About Falmouth

  • Town Landing
  • Falmouth Community Park
  • Town Landing

Falmouth, Maine is located just north of Portland on the coast of Maine. It has a population of approximately 11,000 people, and covers approximately 32 square miles from the coastline to rural areas further inland.


Falmouth's schools are ranked as one of the best in the State, with the Town providing all services for K-12.


It is a vibrant, independent town that provides most services to citizens itself; cooperative agreements with regional agencies and neighboring communities help to round out a full program of services.


Attractions in Falmouth include the local harbor and town landing, indoor and outdoor ice skating facilities, shopping, many parks and recreational facilities, 3 golf courses, and a medical center.


Beginning in 1652, Massachusetts officials visited the region to negotiate with Maine settlements to become a part of Massachusetts.   Although these were peaceful negotiations, they took place with the thinly veiled threat of the sizable Massachusetts militia.  So, after initial reluctance, Kittery and Georgeana (soon renamed York) joined in 1652  and Wells, Cape Porpoise, and Saco become part of the Bay Colony the following year.  George Cleeve strongly opposed these actions and fought for Lygonia to remain independent, but he too finally yielded in 1658.  The articles of agreement between the freemen of the region and Massachusetts specified that Black Point, Blue Point, and Stratton’s Islands would be organized as the town of Scarborough. 


Meanwhile, Spurwink and the Casco Bay settlements would be brought together in one town that would be named Falmouth.  Sometimes geographical similarity inspires a name.  There certainly is a geographical similarity between Falmouth Bay in Cornwall, and Casco Bay.  Although these geographical similarities may have helped inspire the name, there is powerful symbolism in the choice of the names “Falmouth” and “Scarborough” for Maine towns.  Like its Puritan allies in Parliament, Massachusetts conquered its Royalist oppositions in Maine.  The Puritans of Massachusetts must have considered “Falmouth” and “Scarborough” as appropriate names for the last Royalist strongholds in Maine to fall to Puritan Massachusetts.  The Puritans of Massachusetts imposed the names Falmouth and Scarborough in conquest, a reminder to the population of their fate and of their new overlords.


By 1716, the Legislature of Massachusetts felt the New Casco Fort was no longer necessary and ordered it to be torn down.  However, Samuel Moody did not agree with this decision; so he decided if the fort must come down, he would use the lumber and materials to make a settlement for his soldiers and their families.  In 1718, Falmouth was once again declared a town, using the same boundaries and same name it had been given in 1658.


The original boundaries of the town extended all the way from the Spurwink River in Scarborough up the coast to a point opposite Clapboard Island. This covered most of what is now Westbrook, Cape Elizabeth, South Portland, Portland and Falmouth. Cape Elizabeth and South Portland broke away in 1765, Portland in 1785, and Westbrook in 1814, leaving Falmouth the size it is today.
The current Town Hall was built in 1899 and has seen many renovations during its 100 years. In 1962 the Council-Manager form of government was established. Since that time, the Town has had a Town Manager who is responsible for the day-to-day operation of the Town.


**Additional information was obtained from the book Creating Portland History and Place in Northern New England, edited by Joseph A. Conforti and published by University Press of New England, Hanover and London published in 2005 and E Pluribus Unum, A Story of Falmouth, Maine by Charlotte and Donald Wallace.**
 

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