Belfast (Maine)

Belfast
Post Office Square
Location in Maine
Belfast
Basic data
Foundation :	June 29, 1773
State :	United States
State :	Maine
County :	Waldo County
Coordinates :	44 ° 26 ′  N , 69 ° 2 ′  W Coordinates: 44 ° 26 ′  N , 69 ° 2 ′  W
Time zone :	Eastern ( UTC − 5 / −4 )
Residents :	6,668 (as of 2010)
Population density :	75.6 inhabitants per km 2
Area :	99.38 km 2  (approx. 38 mi 2 ) of which 88.16 km 2  (approx. 34 mi 2 ) is land
Height :	62 m
Postal code :	04915
Area code :	+1 207
FIPS :	23-03950
GNIS ID :	0582347
Website :	www.cityofbelfast.org
Mayor :	Eric Sanders

Belfast is a city in Waldo County in the state of Maine in the United States . In 2010 there were 6,668 inhabitants in 3,582 households on an area of ​​99.38 km². Belfast is the Shire Town of Waldo County.

geography

According to the United States Census Bureau , Belfast has a total area of ​​99.38 km², of which 88.16 km² is land and 11.21 km² consists of water .

Geographical location

Belfast is in the south of Waldo County at the confluence of the Passassawakeag River in the Atlantic Ocean . The Upper Manson Pond and the south to from this Lower Pond Manson are to the east of the area and the Belfast Reservoir Number Two and the Belfast Reservoir Number One in the southwest. The surface is flat, without any significant elevations.

Neighboring communities

All distances are given as straight lines between the official coordinates of the places from the 2010 census.

• North: Swanville , 6.4 mi
• East: Searsport , 5.8 mi
• Southeast: Islesboro , 10 mi
• South: Northport , 4.9 mi
• Southwest: Belmont , 8.0 km
• West: Morrill , 7.1 miles
• Northwest: Waldo , 4.3 mi

City structure

There are several residential areas in Belfast : Belfast , Bryants Corner , City Point , Dog Island Corner , Hayford Corner , Head of the Tide , Holmes Mill , Poors Mill , Shermans Corner , Simpsons Corner and Waldo .

climate

The mean mean temperature in Belfast is between -6.1 ° C (21  ° F ) in January and 20.6 ° C (69 ° F) in July. This means that the place is around 9 degrees cooler than the long-term average in the USA. The snowfalls between October and May are up to two and a half meters, more than twice as high as the average snow depth in the USA; the daily sunshine duration is at the lower end of the range in the USA.

history

Settlement by European settlers began in Belfast in the spring of 1770. Scottish-Irish families from the area of Londonderry , New Hampshire settled at the time. The town was founded on June 19, 1773. Belfast was named after the city of the same name, Belfast in Northern Ireland . Tradition has it that the name goes back to a coin toss. Fearing British attack, these first settlers left the area during the American Revolution . However, they returned in the 1780s and established an outpost that became a market center.

In a vote to secede from Massachusetts in 1807, the residents of Belfast voted as one of three coastal parishes, the others being Lincolnville and Bath. Seven years later, due in part to Massachusetts' failure to send aid, Belfast was occupied by the British during the War of 1812.

In the decades that followed, Belfast developed into a shipbuilding site, benefiting from the existing wood. Several hundred wooden sailing boats were built by the local shipbuilders. As a result, more than 30% of the male population was employed in maritime trade in the 19th century.

Part of Belfast was spun off in 1845 and organized as an independent Town Searsport. Belfast was organized as the City on April 3, 1852, as the eighth City of Maine.

With the Belfast and Moosehead Lake Railroad , Belfast was connected to the North American railway network in 1870 by the Burnham Junction – Belfast railway.

In the Downtown Belfast area, two major fires in 1865 and 1873 destroyed or badly damaged many houses. They were replaced by brick buildings by the local merchants. This created a residential and commercial district, the Belfast Historic District , which was entered on the National Register of Historic Places.

On March 14, 1925, the first international radio broadcast was broadcast from London to Belfast and via Searsmont to New York City.

In the 20th century Belfast transformed from a shipbuilding and trading city to a working class city. The main employer was a shoe factory in the industrial area. Processing plants for poultry, sardines and potatoes were built in the 1950s. Belfast was called the broiler capital of the world at the time .

The center flourished again in the 1980s with the relocation and construction of US Highway 1 around the Belfast settlement area. The historical buildings have been restored and cultural institutions have settled in the center.

Population development

Census Results - Town of Belfast, Maine
year	1700	1710	1720	1730	1740	1750	1760	1770	1780	1790
Residents										245
year	1800	1810	1820	1830	1840	1850	1860	1870	1880	1890
Residents	674	1274	2026	3077	4186	5051	5520	5278	5308	5294
year	1900	1910	1920	1930	1940	1950	1960	1970	1980	1990
Residents	4615	4618	5083	4993	5540	5960	6140	5957	6243	6355
year	2000	2010	2020	2030	2040	2050	2060	2070	2080	2090
Residents	6381	6668

Culture and sights

Buildings

In Belfast, several structures and districts have been listed and placed on the National Register of Historic Places .

