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Whitefield
gets its name from the celebrated British evangelist George
Whitefield,
who inspired the colonists before the town was settled in 1770.
They remembered him when incorporation came in 1809.
The earliest
organized religious settlement was centered within the bucolic parish
of Saint
Denis, located
on a hill in the Irish Section of town. The area was so reminiscent of
the countryside of Ireland that it became home to many from the old
country, whose headstones tell of origins in the Emerald Isle.
Our fertile and
wooded river valley has provided sustenance and energy to woodsmen,
farmers, millers, sawyers and their families for decades.
All who plied
their trade and practiced their craft were thankful for the power and
beauty of the Sheepscot
River. The variety of "privileges" has supported over
twelve mills through times past. The water wheels that helped produce
shingles, beams, boards, barrels, flour, meal, cider and woolens are now
gone. What remains are the cool rocked walls that still guide the river
currents into pools where Atlantic Salmon and Brook Trout rise to
feed in the shadows.
The three villages of this quiet pastoral
community: King's Mills, Whitefield and Coopers Mills are linked by the
graceful Sheepscot River that meanders down the towns very middle. There
have been no fewer than eight bridges spanning the river - carrying
sheep, hay wagons, Amish buggies, narrow gauge trains, logging trucks
and parades.
Today, Whitefield's population is a cooperative mix
of farmers, artists, woodsmen and professionals, all with the
independent spirit that gave our town its start. Even now the Grand Army
Civil War Veterans Hall ( now our Library ),
grange halls, churches, volunteer fire departments, health center,
townhouse and school are alive with public suppers, dances, plays, ball
games, civic events and celebrations.
As it has been for 200
years, Whitefield is active, vital yet private and respectful of the
individual's character that helps make Maine unique.
David Chase
It's a Mainething !
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