Dayton, Maine
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Dayton is a town in York County, Maine, United States. The population was 1,805 at the 2000 census. Dayton is one of the smallest towns in York County.
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[edit] History
The area was once inhabited by the Sokokis (or Saco) Indians, who hunted and fished along the Saco River. The old "Sokokis Trail" is now Route 5, which passes through Dayton. In 1664, Major William Phillips purchased from the sagamore the land which would become "Little Falls Plantation" -- today the towns of Hollis, Dayton and part of Limington. In 1728, a stockaded fort which contained a trading post was built a half mile below Union Falls. Called the "Saco Truck House" or "Saco Block House," the garrison was maintained throughout the French and Indian War until the fall of Quebec in 1759.
Settlers arrived in 1735, and lumbering became a principal industry. Logs were rolled down the banks of the Saco River and floated to sawmills at Saco. Nathaniel Goodwin established the first local mill in 1782 at Goodwin's Mill, where falls in Swan Brook drop 33 feet. A sawmill and gristmill were erected at Union Falls (then called "Hopkinson's Mill") in 1806. Tanneries were built, and land was cleared for farms. In 1798, "Little Falls Plantation" was incorporated as "Phillipsburg," in honor of Major William Phillips -- until 1810. But considered difficult to pronounce and write, the name was changed to "Hollis." Then, in 1854, the southern part of Hollis petitioned the state legislature to become a separate town. Permission was granted, and the community was named "Dayton" after Thomas Day, who submitted the petition.
In 1860, Dayton voted to build at Union Falls a covered bridge, 112 feet long and 18 feet wide, connecting to Buxton. The span would be blown up in 1921 by the Clark Power Company, an event filmed as part of a melodrama by the Pine Tree Moving Picture Corporation of Portland. In October of 1947, after a dry summer, fire destroyed two-thirds of Dayton, including 27 homes, 4 barns and the town hall. In 1951, the Central Maine Power Company built a hydroelectric dam between Salmon Falls and Union Falls, submerging the scenic gorge. Once a community of dairy farms, Dayton is now primarily residential.
[edit] Geography
According to the United States Census Bureau, the town has a total area of 47.7 km² (18.4 mi²). 46.3 km² (17.9 mi²) of it is land and 1.3 km² (0.5 mi²) of it (2.82%) is water. Dayton is drained by the Saco River.
[edit] Demographics
As of the census2 of 2000, there were 1,805 people, 638 households, and 509 families residing in the town. The population density was 39.0/km² (100.9/mi²). There were 663 housing units at an average density of 14.3/km² (37.1/mi²). The racial makeup of the town was 98.50% White, 0.17% Native American, 0.28% Asian, 0.22% from other races, and 0.83% from two or more races. Hispanic or Latino of any race were 0.39% of the population.
There were 638 households out of which 44.4% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 69.6% were married couples living together, 6.1% had a female householder with no husband present, and 20.1% were non-families. 14.7% of all households were made up of individuals and 5.2% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.83 and the average family size was 3.13.
In the town the population was spread out with 29.5% under the age of 18, 4.1% from 18 to 24, 37.1% from 25 to 44, 21.4% from 45 to 64, and 7.8% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 35 years. For every 100 females there were 104.6 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 95.1 males.
The median income for a household in the town was $53,056, and the median income for a family was $57,692. Males had a median income of $38,150 versus $25,956 for females. The per capita income for the town was $20,629. About 2.9% of families and 3.5% of the population were below the poverty line, including 4.5% of those under age 18 and 8.1% of those age 65 or over.
