Editing Hiram, Maine

{{Short description| Town in the state of Maine, United States}}
{{Use mdy dates|date=May 2024}}
{{Infobox settlement
|official_name            = Hiram, Maine
|settlement_type          = [[New England town|Town]]
|nickname                 = 
|motto                    =

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|image_skyline            = Great Falls, Saco River, ME.jpg
|imagesize                = 
|image_caption            = Great Falls, Saco River in 1869
|image_flag               = 
|image_seal               =

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|pushpin_map              = Maine#USA
|pushpin_label            = Hiram
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<!-- Location -->
|subdivision_type         = [[List of sovereign states|Country]]
|subdivision_name         = United States
|subdivision_type1        = [[U.S. state|State]]
|subdivision_name1        = [[Maine]]
|subdivision_type2        = [[List of counties in Maine|County]]
|subdivision_name2        = [[Oxford County, Maine|Oxford]]
|government_footnotes     = 
|government_type          = 
|leader_title             = 
|leader_name              = 
|leader_title1            = 
|leader_name1             = 
|established_title        = [[Incorporation (municipal government)|Incorporated]]
|established_date         = 1814

<!-- Area -->
|unit_pref                = Imperial
|area_footnotes           = <ref name ="Gazetteer files"/>
|area_magnitude           = 
|area_total_km2           = 100.67
|area_land_km2            = 97.25
|area_water_km2           = 3.42
|area_total_sq_mi         = 38.87
|area_land_sq_mi          = 37.55
|area_water_sq_mi         = 1.32

<!-- Population -->
|population_as_of         = [[2020 United States census|2020]]
|population_est           = 
|pop_est_as_of            = 
|population_footnotes     = 
|population_total         = 1609
|population_density_km2   = 16.5
|population_density_sq_mi =

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|timezone                 = [[North American Eastern Time Zone|Eastern (EST)]]
|utc_offset               = -5
|timezone_DST             = EDT
|utc_offset_DST           = -4
|elevation_footnotes      = 
|elevation_m              = 251
|elevation_ft             = 823
|coordinates              = {{coord|43|52|18|N|70|50|2|W|region:US-ME|display=inline}}
|postal_code_type         = [[ZIP code]]
|postal_code              = 04041
|area_code                = [[Area code 207|207]]
|blank_name               = [[Federal Information Processing Standard|FIPS code]]
|blank_info               = 23-33315
|blank1_name              = [[Geographic Names Information System|GNIS]] feature ID
|blank1_info              = 0582520
|website                  = {{URL|townofhiram.org}}
|footnotes                = 
}}
'''Hiram''' is a town in [[Oxford County, Maine|Oxford County]], [[Maine]], United States.  The population was 1,609 at the [[2020 United States census|2020 census]].<ref>{{cite web|url=https://data.census.gov/cedsci/profile?g=0600000US2301733315|title=Census - Geography Profile: Hiram town, Oxford County, Maine|access-date=January 19, 2022}}</ref> It includes the villages of Hiram, East Hiram, South Hiram and Durgintown. Located among the rugged and unspoiled [[Western Maine Mountains]], Hiram is part of the [[Portland, Maine|Portland]]-[[South Portland, Maine|South Portland]]-[[Biddeford, Maine|Biddeford]], Maine metropolitan [[New England city and town area]].

==History==

It became a [[stagecoach|stage]] stop along the Pequawket Trail, the former [[wilderness]] path of the Sokokis [[Abenaki]]s which runs from [[Standish, Maine|Standish]] to [[Fryeburg, Maine|Fryeburg]] (site of Pequawket, their [[stockade]]d village). First known as Great Ossipee after the [[Ossipee River]], the town was settled in the 1780s and organized as Hiram Plantation, named after [[Hiram I]], the biblical king of [[Tyre, Lebanon|Tyre]].<ref name="MAGDE">{{cite book |last= Maine League of Historical Societies and Museums |editor=Doris A. Isaacson |title=Maine: A Guide 'Down East' |year=1970 |publisher=Courier-Gazette, Inc. |location=Rockland, Me | pages = 411 }}</ref><ref>{{cite book | url=https://books.google.com/books?id=9V1IAAAAMAAJ&pg=PA157 | title=The Origin of Certain Place Names in the United States | publisher=Govt. Print. Off. | author=Gannett, Henry | year=1905 | pages=157}}</ref> Like King Hiram's domain, Hiram Plantation was set among forests. It was incorporated as a district on February 27, 1807, then as the town of Hiram on June 14, 1814. [[Peleg Wadsworth]] bought a tract of land here in 1790, and in 1792 or 1794 began clearing a [[farm]] for his eldest son.<ref>[https://books.google.com/books?id=OcoMAAAAYAAJ&dq=coolidge%20mansfield%20history%20description%20new%20england%201859&pg=PA158 Austin J. Coolidge & John B. Mansfield, ''A History and Description of New England;'' Boston, Massachusetts]</ref>

