Norway (town), Maine

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Norway is a town in Oxford County, Maine, United States located at the south end of Lake Pennesseewassee. The population was 4,611 at the 2000 census. It has been known for its production of snowshoes; 70% of those ordered by the U.S. Government during World War II were produced by a factory here that also supplied the polar expeditions of Byrd and Peary.^[1]

The area was known as Rustfield when it was first settled in the 1780's. It was incorporated as the Town of Norway in 1797. According to some sources, the name possibly arose from a clerical misreading of an Abenaki term, Norage, that was originally proposed as the name of the town.

Contents 1 Geography 2 Demographics 3 Notable Residents 4 External links 5 References

[edit] Geography

According to the United States Census Bureau, the town has a total area of 123.0 km² (47.5 mi²). 116.8 km² (45.1 mi²) of it is land and 6.2 km² (2.4 mi²) of it (5.03%) is water.

[edit] Demographics

As of the census² of 2000, there were 4,611 people, 1,972 households, and 1,256 families residing in the town. The population density was 39.5/km² (102.3/mi²). There were 2,551 housing units at an average density of 21.8/km² (56.6/mi²). The racial makeup of the town was 97.83% White, 0.30% Black or African American, 0.37% Native American, 0.37% Asian, 0.02% Pacific Islander, 0.13% from other races, and 0.98% from two or more races. Hispanic or Latino of any race were 0.50% of the population.

There were 1,972 households out of which 27.7% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 49.3% were married couples living together, 11.0% had a female householder with no husband present, and 36.3% were non-families. 29.3% of all households were made up of individuals and 13.4% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.29 and the average family size was 2.78.

In the town the population was spread out with 22.5% under the age of 18, 7.0% from 18 to 24, 26.2% from 25 to 44, 26.0% from 45 to 64, and 18.2% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 42 years. For every 100 females there were 87.9 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 85.2 males.

The median income for a household in the town was $28,497, and the median income for a family was $34,464. Males had a median income of $26,612 versus $20,417 for females. The per capita income for the town was $17,020. About 9.8% of families and 12.7% of the population were below the poverty line, including 16.1% of those under age 18 and 10.1% of those age 65 or over.

[edit] Notable Residents

• Hannibal Hamlin, Vice President of the U.S., worked as a chore boy for the Norway Advertiser-Democrat^[1]
• Don Carlos Seitz, newspaper editor and author, was educated at the Liberal Institute and owned a home in Norway^[1]
• Artemus Ward, humorist worked for the Norway Advertiser-Democrat^[1]

[edit] External links

• Official Town of Norway website
• Advertiser Democrat, regional weekly newspaper, published in Norway.

See also: Norway (CDP), Maine

[edit] References