Districts

• Belfast Commercial Historic District , 1980 under registration no. 80000257.
• Belfast Historic District , 1986 under registration no. 86002733.
• Church Street Historic District , 1978 under registration no. 78000331.
• Primrose Hill Historic District , 1973 under registration no. 73000150.

Buildings

• First Church of Belfast , 1976 under registration no. 76000115.
• Hayford Block , 1977 under the register no. 78000202.
• Hezekiah Chase House , 1978 under the register no. 77000087.
• Masonic Temple , 1973 under the register no. 73000246.
• James P. White House , 1973 under registration no. 73000245.

Economy and Infrastructure

traffic

The US Highway 1 runs along the shoreline of Belfast. He overcomes the Passassawakeag River , which flows into the Atlantic Ocean in the center of Belfast, with a bridge. The Maine State Route 173 , Maine State Route 3 and Maine State Route 52 lead from the north, west and south in the center of Belfast on the highway.

Belfast is home to Belfast Municipal Airport .

Public facilities

There are several medical facilities in Belfast. These are also used by the residents of the surrounding communities. The Belfast City Free Library goes back to the Belfast Library Society, which was founded in 1800. Initially, the first books were stored in the house of Reverent Ebenezar Price, who was a founding member of the Library Society. They then moved to James Nesmith's store. The Society was dissolved in 1815. A second initiative started in 1824 with 200 books; it was dissolved in 1829 by Noyes P. Howes. Finally, in 1880, Paul Hazeltine and Nathanial Wilson raised money to build a library. The Belfast Free Library was finally established on February 3, 1887.

education

Belfast belongs to RSU # 71 with Belmont, Morrill, Searsmont and Swanville . The following schools are offered in the school district:

• Ames Elementary School in Searsmont
• Gladys Weymouth Elementary School in Morrill
• Captain Albert Stevens Elementary School in Belfast
• East Belfast Elementary in Belfast
• Nickerson Elementary in Belfast
• Troy Howard Middle School in Belfast
• Belfast Area High School in Belfast

Personalities

sons and daughters of the town

• William G. Crosby (1805–1881), politician and governor of Maine
• Ephraim K. Smart (1813–1872), politician
• William Wilder (1855–1913), politician
• William V. Pratt (1869–1957), Admiral

Personalities who have worked on site

• Nathan Read (1759–1849), politician and judge
• Abiel Wood (1772-1834), politician
• John Wilson (1777-1848), politician
• Joseph Green Cogswell (1786–1871), librarian, bibliographer, and innovative educator
• James White (1792–1870), politician and Maine State Treasurer
• Phineas Parkhurst Quimby (1802–1866), Quimby is considered the spiritual father of the New Spirit movement
• Nehemiah Abbott (1804–1877), politician and Mayor of Belfast
• William H. McLellan (1832–1912), politician and lawyer
• Clyde R. Chapman (1889–1978), politician and Maine Attorney General
• Bern Porter (1911–2004), physicist, publisher and writer

Individual evidence

1. ^ Belfast in the United States Geological Survey's Geographic Names Information System , accessed June 5, 2020
2. ↑ Maine 2010 Census Results ; official publication of the Census Authority, (English; PDF; 32.5 MB)
3. ↑ Coordinates of the locations of the Census Authority 2010
4. ↑ ^{a b} Belfast, Waldo County - Maine Genealogy. In: mainegenealogy.net. Retrieved June 5, 2020 . 
5. ↑ ^{a b} Belfast, Maine (ME 04915) profile: population, maps, real estate, averages, homes, statistics, relocation, travel, jobs, hospitals, schools, crime, moving, houses, news, sex offenders. In: city-data.com. www.city-data.com, accessed on June 5, 2020 . 
6. ↑ ^{a b c d e} History of Belfast - Belfast, ME - Official Website. In: cityofbelfast.org. Retrieved June 6, 2020 . 
7. ↑ ^{a b c} Belfast. In: maineanencyclopedia.com. Retrieved June 6, 2020 (American English). 
8. ↑ Population 1790–2010 according to the census results
9. ↑ Belfast Commercial Historic District 80000257
10. ↑ Belfast Historic District 86002733
11. ↑ Church Street Historic District 78000331
12. ↑ Primrose Hill Historic District 73000150
13. ↑ First Church of Belfast 76000115
14. ↑ Hayford block 78000202
15. ↑ Hezekiah Chase House 77000087
16. ↑ Masonic Temple 73000246
17. ↑ James P. White House 73000245
18. ↑ Belfast Free Library - Serving the community of Belfast since 1887. In: belfastlibrary.org. Retrieved June 5, 2020 . 
19. ^ Regional School Unit 71. In: rsu71.org. Retrieved June 5, 2020 . 

Web links

Commons : Belfast, Maine  - Collection of pictures, videos and audio files

• Community website
• Belfast on City.com
• Belfast on my.gov