Moosehead Lake
Encyclopedia
Moosehead Lake is the largest lake
in the U.S. state
of Maine
and the largest mountain lake in the eastern United States
. Situated in the Longfellow Mountains
in the Maine Highlands Region, the lake is the source of the Kennebec River
. Towns that border the lake include Greenville
to the south and Rockwood
to the northwest. There are over 80 islands in the lake, the largest being Sugar Island
. The area has been the focal point of a controversy surrounding planned large scale commercial development, and the environmental practices of the developer.
, with 700-foot (200 m) cliffs rising straight up from Moosehead Lake, has attracted visitors for centuries, from early American Indians
(Red Paint People
), to later tribes seeking its flint
called hornstone, Penobscots and Norridgewock
s, the Abenaki bands who battled here with their enemy the Mohawk
s, to 19th-century "rusticators" traveling by railroad and steamboat
and today's hotel guests. Various species dwell among its cliffs and talus
slopes, including peregrine falcon
s and rare plants.
The Moosehead region includes the headwaters of the Kennebec, the West Branch of the Penobscot
, the Piscataquis
, the Pleasant
, and the St. John rivers. Henry David Thoreau
and other 19th-century visitors remarked on the beauty of the area.
Set at an elevation of 1,023 feet (312 m), Moosehead Lake is approx. 40 by 10 miles (64 by 16 km), with an area of 120 mile² (311 km²), and over 400 miles (640 km) of shoreline. Its major inlet
is the Moose River, which, east of Jackman
, flows through Long Pond to Brassua Lake. To the east of Moosehead Lake, the Roach River is its second largest tributary
. Flowing out of Moosehead Lake to the southwest are its east and west outlets — the Kennebec River.
The Moosehead Lake Region encompasses 4,400 square miles (11,000 km²) of West Central Maine, and includes 127 townships in addition to Moosehead Lake. The region is drained by 330 miles (530 km) of main stem rivers, into which flow 3,850 miles (6,200 km) of smaller tributaries. During the last glacial era, more than 1,200 natural lakes and ponds were carved into its landscape, varying in size from one acre (4,000 m²) ponds to Moosehead, at 74,890 acres (303 km²) one of the largest natural freshwater lakes in the United States. The total area of all standing surface waters in the region is more than 238,000 acres (963 km²) — 24% of the total area of lakes and ponds in Maine.
-based Plum Creek
Real Estate Investment Corporation, the largest private United States
landowner, submitted a development proposal for the Moosehead region in April, 2005. The 570-page proposal was the largest development ever proposed for the State of Maine. This development was to bring residents, money, and tourists to Maine. The initial version of the scheme called for 975 house lots, 2 resorts, a golf course
, a marina
, 3 RV
parks, and more than 100 rental cabins. The plan was accepted by the Maine Land Use Regulatory Committee, despite public opposition. Adding to the controversy, the developer has been fined for illegally clear-cutting sections of forest.
Lake
A lake is a body of relatively still fresh or salt water of considerable size, localized in a basin, that is surrounded by land. Lakes are inland and not part of the ocean and therefore are distinct from lagoons, and are larger and deeper than ponds. Lakes can be contrasted with rivers or streams,...
in the U.S. state
U.S. state
A U.S. state is any one of the 50 federated states of the United States of America that share sovereignty with the federal government. Because of this shared sovereignty, an American is a citizen both of the federal entity and of his or her state of domicile. Four states use the official title of...
of Maine
Maine
Maine is a state in the New England region of the northeastern United States, bordered by the Atlantic Ocean to the east and south, New Hampshire to the west, and the Canadian provinces of Quebec to the northwest and New Brunswick to the northeast. Maine is both the northernmost and easternmost...
and the largest mountain lake in the eastern United States
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
. Situated in the Longfellow Mountains
Longfellow Mountains
In 1959, the Maine Legislature voted to give the various mountains and ranges in Maine the collective name of the Longfellow Mountains, in honor of the Maine-born poet Henry Wadsworth Longfellow . Despite its official status, the term has very little currency...
in the Maine Highlands Region, the lake is the source of the Kennebec River
Kennebec River
The Kennebec River is a river that is entirely within the U.S. state of Maine. It rises in Moosehead Lake in west-central Maine. The East and West Outlets join at Indian Pond and the river then flows southward...