Although uneven at the center, there was good and fertile [[arable land|farmland]] in the intervales. The soil was [[sandy loam]], yielding [[wheat]] and [[hay]], the principal crop. [[Sheep]] [[grazing|grazed]] the pastures, and their [[wool]] became an important product. In 1830, the town's population was 1,148.<ref>[http://newenglandtowns.org/maine/hiram Hayward's ''New England Gazetteer of 1839]</ref>

The [[Saco River]] and ponds serving as reservoirs for tributary streams supplied [[water power]] for [[watermill|mills]], and manufacturing [[timber]] became an important industry. In 1859, town industries included a number of [[cooper (profession)|cooper]] shops, two [[blacksmith]]s, several [[shoemaking]] shops and a [[horse harness|harness]] making shop. By 1886, the town had five [[sawmill]]s and [[planing mill]]s, producing short and long [[lumber]], [[barrel|barrel staves]] and shooks. It also had two [[gristmill]]s and a [[carding]] mill. Other products included men's clothing, [[horse harness|harness]] and [[slate]] [[chalkboard|blackboard]]s. Described as "a pretty village amid charming scenery,"<ref>[https://archive.today/20120709151155/http://history.rays-place.com/me/hiram-me.htm George J. Varney, ''History of Hiram, Maine,'' Boston, Massachusetts 1886]</ref> Hiram was a [[railroad junction|junction]] where the [[Bridgton and Saco River Railroad]] met the [[Portland and Ogdensburg Railroad]], which first opened service through the [[White Mountains (New Hampshire)|White Mountains]] on August 16, 1875.

<gallery>
Image:Old Bucknell House, Hiram, ME.jpg|Bucknell House {{circa|1915}}, built in 1792 near the Saco
Image:Mt. Cutler House, Hiram, ME.jpg|Mt. Cutler House in 1909, early stage stop and hotel
Image:Railroad Bridge and Saco River, Hiram, ME.jpg|Railroad bridge across the Saco River in 1916
</gallery>

==Geography==
According to the [[United States Census Bureau]], the town has a total area of {{convert|38.87|sqmi|sqkm|2}}, of which {{convert|37.55|sqmi|sqkm|2}}  is land and {{convert|1.32|sqmi|sqkm|2}} is water.<ref name ="Gazetteer files">{{cite web|title=US Gazetteer files 2010|url=https://www.census.gov/geo/maps-data/data/gazetteer2010.html|publisher=[[United States Census Bureau]]|access-date=December 16, 2012}}</ref> Hiram is drained by the [[Ossipee River]] and [[Saco River]].

The town is crossed by state routes [[Maine State Route 5|5]], [[Maine State Route 113|113]], [[Maine State Route 117|117]], and [[Maine State Route 160|160]]. It is bordered by the towns of [[Brownfield, Maine|Brownfield]] and [[Denmark, Maine|Denmark]] to the north, [[Porter, Maine|Porter]] to the west, [[Sebago, Maine|Sebago]] and [[Baldwin, Maine|Baldwin]] to the east, and [[Cornish, Maine|Cornish]] and [[Parsonsfield, Maine|Parsonsfield]] to the south.

===Climate===
This [[climate|climatic]] region is typified by large seasonal temperature differences, with warm to hot (and often humid) summers and cold (sometimes severely cold) winters.  According to the [[Köppen Climate Classification]] system, Hiram has a [[humid continental climate]], abbreviated "Dfb" on climate maps.<ref>[http://www.weatherbase.com/weather/weather-summary.php3?s=832271&cityname=Hiram%2C+Maine%2C+United+States+of+America&units= Climate Summary for Hiram, Maine]</ref>

==Demographics==
{{US Census population
|1790= 92
|1800= 184
|1810= 336
|1820= 700
|1830= 1026
|1840= 1233
|1850= 1210
|1860= 1283
|1870= 1393
|1880= 1452
|1890= 1063
|1900= 1015
|1910= 945
|1920= 921
|1930= 813
|1940= 787
|1950= 804
|1960= 699
|1970= 686
|1980= 1067
|1990= 1260
|2000= 1423
|2010= 1620
|2020= 1609
|footnote=U.S. Decennial Census<ref name="DecennialCensus">{{cite web |url=https://www.census.gov/programs-surveys/decennial-census.html |title=Census of Population and Housing |publisher=Census.gov |access-date=June 4, 2015 }}</ref>
}}
[[Image:Saco River scenery, Hiram, Me, by George E. Collins.jpg|thumb|left|''Saco River Scenery, Hiram, Me.,'' a [[Victorian era]] [[stereoscopy|stereographic card]]]]

