Editing Vinalhaven, Maine

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

<!-- Images -->
|image_skyline            = Main Street, Vinalhaven, ME.jpg
|imagesize                = 300px
|image_caption            = Main Street {{circa|1915}}
|image_flag               = 
|image_seal               =

<!-- Maps -->
|image_map                = Knox County Maine incorporated and unincorporated areas Vinalhaven highlighted.svg
|mapsize                  = 260px
|map_caption              = Location in [[Knox County, Maine|Knox County]] and the state of [[Maine]].

<!-- 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        = [[Knox County, Maine|Knox]]
|government_footnotes     = 
|government_type          = 
|leader_title             = 
|leader_name              = 
|leader_title1            = 
|leader_name1             = 
|established_title        = Incorporated
|established_date         = 1789

<!-- Area -->
|unit_pref                = Imperial
|area_footnotes           = <ref name ="Gazetteer files"/>
|area_total_km2           = 436.91
|area_land_km2            = 60.76
|area_water_km2           = 376.14
|area_total_sq_mi         = 168.69
|area_land_sq_mi          = 23.46
|area_water_sq_mi         = 145.23

<!-- Population -->
|population_as_of         = [[2020 United States census|2020]]
|population_est           = 
|pop_est_as_of            = 
|population_footnotes     = 
|population_total         = 1279
|population_density_km2   = 21.1
|population_density_sq_mi =

<!-- General information -->
|timezone                 = [[North American Eastern Time Zone|Eastern (EST)]]
|utc_offset               = −5
|timezone_DST             = EDT
|utc_offset_DST           = −4
|elevation_footnotes      = 
|elevation_m              = 12
|elevation_ft             = 39
|coordinates              = {{Coord|44|02|53|N|68|49|54|W|type:city_region:US-ME|display=title,inline}}
|postal_code_type         = [[ZIP Code]]
|postal_code              = 04863
|area_code                = [[Area code 207|207]]
|blank_name               = [[Federal Information Processing Standard|FIPS code]]
|blank_info               = 23-79130
|blank1_name              = [[Geographic Names Information System|GNIS]] feature ID
|blank1_info              = 0582782
|website                  = 
|footnotes                = 
}}

'''Vinalhaven''' is a [[New England town|town]] in [[Knox County, Maine|Knox County]], [[Maine]], United States. Its town limits include the island of Vinalhaven, the largest of the Fox Islands, and smaller islands, some accessible from Vinalhaven Island by bridge or causeway. The population was 1,279 at the [[2020 United States census|2020 census]].<ref>{{cite web|url=https://data.census.gov/cedsci/profile?g=0600000US2301379130|title=Census - Geography Profile: Vinalhaven town, Knox County, Maine|access-date=January 21, 2022}}</ref> It is home to a thriving [[Lobster fishing|lobster fishery]] and hosts a [[summer colony]]. Since there is no bridge to the island, Vinalhaven is primarily accessible from [[Rockland, Maine|Rockland]] via an approximately 75-minute [[Maine State Ferry Service|state ferry]] ride across [[Penobscot Bay|West Penobscot Bay]], or by [[air taxi]] from [[Knox County Regional Airport]].

==History==

[[File:Elevated railway 'Sands,' Vinalhaven, from Robert N. Dennis collection of stereoscopic views crop.jpg|thumb|left|250px|A stone manufactory {{circa|1880}}]]

Archeological remains indicate that the island was first inhabited 3800–5000 years ago by the [[Red Paint People]]. Later, it became [[Abenaki]] territory. Europeans visited in the 16th century, and [[English people|English]] Captain [[Martin Pring]] named the archipelago Fox Islands in 1603. The first permanent English settlement occurred in 1766 when Thaddeus Carver arrived from [[Marshfield, Massachusetts]], and later purchased {{convert|700|acre|km2|1}} from Thomas Cogswell on the southern shore near what became known as Carver's Harbor.<ref name=Coolidge>{{Cite book|last=Coolidge|first=Austin J.|author2=John B. Mansfield|title=A History and Description of New England|publisher=A.J. Coolidge|year=1859|location=Boston, Massachusetts|page=[https://archive.org/details/bub_gb_OcoMAAAAYAAJ/page/n372 334]|url=https://archive.org/details/bub_gb_OcoMAAAAYAAJ|quote=coolidge mansfield history description new england 1859.}}</ref>