. Towns that border the lake include Greenville
Greenville, Maine
Greenville is a town in Piscataquis County, Maine, United States. The population was 1,623 at the 2000 census. The town is centered around the lower end of Moosehead Lake, the largest body of fresh water in the state. Greenville is the historic gateway to the north country and a center for...
to the south and Rockwood
Rockwood, Maine
Rockwood is a village in Somerset County, Maine, United States. The village is centered on the west end of Moosehead Lake, the largest body of fresh water in the state...
to the northwest. There are over 80 islands in the lake, the largest being Sugar Island
Sugar Island (Maine)
Sugar Island is an island located in Maine's Moosehead Lake. It is roughly four miles long and two miles wide . Sugar Island is Moosehead Lake's largest island....
. The area has been the focal point of a controversy surrounding planned large scale commercial development, and the environmental practices of the developer.
History
Mount KineoMount Kineo
Mount Kineo, situated beside Moosehead Lake in Maine, is in the northern Maine forest, which stretches north to Canada. Kineo is a peninsula, comprising 1,150 acres , which extends from the easterly shore into the lake...
, with 700-foot (200 m) cliffs rising straight up from Moosehead Lake, has attracted visitors for centuries, from early American Indians
Native Americans in the United States
Native Americans in the United States are the indigenous peoples in North America within the boundaries of the present-day continental United States, parts of Alaska, and the island state of Hawaii. They are composed of numerous, distinct tribes, states, and ethnic groups, many of which survive as...
(Red Paint People
Red Paint People
The Red Paint People are a pre-Columbian culture indigenous to the New England and Atlantic Canada regions of North America. They were named after their burials, which used large quantities of ochre, normally red, to cover both bodies and grave goods...
), to later tribes seeking its flint
Flint
Flint is a hard, sedimentary cryptocrystalline form of the mineral quartz, categorized as a variety of chert. It occurs chiefly as nodules and masses in sedimentary rocks, such as chalks and limestones. Inside the nodule, flint is usually dark grey, black, green, white, or brown in colour, and...
called hornstone, Penobscots and Norridgewock
Norridgewock
The Norridgewock were a band of the Abenaki Native Americans/First Nations, an Eastern Algonquian tribe of the United States and Canada. The tribe occupied an area in Maine to the west and northwest of the Penawapskewi tribe, which was located on the western bank of the Penobscot River...
s, the Abenaki bands who battled here with their enemy the Mohawk
Mohawk nation
Mohawk are the most easterly tribe of the Iroquois confederation. They call themselves Kanien'gehaga, people of the place of the flint...
s, to 19th-century "rusticators" traveling by railroad and steamboat
Steamboat
A steamboat or steamship, sometimes called a steamer, is a ship in which the primary method of propulsion is steam power, typically driving propellers or paddlewheels...
and today's hotel guests. Various species dwell among its cliffs and talus
Scree
Scree, also called talus, is a term given to an accumulation of broken rock fragments at the base of crags, mountain cliffs, or valley shoulders. Landforms associated with these materials are sometimes called scree slopes or talus piles...
slopes, including peregrine falcon
Peregrine Falcon
The Peregrine Falcon , also known as the Peregrine, and historically as the Duck Hawk in North America, is a widespread bird of prey in the family Falconidae. A large, crow-sized falcon, it has a blue-gray back, barred white underparts, and a black head and "moustache"...
s and rare plants.
The Moosehead region includes the headwaters of the Kennebec, the West Branch of the Penobscot
Penobscot River
The Penobscot River is a river in the U.S. state of Maine. Including the river's West Branch and South Branch increases the Penobscot's length to , making it the second longest river system in Maine and the longest entirely in the state. Its drainage basin contains .It arises from four branches...
