Pownal, Maine
Encyclopedia
Pownal is a town in Cumberland County
, Maine
, United States
. The population was 1,491 at the 2000 census. It is part of the Portland
–South Portland
–Biddeford
, Maine Metropolitan Statistical Area
. Pownal is home to Bradbury Mountain State Park
.
on March 3, 1808, named in honor of former Governor Thomas Pownall
, who had died three years before. It swapped land with the town of North Yarmouth
in 1813 and 1816. With an undulating surface of generally productive soil, agriculture
became the principal occupation. By 1859, when the population was 1,074, other industries included a gristmill
and a carriage
factory.
Pownal was chosen by author Stephen King
as the hometown of schoolteacher Johnny Smith, protagonist
of the 1979 novel
The Dead Zone
. King grew up in neighboring Durham
.
, the town has a total area of 23 square miles (59.6 km²). 22.9 square miles (59.3 km²) of it is land and 0.04 square mile (0.1035995244 km²) of it is water. The total area is 0.09% water. Pownal is drained by the eastern branches of the Royal River
.
The town is crossed by state routes 9
and 231.
of 2000, there were 1,491 people, 560 households, and 437 families residing in the town. The population density
was 65.0 people per square mile (25.1/km²). There were 567 housing units at an average density of 24.7 per square mile (9.5/km²). The racial makeup of the town was 97.85% White, 0.47% African American, 0.07% Native American, 0.13% Asian, 0.27% Pacific Islander, 0.13% from other races
, and 1.07% from two or more races. Hispanic or Latino of any race were 0.67% of the population.
There were 560 households out of which 34.1% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 68.4% were married couples
living together, 8.0% had a female householder with no husband present, and 21.8% were non-families. 15.4% of all households were made up of individuals and 4.5% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.66 and the average family size was 2.98.
In the town the population was spread out with 24.3% under the age of 18, 5.3% from 18 to 24, 28.4% from 25 to 44, 31.9% from 45 to 64, and 10.1% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 41 years. For every 100 females there were 98.5 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 96.9 males.
The median income for a household in the town was $54,219, and the median income for a family was $60,000. Males had a median income of $38,000 versus $26,188 for females. The per capita income
for the town was $26,691. About 2.6% of families and 4.3% of the population were below the poverty line, including 7.0% of those under age 18 and 1.5% of those age 65 or over.
Cumberland County, Maine
Cumberland County is a county located in the U.S. state of Maine. As of 2010, the population was 281,674. Its county seat is Portland, and is the most populous of the sixteen Maine counties, as well as the most affluent. Cumberland County has the deepest and second largest body of water in the...
, 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...
, United States
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
. The population was 1,491 at the 2000 census. It is part of the Portland
Portland, Maine
Portland is the largest city in Maine and is the county seat of Cumberland County. The 2010 city population was 66,194, growing 3 percent since the census of 2000...
–South Portland
South Portland, Maine
South Portland is a city in Cumberland County, Maine, United States, and is the fourth-largest city in the state. Founded in 1895, as of the 2010 census, the city population was 25,002. Known for its working waterfront, South Portland is situated on Portland Harbor and overlooks the skyline of...
–Biddeford
Biddeford, Maine
Biddeford is a town in York County, Maine, United States. It is the largest town in the county, and is the sixth-largest in the state. It is the most southerly incorporated town in the state and the principal commercial center of York County. The population was 21,277 at the 2010 census...
, Maine Metropolitan Statistical Area
Portland-South Portland-Biddeford metropolitan area
The Portland–South Portland–Biddeford Metropolitan Statistical Area, also known as Greater Portland, as defined by the United States Census Bureau, is an area consisting of three counties in Maine, anchored by the city of Portland and the smaller cities of South Portland and Biddeford...
. Pownal is home to Bradbury Mountain State Park
Bradbury Mountain State Park
Bradbury Mountain State Park is a state park in Pownal, Cumberland County, Maine. The land was acquired by the federal government of the United States in 1939 with the park being founded in the 1940s. Its borders were extended in the 1990s and 2000s across Maine Route 9 with the addition of the...
.
History
Originally the northwest portion of Freeport, it was first settled in 1680. The town was set off and incorporated by the Massachusetts General CourtMassachusetts General Court
The Massachusetts General Court is the state legislature of the Commonwealth of Massachusetts. The name "General Court" is a hold-over from the Colonial Era, when this body also sat in judgment of judicial appeals cases...
on March 3, 1808, named in honor of former Governor Thomas Pownall
Thomas Pownall
Thomas Pownall was a British politician and colonial official. He was governor of the Province of Massachusetts Bay from 1758 to 1760, and afterward served in the British Parliament. He traveled widely in the North American colonies prior to the American Revolutionary War, and opposed...
