Augusta

History

The area was first explored by the English of the short-lived Popham Colony in September 1607. Twenty-one years later, English settlers from the Plymouth Colony settled in the area in 1628 as part of a trading post on the Kennebec River. The settlement was known by its Native American name Cushnoc (or Coussinoc or Koussinoc), meaning "head of the tide". Fur trading was at first profitable, but because of Native uprisings and declining revenues, Plymouth Colony sold the Kennebec Patent in 1661. Cushnoc would remain unoccupied for the next 75 years. The area around Cushnoc was inhabited by the Kennebec, a band of the larger Abenaki nation. During the 17th century, they were on friendly terms with the English settlers in the region. A hotbed of Abenaki hostility toward British settlements was located further up the Kennebec at Norridgewock. In 1722, the tribe and its allies attacked Fort Richmond (now Richmond) and destroyed Brunswick. In response, English forces sacked Norridgewock in 1724 during Dummer's War, when the English gained tentative control of the Kennebec. During the height of the French and Indian War, in 1754, the English colonists built a blockhouse named Fort Western at Cushnoc on the eastern bank of the Kennebec River. It was intended as a supply depot for Fort Halifax upriver, as well as a regional defense from French attack. Later, during the American Revolutionary War, Benedict Arnold and his 1,100 troops would use Fort Western as a staging area before continuing their journey up the Kennebec to the Battle of Quebec. Cushnoc was incorporated as part of Hallowell in 1771. Known as "the Fort", it was set off and incorporated by the Massachusetts General Court in February 1797 as Harrington. In August, however, the name was changed to Augusta after…

Race & ethnicity

Most-observed species

• American Crow

  Corvus brachyrhynchos C.L.Brehm, 1822 · Aves
  8,780
• Black-capped Chickadee

  Poecile atricapillus (Linnaeus, 1766) · Aves
  7,287
• American Goldfinch

  Spinus tristis (Linnaeus, 1758) · Aves
  6,406
• Blue Jay

  Cyanocitta cristata (Linnaeus, 1758) · Aves
  5,336
• Song Sparrow

  Melospiza melodia (A.Wilson, 1810) · Aves
  5,207
• American Robin

  Turdus migratorius Linnaeus, 1766 · Aves
  5,066
• Northern Cardinal

  Cardinalis cardinalis (Linnaeus, 1758) · Aves
  4,889
• Tufted Titmouse

  Baeolophus bicolor (Linnaeus, 1766) · Aves
  4,569

Largest nearby schools

• Cony
  High · Augusta · 685 students · 15.6:1 ratio
• Gardiner Area High School
  High · Gardiner · 621 students · 12.2:1 ratio
• Hall-Dale Middle and High School
  High · Farmingdale · 522 students · 11.3:1 ratio
• Gardiner Regional Middle School
  Middle · Gardiner · 459 students · 11.2:1 ratio
• Maine Virtual Academy
  High · Augusta · 438 students · 13.3:1 ratio
• Vassalboro Community School
  Elementary · Vassalboro · 421 students · 10.5:1 ratio
• Sylvio J Gilbert School
  Elementary · Augusta · 335 students · 14.6:1 ratio
• Cony Middle School
  Middle · Augusta · 320 students · 11.9:1 ratio

Most recent

• M 2.5 — 2025-08-26
  4 km SW of Vinalhaven, Maine
• M 2.8 — 2024-07-28
  6 km W of Gardiner, Maine
• M 2.5 — 2023-08-08
  6 km N of Turner, Maine
• M 3.3 — 2023-01-14
  7 km ESE of Dedham, Maine
• M 2.7 — 2018-01-17
  3 km E of Richmond, Maine
• M 2.5 — 2016-02-11
  4 km S of Dallas, Maine