This article shows U.S. Census totals for Knox County, Maine, broken down by municipality, from 1900 to 2000.
Contents
- Corporate changes since 1900
- 1900
- 1910
- 1920
- 1930
- 1940
- 1950
- 1960
- 1970
- 1980
- 1990
- 2000
- Plantations
- Unorganized Territory
- References
There are two types of incorporated municipalities in Maine, towns and cities. The tables below differentiate between towns and cities.
Most areas of New England are entirely divided into incorporated municipalities, with no unincorporated territory. In the three northern New England states, however, some unincorporated territory does exist, generally in areas that are very sparsely populated. Maine contains significantly more unincorporated territory than the other states, with the bulk of it in interior and northern counties. Some southern and coastal counties, including Knox County, also contain smaller amounts of unincorporated territory, however.
Some unincorporated territory in Maine is organized into a third type of town-level municipality unique to Maine, called a plantation (considered to be “organized”, but not incorporated), while some is entirely unorganized. Knox County currently contains one plantation (Matinicus Isle), as well as a small amount of territory that is entirely unorganized (the former Criehaven Plantation). All of Knox County’s unincorporated area is on offshore islands. Separate sections with census totals for unincorporated areas follow the main tables below. For any census, adding up the totals for each town-level municipality, including any plantations or unorganized entities, should yield the county total. Except for Matinicus and Criehaven, all of Knox County is incorporated; except for Criehaven, all of the county is at least organized. (For a period in the late 19th and early 20th centuries, Knox County was entirely organized, but it has never been entirely incorporated.)
For more information on the New England municipal system, see New England town.
Corporate changes since 1900
1900
County Total: 30,406
Unincorporated territory reported 303 residents, all in organized plantations.
1910
County Total: 28,981
Unincorporated territory reported 292 residents, all in organized plantations.
1920
County Total: 26,245
Unincorporated territory reported 214 residents. This consisted of 203 residents in organized plantations, and 47 residents in unorganized territory.
1930
County Total: 27,693
Unincorporated territory reported 244 residents. This consisted of 156 residents in an organized plantation, and 88 residents in unorganized territory.
1940
County Total: 27,191
Unincorporated territory reported 225 residents. This consisted of 112 residents in an organized plantation, and 113 residents in unorganized territory.
1950
County Total: 28,121
Unincorporated territory reported 206 residents. This consisted of 188 residents in an organized plantation, and 18 residents in unorganized territory.
1960
County Total: 28,575
Unincorporated territory reported 114 residents. This consisted of 100 residents in an organized plantation, and 14 residents in unorganized territory.
1970
County Total: 29,013
Unincorporated territory reported 90 residents, all in Matinicus Isle Plantation; unorganized territory reported no population.
1980
County Total: 32,941
Unincorporated territory reported 71 residents. This consisted of 66 residents in an organized plantation, and 5 residents in unorganized territory.
1990
County Total: 36,310
Unincorporated territory reported 67 residents, all in Matinicus Isle Plantation; unorganized territory reported no population.
2000
County Total: 39,618
Unincorporated territory reported 51 residents, all in Matinicus Isle Plantation; unorganized territory reported no population.
Plantations
As of 1900, Knox County contained three plantations: Criehaven, Matinicus Isle and Muscle Ridge. All were located on offshore islands (the mainland of the county was then, and is now, entirely divided into incorporated towns).
Matinicus Isle is the only plantation that remains today. Muscle Ridge and Criehaven surrendered their organization in 1916 and 1925, respectively. When they did so, both reverted to unorganized territory, but Muscle Ridge's former territory was later annexed to a nearby town. Criehaven's former territory remains unorganized.
1900
1910
1920
1930
1940
1950
1960
1970
1980
1990
2000
Unorganized Territory
As of 1900, Knox County was entirely organized. The dissolutions of the town of Hurricane Isle (1915), Muscle Ridge Plantation (1916) and Criehaven Plantation (1925) all created unorganized territory, however, as each reverted to that state. The former territories of Hurricane Isle and Muscle Ridge were later annexed to nearby towns, leaving only Criehaven as unorganized territory today (see the Notes section for more information).
The former Criehaven Plantation consists of a small group of islands, covering less than one square mile of land, adjacent to (and once part of, before organizing separately) Matinicus Isle Plantation. This area is sometimes referred to as “Criehaven Township”. Its population has not exceeded 20 in any census since 1940, and in recent censuses it has reported few if any year-round residents.
1900 through 1920
There was no unorganized territory in Knox County at the time of these censuses.
1920
Unorganized territory reported 47 residents. The unorganized territory consisted of the former Muscle Ridge plantation (pop. 36) and the former town of Hurricane Isle (pop. 11).
1930
Unorganized territory reported 88 residents. No breakdown was provided, but it would seem to have included some combination of territory that had been part of the former town of Hurricane Isle and/or the former Criehaven and Muscle Ridge plantations.
1940
Unorganized territory reported 113 residents. No breakdown was provided, but it would seem to have included some combination of territory that had been part of the former town Criehaven and/or Muscle Ridge plantation.
1950
Unorganized territory reported 18 residents. No breakdown was provided, but it would seem to have included the former Criehaven plantation.
1960
Unorganized territory reported 14 residents, all in the former Criehaven Plantation, which was the only unorganized territory in the county.
1970
Unorganized territory reported no residents. The only unorganized territory in the county was the former Criehaven Plantation.
1980
Unorganized territory reported 5 residents, all in the former Criehaven Plantation, which was the only unorganized territory in the county.
1990
Unorganized territory reported no residents. The only unorganized territory in the county was the former Criehaven Plantation.
2000
Unorganized territory reported no residents. The only unorganized territory in the county was the former Criehaven Plantation.