Others soon followed to establish the remote fishing and farming community in the [[Gulf of Maine]]. Vinalhaven's first Anglo families are considered to be Arey, Calderwood, Carver, Coombs, Dyer, Ginn, Greem, Hopkins, Lane, Leadbetter, Norton, Philbrook, Pierce, Roberts, Smith, Warren, and Vinal. On June 25, 1789, Vinalhaven was incorporated as a town, named for John Vinal.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.epodunk.com/cgi-bin/genInfo.php?locIndex=2392|title=Profile for Vinalhaven, Maine|publisher=[[ePodunk]]|access-date=May 3, 2010}}</ref> Vinal was not an island resident, but the agent who petitioned the Maine General Court to incorporate the new township; nonetheless the name stuck.<ref>{{Cite book|last=Mclane|first=Charles|author2=Carol Evarts McLane|title=Islands of the Mid-Maine Coast|publisher=Tilbury House; Island Institute|volume=I|year=1997|page=125|isbn=0884481859}}</ref> In 1847, the North Fox Island seceded and became a separate township called [[North Haven, Maine|North Haven]].<ref>{{Cite book|last=Varney|first=George J.|chapter=History of Vinalhaven, Maine|title=Gazetteer of the State of Maine|place=Boston|publisher=B. B. Russell|year=1886|url=http://history.rays-place.com/me/vinalhaven-me.htm}}</ref>

[[Image:Quarry at Vinalhaven, ME.jpg|thumb|right|325px|Monolithic [[column (architecture)|columns]] quarried for the [[Cathedral of St. John the Divine]] (installation completed in 1904).]]

Fishing, shipbuilding, logging and shipping were important early businesses on Vinalhaven. High-quality [[granite]] was discovered in 1826, and Vinalhaven became one of Maine's largest quarrying centers for the next century. Today the island is dotted with abandoned quarries, many of which have since filled with groundwater and are popular swimming holes for residents and visitors. Pinkish-gray Vinalhaven granite excavated by the Bodwell Granite Company can be seen in the [[Harry S Truman Building|State Department Building]] in [[Washington, D.C.|Washington]], the [[Brooklyn Bridge]], and the Union Mutual Life Insurance Building in [[Boston]].<ref>{{cite web | title=The Story of Vinalhaven's Granite Industry | url=http://home.earthlink.net/~bbodwell/treepg/BodwellBlue.htm }}</ref>

Granite was shipped for [[customs house]]s and post offices in [[Alexander Hamilton U.S. Custom House|New York]]; [[St. Louis, Missouri|St. Louis]]; [[Kansas City, Missouri|Kansas City]]; [[Buffalo, New York|Buffalo]], etc.; the railroad station and [[Chicago Board of Trade|Board of Trade]] in [[Chicago]]; the [[Washington Monument]] and federal office buildings in the Capital; the [[Pennsylvania Railroad]] Station and the Masonic Temple in [[Philadelphia]]; as well as private mansions, monuments, bridges, dams, and thousands of tons of paving blocks for the streets of [[Portland, Maine|Portland]]; [[Boston]]; New York; [[Newark, New Jersey|Newark]]; Philadelphia; and other cities.<ref name="A History of Vinalhaven">[http://www.vinalhavenhistoricalsociety.org/historyofvinalhaven.html "A History of Vinalhaven"], The Vinalhaven Historical Society</ref> The Vinalhaven quarries were the only ones deep enough to provide the eight huge polished columns called for in the original plans for the [[apse]] of the [[Cathedral of Saint John the Divine, New York|Cathedral of Saint John the Divine]] in New York City; the massive columns broke under their own weight, and ultimately more than one piece of granite had to be put together to create each column.<ref>{{cite inside}}, p.166</ref> The quarries also provided foundation stone for the cathedral.

A noted [[lobster fishing]] community, Vinalhaven has fishing rights to much of [[Penobscot Bay]] and its offshore waters. There are ten major fishing grounds around Vinalhaven that the island's fishermen and some [[Matinicus Isle]] fishermen have used for centuries to capture such groundfish as [[cod]], [[haddock]], [[pollock]], [[hake]], [[lobster]], [[scallops]] and [[halibut]]. [[Shrimp]], [[spiny dogfish|dogfish]], [[mackerel]] and [[herring]] are also abundant in the waters around Vinalhaven. Vinalhaven lobstermen were the first in the nation to unionize. They began to organize in the winter of 2012–13 after frustration with low lobster prices and disagreements with the Maine Lobstermen's Associations leadership.<ref>{{cite news |author=Curtis, Abigail |title=Growing number of lobstermen looking to unionize, gain voice in Augusta|url=http://bangordailynews.com/2013/03/15/business/growing-number-of-lobstermen-looking-to-unionize-gain-voice-in-augusta/ |work=[[Bangor Daily News]] |date= March 15, 2013|access-date=April 7, 2013 }}</ref>

