Editing China, Maine (section)

== History ==

In 1774, a family named Clark settled in the area and established Jones' Plantation. In 1796, Jones' Plantation was incorporated as Harlem. The area's name was provided by Massachusetts legislative member [[Japheth Wasburn]].<ref>{{Cite web|url=http://chinatwp.net/Community/TownshipHistory.aspx|title = China Township > Community > Township History}}</ref> On June 25, 1818, the Town of China was incorporated by combining Harlem, Fairfax (Albion), and Winslow.<ref>
{{cite web
|title = Illustrated History of Kennebec County, Maine
|year = 1892
|publisher = New York, Blake
|url = https://archive.org/stream/illustratedhisto00king#page/1142/mode/2up/search/harlem
|quote = "...in June, 1818, the town of Harlem was divided, the north portion being joined with parts of Lygonia (now Albion) and Winslow, to form the new town of China. Four years later the remainder of Harlem was annexed to China."
}}
</ref>

The name of the town was chosen by Japheth Washburn.  He wanted to call the town Bloomville, but people from the town of Bloomfield objected, saying that the similarity of names could cause confusion.  Mr. Washburn settled on the name China, because it was the name of one of his favorite hymns.<ref>{{cite web |title=Information from the Town Clerk: How China Got Its Name |url=https://china.govoffice.com/index.asp?SEC=614623C3-07DD-46C9-96D2-FD4F13C6C591&Type=B_BASIC |website=Official Website of the Town of China, Maine |access-date=March 22, 2023}}</ref>  This widely sung hymn was written by [[Timothy Swan]] of Northfield, Massachusetts in 1790 and was published in Swan's "New England Harmony" in 1801.<ref>{{Cite web |title=TIMOTHY SWAN (1758-1843) |url=https://suffield-library.org/localhistory/swan.htm |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210116235558/https://suffield-library.org/localhistory/swan.htm |archive-date=January 16, 2021 |publisher=Kent Memorial Library}}</ref>
 
China had a fourth district located at the height of land between Palermo and Albion, part of which is located today in what is known as Thurston Park. It was in this area that numerous families of African-American descent settled. Their history, spanning roughly 1790 to 1860, can be itemized in the Maine state archives. Some cemetery plots can still be located with a guide, including a large obelisk stone in memory of "Tolbot" on a high wooded ridge which was also the location of an early shingle mill. Other burial and foundation sites are also present and can best be located by using early census maps and their indicators.

It is theorized that these families migrated here because it represented a safe area which [[slave catchers]] would not approach as China and several other towns were "Quaker" towns which would not tolerate slave catchers, no matter what either federal Fugitive Slave Act demanded.