Shapleigh, Maine

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Coordinates: 43°32′26″N 70°50′53″W / 43.54056, -70.84806
Shapleigh, Maine
Shapleigh Pond
Shapleigh, Maine Location within the state of Maine
Country	United States
State	Maine
County	York
Incorporated	1785
Government
- Type	Town Meeting
- Board of Selectmen	Michael S. Perro Bill Hayes Ruth S. Ham
Area
- Total	41.2 sq mi (106.8 km²)
- Land	38.8 sq mi (100.5 km²)
- Water	2.4 sq mi (6.3 km²) 5.89%%
Elevation	709 ft (216 m)
Population (2000)
- Total	2,326
- Density	59.9/sq mi (23.1/km²)
Time zone	Eastern (UTC-5)
- Summer (DST)	Eastern (UTC-4)
ZIP code	04076
Area code(s)	207
FIPS code	23-67475
GNIS feature ID	0582722
Website: http://www.shapleigh.net/

Shapleigh, pronounced "Shap-LEE", is a town in York County, Maine, United States. The population was 2,326 at the 2000 census. Shapleigh includes the villages of Ross Corner and Emery Mills. It is part of the Portland–South Portland–Biddeford, Maine Metropolitan Statistical Area.

1 History
2 Notable resident
3 Geography
4 Demographics
5 Education
6 General information
7 Sites of interest
8 Reference
9 External links

[edit] History

The Grand Army of the Republic Camps at Mousam Lake in 1905

In 1668, Chief Captain Sunday (or Wesumbe) of the Newichawannock Abenaki tribe sold to Francis Small the Ossipee Tract, which included Cornish, Parsonsfield, Newfield, Limerick, Limington and Shapleigh. Small, a trader from Kittery, then sold a half interest to Major Nicholas Shapleigh of Eliot. In 1770, heirs discovered the unrecorded deed and made claim. Shapleigh's heirs took Parsonsfield, Shapleigh and one half of Limerick, the last awarded in full to James Sullivan for his legal services.

First called Hubbardstown, Shapleigh Plantation was settled in 1772 when Simeon Emery erected a sawmill at the foot of Mousam Pond. On March 5, 1785, the town was incorporated as Shapleigh, named for Nicholas Shapleigh. In 1830, Shapleigh's west half was set off and incorporated as Acton. In 1846, 600-800 acres of the northeastern part of Shapleigh were annexed by Newfield. Shapleigh annexed an eastern portion of land from Waterboro in 1854.

Farmers found the land to have sandy loam, which yielded good crops of grain. The town also had orchards, and before 1842, cider was a principal product. There were sawmills at Emery Mills, Shapleigh Corner and North Shapleigh, which also had a woolen textile factory and leather board factory. By 1870, the population was 1,087. Shapleigh was one of the Maine towns devastated by the Great Fires of 1947.

[edit] Notable resident

Frank Abbott, dentist, author & president of the American Dental Association

[edit] Geography

According to the United States Census Bureau, the town has a total area of 41.2 square miles (106.8 km²), of which, 38.8 square miles (100.5 km²) of it is land and 2.4 square miles (6.3 km²) of it (5.89%) is water. Shapleigh is drained by the Little Ossipee River and Mousam River. The town's highest elevation is Abbott Mountain, 1063 feet (324 m) above sea level. All of Shapleigh's woodlands are protected by The Nature Conservancy.

The town is crossed by state routes 11 and 109. It borders the towns of Acton to the west, Waterboro to the east, Alfred to the southeast, Newfield to the north, and Sanford to the south.

[edit] Demographics

As of the census^[1] of 2000, there were 2,326 people, 912 households, and 673 families residing in the town. The population density was 59.9 people per square mile (23.1/km²). There were 1,813 housing units at an average density of 46.7/sq mi (18.0/km²). The racial makeup of the town was 98.41% White, 0.21% African American, 0.13% Native American, 0.43% Asian, 0.21% from other races, and 0.60% from two or more races. Hispanic or Latino of any race were 0.90% of the population.

There were 912 households out of which 30.9% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 63.2% were married couples living together, 6.6% had a female householder with no husband present, and 26.1% were non-families. 19.2% of all households were made up of individuals and 7.6% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.54 and the average family size was 2.90.

In the town the population was spread out with 24.1% under the age of 18, 6.4% from 18 to 24, 29.2% from 25 to 44, 26.0% from 45 to 64, and 14.4% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 40 years. For every 100 females there were 101.0 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 101.4 males.

The median income for a household in the town was $42,026, and the median income for a family was $45,591. Males had a median income of $34,519 versus $26,739 for females. The per capita income for the town was $19,331. About 2.9% of families and 4.5% of the population were below the poverty line, including 4.3% of those under age 18 and 7.3% of those age 65 or over.

[edit] Education

Shapleigh students attend Shapleigh Memorial School which is a part of Maine School Administrative District 57. Students in grades 7-8 from Shapleigh attend Massabesic Middle School, and students in grades 9-12 attend Massabesic High School in Waterboro.