The 2006 movie ''Islander'' was filmed in part on Vinalhaven; some locals acted in the movie.<ref name="A History of Vinalhaven"/><ref>[https://www.imdb.com/title/tt0819723/ "Islander on IMDb"]</ref>

Vinalhaven made news in March 2020 during the [[COVID-19 pandemic]] after a group of island residents cut down a tree and dragged it into the road in an attempt to forcibly quarantine three roommates with out-of-state license plates they believed could have the virus.<ref>{{cite news|author=Ortiz, Aimee|date=March 29, 2020|title='Group of Local Vigilantes' Try to Forcibly Quarantine Out-of-Towners, Officials Say|work=[[The New York Times]]|url=https://www.nytimes.com/2020/03/29/us/maine-coronavirus-quarantine-tree.html/|access-date=June 1, 2020}}</ref> As it turned out the incident was between two groups of workers. One side was Vinalhaven people, the other a crew from New Jersey. The two groups had earlier clashed at a local bar.

Vinalhaven was the scene of a fatal stabbing in the summer of 2020.<ref>{{Cite web |last=Staff |first=Lauren Abbate, BDN |date=2020-07-31 |title=What happened in the frantic minutes before a Maine man was stabbed to death |url=https://wgme.com/news/local/what-happened-in-the-frantic-minutes-before-a-maine-man-was-stabbed-to-death |access-date=2024-11-05 |website=WGME |language=en}}</ref>

==Geography==

According to the [[United States Census Bureau]], the town has an area of {{convert|168.69|sqmi|sqkm|2}}, of which {{convert|23.46|sqmi|sqkm|2}} is land and {{convert|145.23|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>

==Demographics==

{{US Census population
|1790= 578
|1800= 858
|1810= 1052
|1820= 1308
|1830= 1794
|1840= 1950
|1850= 1252
|1860= 1667
|1870= 1851
|1880= 2855
|1890= 2617
|1900= 2358
|1910= 2344
|1920= 1965
|1930= 1843
|1940= 1629
|1950= 1427
|1960= 1273
|1970= 1135
|1980= 1211
|1990= 1072
|2000= 1235
|2010= 1165
|2020= 1279
|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>
}}

===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 1,165 people, 545 households, and 320 families residing in the town. The [[population density]] was {{convert|49.7|PD/sqmi|PD/km2|1}}. There were 1,295 housing units at an average density of {{convert|55.2|/sqmi|/km2|1}}. The racial makeup of the town was 97.6% [[White (U.S. Census)|White]], 0.1% [[African American (U.S. Census)|African American]], 0.3% [[Native American (U.S. Census)|Native American]], 0.3% [[Asian (U.S. Census)|Asian]], 0.2% from [[Race (U.S. Census)|other races]], and 1.6% from two or more races. [[Hispanic (U.S. Census)|Hispanic]] or [[Latino (U.S. Census)|Latino]] of any race were 0.2% of the population.

There were 545 households, of which 24.2% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 46.2% were [[Marriage|married couples]] living together, 7.5% had a female householder with no husband present, 5.0% had a male householder with no wife present, and 41.3% were non-families. Of all households, 34.5% 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 2.14 and the average family size was 2.70.

The median age in the town was 45.1 years. 19.5% of residents were under the age of 18; 7% were between the ages of 18 and 24; 23.4% were from 25 to 44; 33.6% were from 45 to 64; and 16.7% were 65 years of age or older. The gender makeup of the town was 51.2% male and 48.8% 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 1,235 people, 550 households, and 341 families residing in the town. The population density was {{convert|48.8|PD/sqmi|PD/km2|sp=us|adj=off}}.  There were 1,228 housing units at an average density of {{convert|48.5|/sqmi|/km2|sp=us|adj=off}}.  The racial makeup of the town was 98.14% [[White (U.S. Census)|White]], 0.32% [[Native American (U.S. Census)|Native American]], 0.32% [[Asian (U.S. Census)|Asian]], and 1.21% from two or more races.

