Gazetteer of the State of Maine With Numerous Illustrations, by Geo. J. Varney

BOSTON: PUBLISHED BY B. B. RUSSELL, 57 CORNHILL. 1882. Public domain image from

At the Falls, on the Sebastieook, the Kennebec Fibre Company have
a wood paper-pulp mill employing from fifteen to twenty hands There
is also here a mill producing lumber, and wooden shoe-soles, and a
manufactory of potato-planters. The Maine Central Railroad passes
through the town, having a station at Brown’s Corner.

On the hill overlooking Benton Falls many Indian relics were
formerly found. There is a Union church edifice, which is occupied
principally by the Congregationalists. There are also Christian and
Methodist societies. The town has ten public schoolhouses, valued at
$2,000. There are 398 children of school age, of whom 301 are registered
as pupils. The total amount of money actually expended for schools
from April 1, 1878, to April 1, 1879, was $1,537. The valuation of
estates in 1870 was $248,123. In 1880 it was $376,601. The rate of
taxation was about 13 mills on the dollar. The population in 1870
was 1,180. By the census of 1880, it was 1,173.

Berry’s Mill,—a post office in Carthage, Franklin County.

Berwick, in York County, first known as a part of Newicha-
wannock, was incorporated in 1713, being the ninth town in the State.
The territory then included also the present North Berwick and South
Berwick. Settlements appear to have been made here as early as 1624.
Thetitles are derived from Sir Ferdinando Gorges and Rowles, sagamore
of the Newichawannock tribe of Indians. In 1643 Humphrey Chad bourne
purchased of the sagamore a part of the land on which the village of
South Berwick now stands. Spencer and Broughton also purchased
land of Rowles the same year. Among the names of residents about
this time are the well-known Frost, Shapleigh, Heard, Plaisted, Spen-
cer, Broughton, Leader and Wincoln. The Boston and Maine railroad
passes across the southern part of the town, and the Portsmouth, Great
Falls and Conway railroad connects at Great Falls with the former road.
The town is bounded on the north by Lebanon, on the east by North
Berwick, on the south by South Berwick, and on the western side by
New Hampshire. The extent of surface is 13,071 acres, exclusive of
water. Its boundary line with the latter is formed by the Salmon
Falls river. Little River runs across the northern part of the town,
Boundary Brook forms one-third of the eastern line of the town ; and
parallel to the latter is Beaver Dam Brook. Love’s Brook, further
west, runs in the same direction, and Worster Brook runs south-
west to the Salmon Falls River. Tare-shirt Hill, midway of the
town, on the east, and Pine, opposite, near the western side, are the
principal elevations. Knight’s Pond, four or five square miles in
extent, is the largest body of water in town. The rock is principally
granite, and the soil is generally a good sandy loam. The manufactories
are a boot and shoe factory employing about 200 persons when in full
operation, a machine-shop employing twelve to fifteen persons, a soap-
factory, employing about a dozen hands, saw and carpentry mills, a
candy-factory, a tannery and numerous small establishments. The
business centres are Berwick and South Berwick village. Its railroad
connections are just outside of the town at Salmon Falls and Great Falls
villages, in New Hampshire, on the Boston and Maine, and Portland,
Saco, and Portsmouth railroads, and for the north part of the town,
at South Lebanon, on the Portland and Rochester railroad.