, who had died three years before. It swapped land with the town of North Yarmouth
North Yarmouth, Maine
North Yarmouth is a town in Cumberland County, Maine, United States. The population was 3,565 at the 2010 census. It is part of the Portland–South Portland–Biddeford Metropolitan Statistical Area.-Geography:...
in 1813 and 1816. With an undulating surface of generally productive soil, agriculture
Agriculture
Agriculture is the cultivation of animals, plants, fungi and other life forms for food, fiber, and other products used to sustain life. Agriculture was the key implement in the rise of sedentary human civilization, whereby farming of domesticated species created food surpluses that nurtured the...
became the principal occupation. By 1859, when the population was 1,074, other industries included a gristmill
Gristmill
The terms gristmill or grist mill can refer either to a building in which grain is ground into flour, or to the grinding mechanism itself.- Early history :...
and a carriage
Carriage
A carriage is a wheeled vehicle for people, usually horse-drawn; litters and sedan chairs are excluded, since they are wheelless vehicles. The carriage is especially designed for private passenger use and for comfort or elegance, though some are also used to transport goods. It may be light,...
factory.
Pownal was chosen by author Stephen King
Stephen King
Stephen Edwin King is an American author of contemporary horror, suspense, science fiction and fantasy fiction. His books have sold more than 350 million copies and have been adapted into a number of feature films, television movies and comic books...
as the hometown of schoolteacher Johnny Smith, protagonist
Protagonist
A protagonist is the main character of a literary, theatrical, cinematic, or musical narrative, around whom the events of the narrative's plot revolve and with whom the audience is intended to most identify...
of the 1979 novel
Novel
A novel is a book of long narrative in literary prose. The genre has historical roots both in the fields of the medieval and early modern romance and in the tradition of the novella. The latter supplied the present generic term in the late 18th century....
The Dead Zone
The Dead Zone (novel)
The Dead Zone is a horror novel by Stephen King published in 1979. It concerns Johnny Smith, who is injured in an accident and enters a coma for nearly five years. When he emerges, he can see horrifying secrets but cannot identify all the details in his "dead zone", an area of his brain that...
. King grew up in neighboring Durham
Durham, Maine
Durham is a town in Androscoggin County, Maine, United States. The population was 3,419 at the 2000 census. It is included in both the Lewiston-Auburn, Maine Metropolitan Statistical Area and the Lewiston-Auburn, Maine Metropolitan New England City and Town Area.-Geography:According to the United...
.
Geography
According to the United States Census BureauUnited States Census Bureau
The United States Census Bureau is the government agency that is responsible for the United States Census. It also gathers other national demographic and economic data...
, the town has a total area of 23 square miles (59.6 km²). 22.9 square miles (59.3 km²) of it is land and 0.04 square mile (0.1035995244 km²) of it is water. The total area is 0.09% water. Pownal is drained by the eastern branches of the Royal River
Royal River
The Royal River is a small river, long, in southern Maine, United States. The river originates in Sabbathday Pond in New Gloucester and flows northeasterly into Auburn and then southerly through New Gloucester, Gray and North Yarmouth into Casco Bay at Yarmouth. The river is bridged by...
.
The town is crossed by state routes 9
Maine State Route 9
State Route 9 is a numbered state highway in Maine, running from the New Hampshire border at Berwick in the west to the Canadian border with New Brunswick at Calais in the east. State Route 9 runs a total of .-Route description:...
and 231.
Demographics
As of the censusCensus
A census is the procedure of systematically acquiring and recording information about the members of a given population. It is a regularly occurring and official count of a particular population. The term is used mostly in connection with national population and housing censuses; other common...
of 2000, there were 1,491 people, 560 households, and 437 families residing in the town. The population density
Population density
Population density is a measurement of population per unit area or unit volume. It is frequently applied to living organisms, and particularly to humans...
was 65.0 people per square mile (25.1/km²). There were 567 housing units at an average density of 24.7 per square mile (9.5/km²). The racial makeup of the town was 97.85% White, 0.47% African American, 0.07% Native American, 0.13% Asian, 0.27% Pacific Islander, 0.13% from other races
Race (United States Census)
Race and ethnicity in the United States Census, as defined by the Federal Office of Management and Budget and the United States Census Bureau, are self-identification data items in which residents choose the race or races with which they most closely identify, and indicate whether or not they are...
, and 1.07% from two or more races. Hispanic or Latino of any race were 0.67% of the population.
There were 560 households out of which 34.1% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 68.4% were married couples
Marriage
Marriage is a social union or legal contract between people that creates kinship. It is an institution in which interpersonal relationships, usually intimate and sexual, are acknowledged in a variety of ways, depending on the culture or subculture in which it is found...
living together, 8.0% had a female householder with no husband present, and 21.8% were non-families. 15.4% of all households were made up of individuals and 4.5% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.66 and the average family size was 2.98.
In the town the population was spread out with 24.3% under the age of 18, 5.3% from 18 to 24, 28.4% from 25 to 44, 31.9% from 45 to 64, and 10.1% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 41 years. For every 100 females there were 98.5 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 96.9 males.
The median income for a household in the town was $54,219, and the median income for a family was $60,000. Males had a median income of $38,000 versus $26,188 for females. The per capita income
Per capita income
Per capita income or income per person is a measure of mean income within an economic aggregate, such as a country or city. It is calculated by taking a measure of all sources of income in the aggregate and dividing it by the total population...
for the town was $26,691. About 2.6% of families and 4.3% of the population were below the poverty line, including 7.0% of those under age 18 and 1.5% of those age 65 or over.