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

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

in image from

WATERV1LLE.

also his three brothers. Five or six Brown brothers, and the four fam-
ilies of Jewett, Saunders, Chaplin and Greene also came early. Prof.
William W. Greene, M.D., distinguished as a surgeon, was a native of
Waterford. The titles to the lands were principally from Jonathan
Houghton, Henry Gardiner, David Sampson, Jonathan Whitcomb,
chief proprietors.

The town was incorporated March 2, 1797. An Orthodox minister
was settled in 1799, and a militia company formed in the same year.
At present there are two Congregational churches and one Methodist
church in the town. The number of public schoolhouses is fourteen ;
and the school-property is valued at $7,000. The population in 1870
was 1,286 ; polls, 333. In 1880 it was 1,161, with 349 polls. The valu-
ation in 1870 was $403,651. In 1880 it was $338,987.

Waterville lies on the western bank of tbe Kennebec River,
adjoining Fairfield, in Somerset County, on tbe north. Winslow lies
opposite on tbe east side of tbe river, Sidney forms the southern bound-
ary, and West Waterville, the western. The town is 6 miles long, and
about 2 in width. West Waterville was formed from _ it in 1873.
The eastern and western lines of the Maine Central railway form a
junction at the village ; and extensive repair shops of the railroad
company are there located. The principal stream in town is the
Messalonske, which furnishes power near the village for several manu-
factories, among which are a grist-mill, a sash and blind factory, a
shovel-handle factory, a tannery, a boot and shoe-shank factory, etc.
On the Kennebec are two large cotton factories of the Lockwood Com-
pany, and one or two saw-mills.

The surface of the town is little varied by hills, the soil being largely
alluvial. The village itself is built along rambling streets shaded by
elms on a broad plain above the river, where are many pleasant res-
idences, and several with park-like grounds. Near the railway station,
are the buildings of Colby University, two of them elegant structures
of stone, and the remainder of brick. The grounds, which descend to
the river in successive terraces, are well shaded about the buildings by
elms, and below by native trees and shrubbery. The flowing river,
and the high shore opposite form an attractive background The new
building for the scientific department is of granite ; and, with the usual
illustrative cabinets, it has a fine one of birds. It is believed that its
collection of native birds is the best in the State. On the other wing
of the line of buildings is the stone chapel, of variegated colors and
surmounted by a tower. The lower part of the edifice is occupied by
an excellent modern library of some 18,000 volumes. The upper floor,
termed the Memorial Hall, is used as a chapel. It is ornamented with
an adaptation in marble, by Milmore, of Thorwaldsen’s Lion at
Lucerne. The work is wrought from a single marble block, and rep-
resents a lion at the mouth of a cave pierced by a spear. The counte-
nance of the king of beasts shows an agonizing appearance, which bor-
rows much of its expression from the face of the human being. Below
this beautiful work is a marble tablet containing the names of twenty
former students who fell in the war for the Union. This institution
was first organized and incorporated in 1813, and was endowed in that
year by the State with two townships of timber land on the Penobscot,
tn 1820 the institution was granted collegiate powers, and being located