===2010 census===
As of the [[census]]<ref name ="wwwcensusgov">{{cite web|title=U.S. Census website|url=https://www.census.gov|publisher=[[United States Census Bureau]]|access-date=December 16, 2012}}</ref> of 2010, there were 1,620 people, 652 households, and 432 families living in the town. The [[population density]] was {{convert|43.1|PD/sqmi|PD/km2|1}}. There were 905 housing units at an average density of {{convert|24.1|/sqmi|/km2|1}}. The racial makeup of the town was 95.7% [[White (U.S. Census)|White]], 0.1% [[African American (U.S. Census)|African American]], 0.6% [[Native American (U.S. Census)|Native American]], 0.4% [[Asian (U.S. Census)|Asian]], 0.4% from [[Race (U.S. Census)|other races]], and 2.7% from two or more races. [[Hispanic (U.S. Census)|Hispanic]] or [[Latino (U.S. Census)|Latino]] of any race were 0.7% of the population.

There were 652 households, of which 31.4% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 50.6% were [[Marriage|married couples]] living together, 11.0% had a female householder with no husband present, 4.6% had a male householder with no wife present, and 33.7% were non-families. 26.5% of all households were made up of individuals, and 8.9% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.48 and the average family size was 3.00.

The median age in the town was 41.3 years. 25.1% of residents were under the age of 18; 7% were between the ages of 18 and 24; 23.2% were from 25 to 44; 30.9% were from 45 to 64; and 13.7% were 65 years of age or older. The gender makeup of the town was 51.4% male and 48.6% female.

===2000 census===
As of the [[census]]<ref name="GR2">{{cite web|url=https://www.census.gov|publisher=[[United States Census Bureau]]|access-date=January 31, 2008|title=U.S. Census website}}</ref> of 2000, there were 1,423 people, 534 households, and 388 families living in the town.  The population density was {{convert|37.9|PD/sqmi|PD/km2|sp=us|adj=off}}.  There were 769 housing units at an average density of {{convert|20.5|/sqmi|/km2|sp=us|adj=off}}.  The racial makeup of the town was 97.61% [[White (U.S. Census)|White]], 0.07% [[African American (U.S. Census)|African American]], 0.49% [[Native American (U.S. Census)|Native American]], 0.28% [[Asian (U.S. Census)|Asian]], 0.07% from [[Race (United States Census)|other races]], and 1.48% from two or more races. [[Hispanic (U.S. Census)|Hispanic]] or [[Latino (U.S. Census)|Latino]] of any race were 0.42% of the population.

There were 534 households, out of which 36.3% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 60.1% were [[Marriage|married couples]] living together, 8.6% had a female householder with no husband present, and 27.3% were non-families. 19.5% of all households were made up of individuals, and 7.3% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older.  The average household size was 2.66 and the average family size was 3.07.

[[Image:Saco River scenery, Hiram, Me, by George E. Collins 3.jpg|thumb|right|''Saco River Scenery, Hiram, Me.'']]
In the town, the population was spread out, with 27.8% under the age of 18, 6.4% from 18 to 24, 29.4% from 25 to 44, 25.7% from 45 to 64, and 10.8% who were 65 years of age or older.  The median age was 37 years. For every 100 females, there were 99.3 males.  For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 99.8 males.

The median income for a household in the town was $34,167, and the median income for a family was $36,964. Males had a median income of $27,784 versus $22,500 for females. The [[per capita income]] for the town was $16,293.  About 12.0% of families and 14.0% of the population were below the [[poverty line]], including 18.8% of those under age 18 and 3.9% of those age 65 or over.

==Local schools==
* Sacopee Valley Middle School
* [[Sacopee Valley High School]]

== Notable people ==
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· The article must mention how they are associated with Hiram, whether born, raised, or residing.
· The fact of their association should have a reliable source cited.
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* [[Contessa Brewer]], MSNBC anchorwoman
* [[Charles Cleaves Cole]], federal judge
* [[Henry Wadsworth Longfellow]], poet
* [[Peleg Wadsworth]], general, founded Hiram

==References==
{{reflist}}

==External links==
* [https://townofhiram.org/ Town of Hiram official website]
* [http://www.soldiers.lib.me.us/ Soldiers Memorial Library]
* [https://web.archive.org/web/20080414162156/http://www.maine.gov/local/oxford/hiram/ Maine.gov – Hiram, Maine]
* [http://www.mainegenealogy.net/individual_place_record.asp?place=hiram Maine Genealogy: Hiram, Oxford County, Maine]

{{Oxford County, Maine}}
{{Saco River}}

{{coord|43|52|43|N|70|48|12|W|type:city_region:US-ME|display=title}}

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[[Category:Towns in Oxford County, Maine]]
[[Category:Towns in Maine]]