Kennebec County (pop. 122,151) is southeast of Franklin County. “Kennebec” is an Eastern Abenaki word meaning “large body of still water.”
The county was traditionally a center of industry, with paper and textile mills along the 170-mile Kennebec River.
Kennebec River at Augusta
Augusta (pop. 19,136) is the county seat of Kennebec County and the capital of Maine. Augusta is the third-smallest state capital – after Montpelier, Vermont, and Pierre, South Dakota.
The Maine State House was built in 1832.
The University of Maine at Augusta, established in 1965, has about 5,000 students.
The Moose is the school’s mascot.
The Kennebec County Courthouse was built in 1830.
With additions in 1851 and 1907
The “Olde Federal Building” in Augusta served as the city’s main post office until the 1960s.
Built in 1890
The Kennebec Arsenal is a historic district in Augusta dating from the 19th century; it has been empty and awaiting renovation for several years.
The state housed mental patients there for many years.
The city of Waterville (pop. 15,722) is the home of Colby College, a private liberal arts college that was founded in 1813.
It has about 1,800 students.
Waterville also has the “Two-Cent Bridge,” a suspension footbridge over the Kennebec River which formerly had a toll of two cents. It dates from 1903.
The charge was abolished in 1960.
The 25-foot Ladies Delight Lighthouse on Lake Cobbosseecontee has been preventing boats from running aground since 1908.
Located on Ladies Delight Island
Poet Edward Arlington Robinson grew up in the town of Gardiner (pop. now 5,800).
Immortalized by Simon and Garfunkel
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