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Oakland is a town in Kennebec County in the U.S. state of Maine. The population was 6,230 at the 2020 census. Oakland is 4 miles (6 km) west of Waterville and approximately 18 miles (29 km) north of Augusta, the state capital. Waterville and Augusta are service centers for Oakland, and many Oakland residents commute to jobs in those areas. [edit] History
The area that is now Oakland was first settled in about 1780 by colonists of English descent from Massachusetts and New Hampshire. At that time, the region was known as Taconnet after Indian Chief Taconnet, an Abenaki nation sachem. Farmers found the area's fertile soil good for cultivation, grazing and dairy farming, while the water power provided by the Messalonskee Stream was useful for manufacturers. The area was incorporated by the Massachusetts General Court in 1771 as part of Winslow. In 1802, the area of Winslow west of the Kennebec River was incorporated as Waterville. The Androscoggin and Kennebec Railroad arrived in 1849, spurring Waterville to boom as a mill town. With several manufacturers of farm implements, it became known as the axe and scythe capital of New England. Other factories produced canned goods, tinware, carriages, furniture, tools, machinery, woolens, lumber, coffins, leather, boots and shoes. There was a granite quarry. In the 1870s, manufacturers in the western section of Waterville, unhappy with taxation in the town, petitioned the Maine State Legislature to designate their industrial district as a separate town. In 1872, Oakland became the southern terminal of the Somerset Railroad, connecting first to North Anson, then to Bingham, and finally to Moosehead Lake.[1] On February 26, 1873, the area was incorporated as West Waterville. In 1883, it was renamed Oakland. The town's ponds and lakes are home to a number of summer camps. Downtown contains some notable architecture, including Memorial Hall, built in 1870, and the Oakland Public Library, a Carnegie library built between 1913 and 1915. Both are listed on the National Register of Historic Places. The completion of Interstate 95 in the 1960s increased Oakland's relationship with the Augusta area, and to some extent the Greater Portland and Bangor areas. [edit] Research Tips
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