Bath (Maine)

Sagadahoc County

23-03355

Bath is a city in the U.S. state of Maine in the United States of America and the Prefecture of Sagadahoc County. According to the results of the census of 2010 living in Bath 8,514 citizens. Thus, it is the largest city of the county.

  • 3.1 Museums
  • 3.2 Structures
  • 4.1 traffic
  • 4.2 Media

Geography

Geographical location

Bath is located on the west bank of the Kennebec River, about 20 km upstream from its mouth in the Atlantic Ocean. The metropolitan area is an average of 19 m above sea level

Neighboring communities

  • Brunswick, west
  • Topsham, west
  • Wiscasset, east

Major cities in the surrounding area are:

  • Lewiston / Auburn, about 45 km north-west
  • Augusta, 65 km north-west
  • Portland, about 65 km south

Climate

Climate of Bath is largely mild due to the proximity of the Atlantic. The average annual rainfall is 181 mm.

History

The Abenaki called the area, located in the Bath, Sagadahoc ( mouth of the great river ). This referred to the Kennebec River, which flows into the Atlantic Ocean. The river was explored in 1605 by Samuel de Champlain and two years later was something downstream founded by the Popham Colony Bath and Fort St. George. Due to the difficult weather and poor leadership failed the settlement. Nevertheless, the colonialists went down in history as the first Europeans in the New World an ocean going ship, the Virginia of Sagadahoc built. The ship brought the settlers back to England.

Around 1660, the area was inhabited again. The country earned the settlers of the Indian chief Robin Hood. Bath was founded in 1753 as part of Georgetown. On February 17, 1781 Bath received the title of town and was divorced from George Town. The head of the local post, Dummer Sewell, gave the city the name of Bath, after the eponymous English city of Bath.

On 14 February 1844, former district of West Bath was also made ​​into a town from the city. The city proper law, the title city, Bath received on 14 June 1847, and since 1854, the city is the seat of Sagadahoc County. The following year, the town common end to a portion of West Bath again. The city was in the following period as an industrial location. In addition to the widespread in Maine woodworking flourished in the town also iron and brass factories.

In addition, since 1743 the shipbuilding in Bath is located. Due to the favorable geographic location near the mouth of the Kennebec River navigable and the local iron and wood industries Bath was the fifth largest Seewerft the United States in the mid-19th century. She produced mainly clippers. More than 200 shipbuilding companies were temporarily based in Bath, the most famous and largest is Bath Iron Works, which was founded in 1884 and today is an important employer in the region. Many military ships were built by this company. During the Second World War every 17 days left a ship yard. The last company in the city, which is still built wooden ships, Percy & Small Shipyard, was acquired in 1971 by the Maritime Museum of Maine and has been preserved.

Culture and sights

Museums

The history Baths as a seafaring town is documented in the Marine Museum here can be found mainly paintings and models of built in Bath ships and sailors. The Naval Museum is adjacent downstream directly to the site of the shipyard " Bath Iron Works ".

Structures

Bath is a city with a distinct New England- cityscape; almost half of the houses were built before 1940. One particularly striking example of which was the Chocolate Church, now included in the list of estimable building the Library of Congress, the two neo-Gothic churches. It is no longer used as a church today, but serves as an art center with permanent and temporary art exhibitions.

The preservation of historic buildings in the city and the perimeter is supported by a company established in 1971 a private company, the Sagadahoc Preservation.

Economy and infrastructure

Bath has two particularly important sectors of the economy: on the one hand, the shipyard ' Bath Iron Works ", which mainly worked on orders from the U.S. Navy, as well as tourism. The unemployment rate in 2005 was 3.2%.

Traffic

The port of Bath, located in the Kennebec River, is the main hub of city. He has three piers with a water depth of 10 m (30 ft); the city front is to use about one kilometers of recreational boats as a dock. The Kennebec upstream navigable to Augusta.

The air connection is secured in the area, where to start and can land business machines by four small airports ( Westport Airport, Portland Jetport, Augusta Airport Lewiston Airport ). The airports are located between 10 and 35 min of Bath. A major airport of the Navy, on all types of aircraft can operate, is located in Brunswick; However, it is not a public airport.

An existing since 1849 rail link, the railway Portland Rockland, connects with Bath Brunswick and Portland in the West and since 1871 Rockland in the east. 1927, the bridge over the Kennebec River was inaugurated, replacing a railway ferry. Leading by Bath section is now the Maine Eastern Railroad, which also operates a seasonal passenger from Brunswick to Rockland. In Bath there is a breakpoint of this compound. Because of damage to the roadbed, the track instead of the designed 59 mph with 35 mph is passable.

From the mid-1890s to 1937, Bath had a tram service.

Media

The city has a local television station, the " Bath Community Television ". It is a publicly support branch of the Susquehanna Communications. A local weekly newspaper, " The Coastal Journal", published every Thursday; a local newspaper does not exist.

Others

  • On the grounds of the Bath Iron Works rises the highest crane in the United States.
  • Sumner Sewall, 1941-1945 Governor of the State of Maine, was born in Bath and died there.
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