Third entry! I've made it this far. I have a tendency to get bored with things like this, but I find myself continuing as I am learning a lot. And I hope that as I continue this project you learn a lot too. The response I've gotten so far has been positive.
If you haven't read any of the entries for this project yet, here's how it goes. Each and every week (or more often), using a random number generator I pick one county from the United States and give a little bit of information on that county. I am going with five pieces of information - historical, cultural, news, natural, political, etc. - to share about the county I choose. Ideally, I'll stick it out until every single county is completed.
So here we go, Round 3!
This entry is the third of the counties. The randomly selected celebrity county is...
Somerset County, Maine
Incorporated: March 1, 1809
Population: 52,228
Total Area: 4095.37 square miles
County Seat: Skowhegan (pop: 8,824)
Beautiful Somerset County, here we go!
(1) Skowhegan, Maine is the county seat and has a rich history. The area was settled in 1773, and the following facts make the area unique.
- The home of the first woman United States Senator Margaret Chase Smith.
- The home of the world's largest sculptured Indian at 62 feet tall in the downtown area.
- One of the stopping points of Benedict Arnold's march to Quebec in 1775 was in Skowhegan, traveling along the waterways of the area.
- The Abnaki people would gather in this area along the river seasonally for planting crops and gathering fish.
(2) The nation's oldest continuously running agricultural fair takes place here - the Skowhegan State Fair. The fair hosts agricultural competitions, arts and crafts events, flower show, livestock shows, a children's park, tiger and elephant show, and various musical performances. My favorite? The poultry show! (I love chickens)
(3) The small town of Caratunk, Maine lies along the portion of the Appalachian trail that passes through Somerset county. This small town of only 108 sees anywhere from 1,200 to 1,500 hikers traversing the Appalachian trail. This portion of the trail actually requires a canoe crossing over the Kennebec River. As of August 16, 2011, the town of Caratunk is also involved in a battle to protect its mountain ridges from wind turbine development.
(4) The Somerset Railroad was a railroad built in Somerset County, ME as a means of transportation to the Mt. Kineo House, a Victorian era destination hotel on Moosehead Lake. Construction on the line first began in 1860 and finished in 1906 with the construction of the Mt. Kineo resort at the end of the line on Moosehead Lake. The last passenger train ran over the line in September 1933 and the hotel was razed in 1938.
(5) The town of Harmony, Maine was host to the filming of the movie Graveyard Shift, based on the story by Stephen King. The town of 954 in Somerset County was one of the main filming sites for the new movie in 1990. What is this frightening Stephen King tale about you may ask? It's "about a Maine textile mill, where its workers come into contact with something far more gruesome than anyone might expect." Starring David Andrews and Kelly Wolf, this is a movie that will frighten your socks off!
Dun dun dun!
Hope you enjoyed this week's county, I know I found it entertaining to report on it. If you want to add to this week’s county, please do. If you want me to add it in the actual diary, let me know in the comments and I will.