Appendix H - Historical Archaeological and ... - CBP.gov

state of Maine saw a period of impressive economic growth in the decades leading up to the
Civil War. Much of this development took place in the central portions of the state, where the
rivers proved easier to control. New towns emerged to take advantage of this growth, including
Auburn, Lewiston Rumford, Farmington, Madison, Skowhegan, Houlton, and were filled with
houses reflecting the then-popular residential styles, particularly Greek Revival, Gothic Revival,
and, later, variations of the Italianate styles.
Further from the new and establishing towns of the central and southern portions of the state, in
the St. John River Valley along Maine’s northern border with Canada, residential architecture
tended to be more conservative in style, and continued to reflect the Acadian origins. Greek
Revival influences remained longer in these rural areas, and can be seen the variations of
vernacular Acadian house types including the one and one-half story front-gable, half-cape house
that is scattered throughout the central and northern portions of the state. By the early and midtwentieth
century, however, examples of high-style residential architecture including variations
on the Colonial Revival and Mediterranean styles can be found throughout the State.
One of Maine’s principal agricultural crops led to the establishment of a particular form of
agricultural building: the potato barn. Set partially below grade with only the roof extending
above the ground, examples of nineteenth century potato barns can be seen throughout the
northern parts of the state, especially in northeastern Aroostook County. Between 1996 and
2004, the SHPO conducted surveys of agricultural buildings in Aroostook County, with
particular emphasis on potato barns.
In the late nineteenth century, as the rail lines extended into the state’s northern regions, Maine’s
lakes and forests drew increasingly large numbers of visitors, or “sports,” who sought hunting
and fishing vacations. This resulted in one of the important new architectural elements in the
state, the “sporting camps.” These camps range in scale from simple front-gable frame buildings
to elaborate estates designed according to formal national architectural styles. These are found
most often in the northwestern parts of the state, in the Moosehead/Rangeley Lakes and the
Richardson/Mooselookmeguntic Lakes areas. In reviewing projects in these lake and wilderness
areas of northern Maine, the SHPO has paid particular attention to sporting camps. The most
common theme among the sporting camps is their orientation to water, either rivers or lakes.
In addition to residences, Maine’s industrial heritage continues to be represented in historic
architecture. Some small-scale industrial buildings remain in the southern portion of the study
area: small mill buildings that made use of the limited fall of the rivers and their tidal movement
as they approached the coast. More common, though, are the large-scale factory buildings
relating to the State’s industries, principally paper and textiles. By the late nineteenth and early
twentieth centuries, these buildings tended overwhelmingly to be built of brick, two to four
stories high, with rows of multi-paned metal-framed windows. Like the sporting camps, many of
these older factory buildings tended to be located along the State’s rivers, to take advantage of
the available hydropower. These buildings are found most often in the smaller and mid-sized
piedmont cities such as Waterville, Auburn, Madison, and Skowhegan. Maine also has a long
history of the use of hydroelectric power. Many of these hydroelectric powerhouses, dating from
the 1890s into the mid-twentieth century, remain, and generally are considered historically
significant.
Northern Border Activities H-134 July 2012