[[File:A house with two porches, Vinalhaven, Me, by William V. Lane crop.jpg|thumb|right|237px|A residence {{circa|1880}}]]

There were 550 households, out of which 29.3% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 49.6% were [[Marriage|married couples]] living together, 7.5% had a female householder with no husband present, and 38.0% were non-families. Of all households, 32.5% were made up of individuals, and 15.3% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older.  The average household size was 2.25 and the average family size was 2.82. Lobstering is a considerable part of the island's economy.

In the town, the population was spread out, with 23.7% under 18; 6.4% from 18 to 24; 27.8% from 25 to 44; 23.6% from 45 to 64; and 18.5% 65 or older. The median age was 40. For every 100 females, there were 92.1 males. For every 100 females 18 and over, there were 91.1 males.

The median income for a household in the town was $34,087, and the median income for a family was $42,917. Males had a median income of $36,094 versus $17,750 for females. The [[per capita income]] was $21,287. About 5.7% of families and 9.0% of the population were below the [[poverty line]], including 7.1% of those under 18 and 8.6% of those 65 or over.

==Energy==

Vinalhaven is the site of one of the first large [[wind power]] projects on the U.S. east coast. Approved by a vote of 383–5 on July 29, 2008, by members of the [[Fox Islands Electric Cooperative]], the project was expected to significantly reduce rates on the island residents, who previously imported their power from the mainland via a [[submarine power cable]].<ref>{{cite web
 | url= http://www.foxislands.net/windpower/ 
 | title= Fox Islands Electric Wind Power Project
 | publisher=  Fox Islands Electric
 | access-date= June 5, 2009 }}</ref><ref>
{{cite news 
 | url= http://www.workingwaterfront.com/online-exclusives/Construction-to-start-on-Fox-Islands-wind-project/13163/ 
 | title= Construction to start on Fox Islands wind project 
 | last= Conkling | first= Micah 
 |date=June 2009 | work= The Working Waterfront 
 | access-date= June 5, 2009 }}</ref> Three 1.5 MW wind turbine towers, which went online in late 2009, are capable of producing a comparable amount of energy to what the island uses.

Near the end of 2009, an Island Energy Task Force was established to "facilitate a transition to affordable, reliable, domestically produced energy, and on the consumer end, to energy-smart products, with special emphasis on serving the Vinalhaven community."

Starting in the spring of 2010, the task force began spearheading a project to use some of the Fox Islands wind energy to charge electric thermal storage heaters installed on the island. The charging takes place when the project's three turbines are generating more power than the islands need, which is common in the winter.<ref>{{cite news
 | url= http://www.pressherald.com/news/excess-wind-power-finds-home-on-maine-islands_2010-04-04.html
 | title= Excess Wind Power Finds Home on Maine Islands
 |date=April 4, 2010 | newspaper=  Portland Press Herald
 | access-date= April 8, 2010 }}</ref>

In operation the turbines have indeed reduced power bills, but at a cost of a loss of quality of life for nearby residents, who complain that the turbines cause constant noise and vibration.<ref>Zeller, Tom [https://www.nytimes.com/2010/10/06/business/energy-environment/06noise.html "For Those Near, the Miserable Hum of Clean Energy"] ''[[New York Times]]'' (October 5, 2010)</ref>

==Education==

* [[Vinalhaven School]] is the town's K–12 public school.
* The ARC is Vinalhaven's nonprofit hands-on vocational learning center.<ref>{{cite web |url=http://vharc.org/ |title=About Us |publisher=The Arts & Recreation Center |access-date=May 10, 2012}}</ref>

==Sites of interest==

[[File:Vinalhaven, ME from Lane's Island.jpg|thumb|right|325px|Vinalhaven from Lane's Island in 1905]]
[[File:East Side, Vinalhaven, ME.jpg|thumb|right|325px|East side in 1905]]

