thumb|Traffic alongside the Camden National Bank downtown; Ellsworth is now the fastest growing city in the state of [[Maine.]]

thumb|alt=The neon lights of The Grand's marquee light up Main St. in downtown Ellsworth, Maine at dusk.|The neon lights of The Grand's marquee light up Main Street in downtown Ellsworth, Maine at dusk.

thumb|[[The Ellsworth American|The Ellsworth American newspaper has operated since 1851.]]

thumb|A glimpse of Indian Point Preserve Trail, a rural enclave in Ellsworth

Ellsworth is a city in and the county seat of Hancock County, Maine, United States. The 2020 Census determined it had a population of 8,399. Named after United States Founding Father Oliver Ellsworth, it contains historic buildings and other points of interest, and is close to Acadia National Park.

History

Early history and indigenous peoples

According to the history of the Passamaquoddy people, the Ellsworth area was originally inhabited by members of the Passamaquoddy and Penobscot tribes: "Both groups speak closely related Algonquian languages, although anthropologists generally group the Passamaquoddies linguistically with the Maliseets and the Penobscots with the Abenakis."

The first European who made definite mention of the area was Thevet, a French explorer, in 1556. Martin Pring and Captain Weymouth, the English explorers, sailed along the shores of Penobscot Bay in 1603 and 1605, and DeMonts, the Frenchman, explored some portions of the coast in 1604 and 1605. According to George J. Varney's 1886 Gazetteer of the State of Maine, there is a tradition that Rosier, the historian of Weymouth's expedition, explored Deer Island thoroughfare, making a halt at the bold promontory in Brooksville, known as Cape Rosier. They found the county occupied by a tribe of Indians, who with those on Passamaquoddy waters, were noted for their long journeys in canoes; whence the general name for these Indians, Etechmins.

Colonial period (1604–1763)

DeMonts claimed the country in the name of the King of France in the true Catholic style, setting up a cross and calling the country "Acadie." By this name it continued to be known until the capture of Quebec by General James Wolfe in 1759. When Weymouth came in 1605, he also claimed the country in the name of his King, James I of England. Thus the two leading powers of Europe became adverse claimants of the soil of Hancock County, and the wars these claims occasioned kept the county an almost unbroken wilderness during the provincial history of Maine.

The Ellsworth area was disputed between the English and the French throughout the 17th century and well into the 18th century, occasioning intermittent warfare which was known to the English as the French and Indian Wars. Native American inhabitants may have converted to Roman Catholicism and fought with the French against the British until the fall of Quebec City to the British in 1759. After the 1763 signing of the Treaty of Paris by the governments of the United Kingdom, France, Spain and Portugal, Ellsworth became part of the Commonwealth of Massachusetts.

Settlement and incorporation (1763–1800)

The modern history of Ellsworth begins with the settlement of the Union River area around 1763 by a party of English led by entrepreneurs Benjamin Milliken and Benjamin Joy, from present-day southern Maine and New Hampshire, who intended to build dams and sawmills to exploit the area's timber and water power. They applied for grants offered by the Commonwealth of Massachusetts to encourage settlement of the Hancock County area. Historian Albert H. Davis in his History of Ellsworth, Maine, published in Lewiston, Maine, in 1927, relates what is known of this early expedition and points to the northern end of the present Water Street, just to the south of the present bridge across the Union River, as the site of the earlier crude buildings erected by the pioneers.

The first grants of land in the county were six townships, each six miles square, between the rivers Penobscot and Union (then known as the Donaqua), which were granted to David Marsh et al., by the General Court of Massachusetts, upon conditions, one of which was that they should settle each township with 60 Protestant families within six years. These grants were No. 1, Bucksport; 2, Orland; 3, Penobscot; 4, Sedgwick; 5, Blue Hill; and 6, Surry. Six other townships east of the Union River were granted on the same terms; three of which are in this county, viz.: No. 1, Trenton, granted to Eben Thorndike, et al.; 2, Sullivan, to David Bean, et al.; and 3, Mount Desert (Island) to Governor Bernard. The surveys were made by Samuel Livermore; and as there were three of the townships on each side of the river, it gave rise to the name which the stream now bears.

Civil War era and late 19th century (1860–1900)

Between 1860 and 1865, Ellsworth sent 653 soldiers to fight in the Civil War, according to historian Albert Davis. This was at a time when there were only 847 (male) voters in the area. Military training was held in front of the county buildings on Bridge Hill, west of the Union River, at the site of the present Civil War Monument. Located at the head of navigation, Ellsworth is drained by the Union River. Ellsworth Falls is the location of the Agassiz Outcrop Maine Geological Survey: Maine ACF, a National Historic Landmark, notable for its early recognition as evidence of glaciation.

The city is served by U.S. Route 1 and U.S. Route 1A, in addition to state routes 3, 172, 179, 180, 184 and 230.

Neighboring cities and towns

Climate

Ellsworth has a humid continental climate (Köppen: Dfb) of the warm summer type. As much of Maine winters are harsh and snowy throughout the season, even being at latitudes similar to southern France, such discrepancies are due to the western patterns and the Labrador Current. In places to the northwest of the city, as around Branch Lake, the USDA hardiness zone is 5a, while in the urban area it is 5b, as is much of the state's coastline.

