Leeds was named after Leeds, England, the ancestral home of the town's first settlers, Thomas and Rogers Stinchfield. Their father, John, came from Leeds, England and was among the first settlers of New Gloucester, Maine.[3]
Geography
According to the United States Census Bureau, the town has a total area of 43.41 square miles (112.43 km2), of which 40.05 square miles (103.73 km2) is land and 3.36 square miles (8.70 km2) is water.[1]
Demographics
As of 2000 the median income for a household in the town was $37,993, and the median income for a family was $42,557. Males had a median income of $30,245 versus $24,250 for females. The per capita income for the town was $15,602. About 5.9% of families and 9.8% of the population were below the poverty line, including 9.7% of those under age 18 and 9.7% of those age 65 or over.
2010 census
As of the census[5] of 2010, there were 2,326 people, 895 households, and 655 families residing in the town. The population density was 58.1 inhabitants per square mile (22.4/km2). There were 1,018 housing units at an average density of 25.4 per square mile (9.8/km2). The racial makeup of the town was 97.5% White, 0.3% African American, 0.5% Native American, 0.2% Asian, 0.3% from other races, and 1.2% from two or more races. Hispanic or Latino of any race were 1.7% of the population.
There were 895 households, of which 32.6% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 58.7% were married couples living together, 8.3% had a female householder with no husband present, 6.3% had a male householder with no wife present, and 26.8% were non-families. 20.8% of all households were made up of individuals, and 7.9% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.60 and the average family size was 2.96.
The median age in the town was 41.3 years. 22.8% of residents were under the age of 18; 7.7% were between the ages of 18 and 24; 25.4% were from 25 to 44; 33.1% were from 45 to 64; and 10.9% were 65 years of age or older. The gender makeup of the town was 51.3% male and 48.7% female.
Camp Tekakwitha,[7] at 44°17′51″N 70°05′14″W / 44.297601°N 70.087254°W / 44.297601; -70.087254, is the only entirely French-speaking summer camp in United States, It is situated in Leeds, Maine. The property spreads over 11,000,000 square feet (1,000,000 m2) of timber land on the shores of Androscoggin Lake
Monument Hill Leeds Monument Hill – Elev 669'. A short, 3/4 mile, hike from base (North Rd.) to a wooded summit – 200' elev gain. Located at the summit, the obelisk is a "Monument to Peace" after the Civil War.[8] Generals Oliver Otis Howard and Charles Henry Howard placed the obelisk in 1895 "on the great hill" where they as children had played with their brother, Reverend Roland Bailey Howard, Secretary of the American Peace Society.[9] It was Rev. Howard's desire, unfulfilled at the time of his death in 1892, to place a monument there to honor the Peace that came at the end of the Civil War.[10]
Leeds borders the Androscoggin River and Androscoggin Lake. Running between these two bodies of water, through Leeds, is the Dead River. This small river has the unique ability to run two ways, depending on whether the Androscoggin Lake or River is higher.
References
^ a b"US Gazetteer files 2010". United States Census Bureau. Archived from the original on December 20, 2012. Retrieved December 16, 2012.
^"Census - Geography Profile: Leeds town, Androscoggin County, Maine". Retrieved January 17, 2022.
^Yates, Edgar A.P. (June 13, 1928). "Some Maine town names". The Lewiston Daily Sun. p. 4. Retrieved October 17, 2015.
^"Census of Population and Housing". Census.gov. Retrieved June 4, 2015.
^"Archived copy" (PDF). Archived from the original (PDF) on September 25, 2019. Retrieved June 18, 2015.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: archived copy as title (link)
^"Camp Tekakwitha - Camp de vacances francophone - Maine - USA". Camp Tekakwitha.
^"Peace Monument". sites.google.com.
^"Howard Bros". Archived from the original on July 24, 2013.
^"Peace Monument". Retrieved August 4, 2023.
External links
Varney, George J. (1886), Gazetteer of the state of Maine. Leeds, Boston: Russell, archived from the original on July 22, 2014, retrieved October 20, 2008
Map showing Leeds, Maine, ca. 1750 from the Maine Memory Network
Maine Genealogy: Leeds, Androscoggin County, Maine