, the Piscataquis
Piscataquis River
The Piscataquis River is a major tributary of the Penobscot River, found in Piscataquis County, Maine, United States. It starts from the confluence of its East Branch and West Branch in Blanchard. The river flows in a mostly eastern direction until it meets the Penobscot at Howland...
, the Pleasant
Pleasant River (Piscataquis River)
The Pleasant River is a tributary of the Piscataquis River in Piscataquis County, Maine. From the confluence of the East Branch and West Branch in Brownville, the river runs south and southeast to its mouth on the Piscataquis in Medford.-References:**...
, and the St. John rivers. Henry David Thoreau
Henry David Thoreau
Henry David Thoreau was an American author, poet, philosopher, abolitionist, naturalist, tax resister, development critic, surveyor, historian, and leading transcendentalist...
and other 19th-century visitors remarked on the beauty of the area.
Geography
Inlet
An inlet is a narrow body of water between islands or leading inland from a larger body of water, often leading to an enclosed body of water, such as a sound, bay, lagoon or marsh. In sea coasts an inlet usually refers to the actual connection between a bay and the ocean and is often called an...
is the Moose River, which, east of Jackman
Jackman, Maine
Jackman is a town in Somerset County, Maine, United States. The population was 718 at the 2000 census.-Geography:According to the United States Census Bureau, the town has a total area of , of which, of it is land and of it is water....
, flows through Long Pond to Brassua Lake. To the east of Moosehead Lake, the Roach River is its second largest tributary
Tributary
A tributary or affluent is a stream or river that flows into a main stem river or a lake. A tributary does not flow directly into a sea or ocean...
. Flowing out of Moosehead Lake to the southwest are its east and west outlets — the Kennebec River.
The Moosehead Lake Region encompasses 4,400 square miles (11,000 km²) of West Central Maine, and includes 127 townships in addition to Moosehead Lake. The region is drained by 330 miles (530 km) of main stem rivers, into which flow 3,850 miles (6,200 km) of smaller tributaries. During the last glacial era, more than 1,200 natural lakes and ponds were carved into its landscape, varying in size from one acre (4,000 m²) ponds to Moosehead, at 74,890 acres (303 km²) one of the largest natural freshwater lakes in the United States. The total area of all standing surface waters in the region is more than 238,000 acres (963 km²) — 24% of the total area of lakes and ponds in Maine.
Development plans
SeattleSeattle, Washington
Seattle is the county seat of King County, Washington. With 608,660 residents as of the 2010 Census, Seattle is the largest city in the Northwestern United States. The Seattle metropolitan area of about 3.4 million inhabitants is the 15th largest metropolitan area in the country...
-based Plum Creek
Plum Creek Timber
Plum Creek Timber is the largest private landowner in the United States. Most of its lands were originally purchased, or otherwise acquired as timberland....
Real Estate Investment Corporation, the largest private United States
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
landowner, submitted a development proposal for the Moosehead region in April, 2005. The 570-page proposal was the largest development ever proposed for the State of Maine. This development was to bring residents, money, and tourists to Maine. The initial version of the scheme called for 975 house lots, 2 resorts, a golf course
Golf course
A golf course comprises a series of holes, each consisting of a teeing ground, fairway, rough and other hazards, and a green with a flagstick and cup, all designed for the game of golf. A standard round of golf consists of playing 18 holes, thus most golf courses have this number of holes...
, a marina
Marina
A marina is a dock or basin with moorings and supplies for yachts and small boats.A marina differs from a port in that a marina does not handle large passenger ships or cargo from freighters....
, 3 RV
Recreational vehicle
Recreational vehicle or RV is, in North America, the usual term for a Motor vehicle or trailer equipped with living space and amenities found in a home.-Features:...
parks, and more than 100 rental cabins. The plan was accepted by the Maine Land Use Regulatory Committee, despite public opposition. Adding to the controversy, the developer has been fined for illegally clear-cutting sections of forest.