Demographics

thumb|Ellsworth City Hall (1935)

thumb|[[L.L. Bean Outlet in Ellsworth]]

thumb|upright|The [[Ellsworth Congregational Church|First Congregational Church of Ellsworth is a United Church of Christ congregation.]]

2020 census

As of the 2020 census, Ellsworth had a population of 8,399. The median age was 44.4 years. 19.6% of residents were under the age of 18 and 22.1% were 65 years of age or older. For every 100 females, there were 92.4 males, and for every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 89.1 males age 18 and over.

0.0% of residents lived in urban areas, while 100.0% lived in rural areas.

There were 3,680 households in Ellsworth, of which 24.0% had children under the age of 18 living in them. Of all households, 43.2% were married-couple households, 18.4% were households with a male householder and no spouse or partner present, and 28.6% were households with a female householder and no spouse or partner present. About 33.6% of all households were made up of individuals, and 15.1% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. of 2010, there were 7,741 people, 3,305 households, and 2,048 families residing in the city. The population density was . There were 4,240 housing units at an average density of . The racial makeup of the city was 96.7% White, 0.7% African American, 0.4% Native American, 1.1% Asian, 0.1% Pacific Islander, 0.3% from other races, and 0.9% from two or more races. Hispanic or Latino of any race were 1.4% of the population.

There were 3,305 households, of which 29.3% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 47.0% were married couples living together, 10.6% had a female householder with no husband present, 4.3% had a male householder with no wife present, and 38.0% were non-families. 30.2% of all households were made up of individuals, and 12% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.27 and the average family size was 2.81.

The median age in the city was 41.9 years. 21.5% of residents were under the age of 18; 7.1% were between the ages of 18 and 24; 25.3% were from 25 to 44; 29.9% were from 45 to 64; and 16.1% were 65 years of age or older. The gender makeup of the city was 47.5% male and 52.5% female.

2000 census

In the 2000 census, there were 6,456 people, 2,755 households, and 1,782 families in the city. The population density was . There were 3,442 housing units at an average density of . The racial makeup ofwas 97.79% White, 0.19% African American, 0.29% Native American, 0.42% Asian, 0.03% Pacific Islander, 0.29% from other races, and 0.99% from two or more races. 0.65% of the population were Hispanic or Latino of any race.

There were 2,755 households, of which 27.7% had children under 18 living with them, 51.4% were married couples living together, 10.1% had a female householder with no husband present, and 35.3% were non-families. 29.1% of all households were made up of individuals, and 11.8% had someone living alone 65 years or older. The average household size was 2.26 and the average family size 2.75.

In the city, the population was 21.9% under 18, 6.7% from 18 to 24, 29.0% from 25 to 44, 25.2% from 45 to 64, and 17.2% who were 65 or older. The median age was 40. For every 100 females, there were 88.3 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 86.4 males.

The median income for a household was $35,938, and the median for a family $41,884. Males had a median of $31,455 versus $22,188 for females. The per capita income for the city was $21,049. 9.2% of the population and 5.7% of families were below the poverty line. 9.4% of those under 18 and 8.3% of those 65 and older were below the poverty line.

Government

Sites of interest

  • Birdsacre—Stanwood Homestead Museum & Wildlife Sanctuary
  • Ellsworth Historical Society Building
  • Ellsworth Public Library
  • The Grand—performing arts theatre, listed on the National Register of Historic Places (NRHP)
  • Telephone Museum
  • Woodlawn Museum—the Black House, NRHP-listed

Notable people

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  • Johannes Bapst, missionary and educator
  • Robert H. Crosthwaite, state representative and city councilor
  • Curt Fullerton, baseball player
  • Nicole Grohoski, State Senator
  • Eugene Hale, U.S. Senator
  • Marsden Hartley, U.S. painter
  • Brian Langley, State Senator
  • Clarence Cook Little, geneticist
  • Louis Luchini, State Senator
  • Asa McGray, Free Will Baptist minister
  • Betsy Flagg Melcher, American artist
  • Benjamin Milliken, American Loyalist and founder of Ellsworth, Maine (fled to Canada)
  • Bryant Moore, (1894-1951) United States Army major general
  • Frank A. Moore, politician and judge
  • John A. Peters (1822–1904), U.S. Congressman
  • John A. Peters (1864–1953), U.S. Congressman (nephew of John A. Peters of 1822)
  • Graham Platner, oyster farmer, harbormaster, and candidate for the U.S. senate
  • Darryl Pollard, football player
  • Fulton J. Redman, state Congressman and candidate for the US Senate and Governor
  • Dick Scott, shortstop with the Oakland Athletics
  • Cordelia Stanwood, teacher, ornithologist, and wildlife photographer
  • Tim Sylvia, former UFC Heavyweight champion
  • Mary Agnes Tincker, novelist
  • John Hay Whitney, publisher and ambassador
  • James Worth, better known as J. Mark Worth, state representative and resident of Ellsworth

References

  • City of Ellsworth, Maine
  • Ellsworth Public Library
  • Ellsworth Area Chamber of Commerce
  • Ellsworth American weekly newspaper