* [[Browns Head Light]]<ref>{{cite web |url=http://lighthouse.cc/brownshead/ |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20020211170951/http://lighthouse.cc/brownshead/ |url-status=usurped |archive-date=February 11, 2002 |title=Brown's Head Light |last1=D'Entremont |first1=Jeremy |work=New England Lighthouses: A Virtual Guide |access-date=May 10, 2012}}</ref>
* [[Heron Neck Light]]<ref>{{cite web |url=http://lighthouse.cc/heronneck/index.html |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20010126134400/http://www.lighthouse.cc/heronneck/index.html |url-status=usurped |archive-date=January 26, 2001 |title=Heron Neck Light |last1=D'Entremont |first1=Jeremy |work=New England Lighthouses: A Virtual Guide |access-date=May 10, 2012}}</ref>
* [[Lane's Island]]<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.nature.org/ourinitiatives/regions/northamerica/unitedstates/maine/placesweprotect/lanes-island.xml |title=Miane: Lane's Island |publisher=[[The Nature Conservancy]] |access-date=May 10, 2012}}</ref>
* [[Saddleback Ledge Light]]<ref>{{cite web |url=http://lighthouse.cc/saddleback/ |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20020616210229/http://lighthouse.cc/saddleback/ |url-status=usurped |archive-date=June 16, 2002 |title=Saddleback Ledge Light |last1=D'Entremont |first1=Jeremy |work=New England Lighthouses: A Virtual Guide |access-date=May 10, 2012}}</ref>
* Vinalhaven Historical Society & Museum<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.vinalhavenhistoricalsociety.org/ |title=Vinalhaven Historical Society (homepage) |access-date=May 10, 2012}}</ref>

Properties in Vinalhaven listed on the [[National Register of Historic Places listings in Knox County, Maine|National Register of Historic Places]] include Browns Head Light, Heron Neck Light, [[Murch Family House]], [[Pleasant River Grange No. 492]], Saddleback Ledge Light, [[Star of Hope Lodge]], [[Union Church of Vinalhaven]], [[Vinalhaven Public Library]] and the [[Moses Webster House]].

== Notable people ==

* [[Margaret Wise Brown]], children's book author
* [[Caitlin Cahow]], hockey player
* [[Joseph P. Dyer]], politician
* [[Gerald Edelman]], scientist (Nobel Prize, 1972)<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.legacy.com/us/obituaries/nytimes/name/maxine-edelman-obituary?id=36042883|access-date=July 6, 2022|title=MAXINE EDELMAN Obituary (2022) - New York, NY - New York Times|website=[[Legacy.com]] }}</ref>
* [[John C. Harkness]], architect
* [[Leonard Hokanson]], concert pianist
* [[Robert Indiana]], artist associated with the Pop Art movement
* [[John Jay Iselin]], administrator, educator
* [[Philip Jamison]], artist
* [[Brewster Jennings]], industrialist {{Citation needed|date=July 2010}}
* [[Owen P. Lyons]], politician
* [[Bill Murray (baseball)|Bill Murray]], professional baseball player
* [[Leverett Saltonstall]], 55th [[List of Governors of Massachusetts|governor of Massachusetts]]
* [[Ketch Secor]], musician with the [[Old Crow Medicine Show]]<ref>{{Cite web|url=http://www.puremusic.com/pdf/ocms.pdf|title=A Conversation with Ketch Secor of Old Crow Medicine Show|last=Goodman|first=Frank|date=April 2004|website=Pure Music}}</ref> 
* [[John Wulp]], scenic designer, producer, director

==See also==

* [[List of islands of Maine]]
* [[List of islands of the United States by area]]
* [[North Haven, Maine]]

==References==

'''Notes'''
{{Reflist}}

==External links==

{{commons category|Vinalhaven, Maine}}
{{wikivoyage|Vinalhaven}}
* [http://townofvinalhaven.org/ Town of Vinalhaven, Maine]
* [http://www.vinalhavenpubliclibrary.org/ Vinalhaven Public Library]
* [http://www.vinalhavenschool.org/ Vinalhaven School]
* [http://www.vinalhaven.org/ Vinalhaven Chamber Of Commerce]
* [http://maine.gov/local/knox/vinalhaven/ Maine.gov—Vinalhaven, Maine]
* [http://quarriesandbeyond.org/states/me/me-quarries_10.html Vinalhaven, Maine, stone quarry info. on Stone Quarries and Beyond]
* [https://www.nytimes.com/1999/05/09/arts/art-architecture-monuments-of-stone-testaments-to-an-island.html "Monuments of Stone, Testaments to an Island"—''The New York Times'']
* [http://www.mainegenealogy.net/individual_place_record.asp?place=vinalhaven Maine Genealogy: Vinalhaven, Knox County, Maine]
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{{Knox County, Maine|state=collapsed}}
{{Maine Islands}}
{{authority control}}

[[Category:Vinalhaven, Maine| ]]
[[Category:Coastal islands of Maine]]
[[Category:Islands of Knox County, Maine]]
[[Category:Islands of Maine]]
[[Category:Populated coastal places in Maine]]
[[Category:Towns in Knox County, Maine]]
[[Category:Towns in Maine]]