[business district]]. It started in the C. B. Cummings & Sons mill, and was spread by a strong wind down Main Street. The opera house, tannery, Congregational Church, and 80 homes and other buildings were lost. Much of Norway was rebuilt the same year, with several structures in brick.
Norway was once called the "Snowshoe Capital of the World" because of the many [[snowshoe]]s manufactured here. In 1906, Walter Tubbs established the Tubbs Snowshoe Company to produce [[ash (tree)|ash]] snowshoes, [[skis]], [[sled]]s and furniture. The firm made 70% of the snowshoes ordered by the [[U.S. government]] during [[World War II]], and also supplied the [[polar expedition]]s of [[Richard Evelyn Byrd|Byrd]] and [[Robert Peary|Peary]].<ref name="MAGDE">{{cite book |last= Maine League of Historical Societies and Museums |editor=Doris A. Isaacson |title=Maine: A Guide 'Down East' |year=1970 |publisher=Courier-Gazette, Inc. |location=Rockland, Me | pages = 399 }}</ref> In the 1940s, the Tubbs Company moved to [[Vermont]], and in 2004, it was bought by [[K2 Sports]]. The snowshoes are now made at a factory in [[Guangzhou, China|Guangzhou]], [[China]]. In 1997, the [[New Balance Athletic Shoe, Inc.|New Balance Shoe Company]] built a new manufacturing facility at Norway. The C. B. Cummings & Son Company, founded in 1860 to make [[dowel]]s and other wood products, closed and auctioned its downtown plant in 2001 because of competition from China. In addition, the business had lost customers when furniture factories in the [[Carolinas]] shut down.
==Notable residents==
* [[George Lafayette Beal]], politician & general
* [[Marshall Kirk]], genealogist & writer
* [[George Lorenzo Noyes]], naturalist, writer & artist
* [[Donald B. Partridge]], congressman
* [[Artemus Ward]], humorist
* [[C.A. Stephens]], writer
* [[Miss Libby]], photographer
* [[Vivian Akers]], painter
==Geography==
According to the [[United States Census Bureau]], the town has a total area of 47.5 [[square mile]]s (123.0 [[km²]]), of which, 45.1 square miles (116.8 km²) of it is land and 2.4 square miles (6.2 km²) of it (5.03%) is water. Norway is drained by the Pennesseewassee Stream and Little Androscoggin River.
The town is crossed by state routes [[Maine State Route 26|26]], 117 and 118. It borders the towns of [[Greenwood, Maine|Greenwood]] and [[west Paris, Maine|West Paris]] to the north, [[Paris, Maine|Paris]] to the east, [[Oxford, Maine|Oxford]] to the southeast, [[Otisfield, Maine|Otisfield]] to the south, [[Harrison, Maine|Harrison]] to the southwest, [[Waterford, Maine|Waterford]] to the west, and [[Albany, Maine|Albany]] to the northwest.
==Demographics==
[[Image:Upper Main Street, Norway, ME.jpg|thumb|left|Upper Main Street in c. 1906]]
As of the [[census]]{{GR|2}} of 2000, there were 4,611 people, 1,972 households, and 1,256 families residing in the town. The [[population density]] was 102.3 people per square mile (39.5/km²). There were 2,551 housing units at an average density of 56.6/sq mi (21.8/km²). The racial makeup of the town was 97.83% [[White (U.S. Census)|White]], 0.30% [[African American (U.S. Census)|Black]] or [[Race (United States Census)|African American]], 0.37% [[Native American (U.S. Census)|Native American]], 0.37% [[Asian (U.S. Census)|Asian]], 0.02% [[Pacific Islander (U.S. Census)|Pacific Islander]], 0.13% from [[Race (United States Census)|other races]], and 0.98% from two or more races. [[Hispanic (U.S. Census)|Hispanic]] or [[Latino (U.S. Census)|Latino]] of any race were 0.50% of the population.
There were 1,972 households out of which 27.7% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 49.3% were [[Marriage|married couples]] living together, 11.0% had a female householder with no husband present, and 36.3% were non-families. 29.3% of all households were made up of individuals and 13.4% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.29 and the average family size was 2.78.
[[Image:Boat Landing, Lake Pennesseewassee, Norway, ME.jpg|thumb|right|Boat landing at Lake Pennesseewassee in 1910]]
In the town the population was spread out with 22.5% under the age of 18, 7.0% from 18 to 24, 26.2% from 25 to 44, 26.0% from 45 to 64, and 18.2% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 42 years. For every 100 females there were 87.9 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 85.2 males.
The median income for a household in the town was $28,497, and the median income for a family was $34,464. Males had a median income of $26,612 versus $20,417 for females. The [[per capita income]] for the town was $17,020. About 9.8% of families and 12.7% of the population were below the [[poverty line]], including 16.1% of those under age 18 and 10.1% of those age 65 or over.
==Site of interest==
* [http://www.nhs.norwaymaine.us/ Norway Historical Society & Museum]
==References==
{{reflist}}
==External links==
* [http://www.norwaymaine.com Town of Norway, Maine]
* [http://www.norway.lib.me.us/ Norway Memorial Library]
* [http://www.westernmainevisitorcenter.com/ Oxford Hills Visitor Center]
* [http://www.learn.maine.edu/southparis/ University College at Norway/South Paris]
* [http://www.advertiserdemocrat.com ''Advertiser Democrat'', regional weekly newspaper]
* [http://www.norwaylake.com ''NorwayLake.com'', info about Norway Lake]
* [http://www.norwaylakes.org ''Lakes Association of Norway'']
* [http://history.rays-place.com/me/norway-me.htm History of Norway, Maine (1886)]
* [http://history.rays-place.com/me/norway.htm Historical Sketch of Norway, Maine (1889)]
* [http://www.stolaf.edu/naha/pubs/nas/volume15/vol15_11.htm Origins of the Name: Norway, Maine]
{{Oxford County, Maine}}
[[Category:Oxford County, Maine]]
[[Category:Towns in Maine]]
[[fr:Norway (Maine)]]
[[no:Norway (Maine)]]
[[sv:Norway, Maine]]
[[vo:Norway (Maine)]]