MGS Special Publication #86

Compiled By: Marlene A. Groves

Pages: 706

ISBN: 978-1-949083-04-0

Original Publication Year: 2019

Every Name Index: 20,587 entries

Non Member Price: $45
Member Price: $35

About The Book: The town of Richmond is located in the County of Sagadahoc in the state of Maine, on the western bank of the Kennebec River, and is approximately 15 miles south of Augusta, the state’s capital. The town was settled in about 1725. What was known as Richmond Plantation was annexed to the town of Bowdoinham in 1779 upon the incorporation of Pittston, then also containing what later became Gardiner. On 10 February 1823 the town was incorporated as Richmond, the 252nd town in Maine, and named for Fort Richmond which had been built in the region in about 1719. Land east of Pleasant Pond, formerly part of Litchfield, was annexed to Richmond in 1826. The population of the town rose from its lowest number of 1,308 in 1830, the first census taken after its incorporation, to a high point of 3,082 in 1890. The town office and local historical society have a wealth of original volumes of records for residents of the town since its incorporation in 1823. Most of the vital records found in the original town volumes located in the town office have been transcribed verbatim for this book. The only exceptions are for those records containing intentions of marriage which in most cases have extraneous information. To eliminate most of the extraneous wording in these intentions of marriage and to save some space in this book, only the names, residences and date of intention were extracted. Other records transcribed for this book consist of division of fence lines, information on stray animals found, and marks of beasts. For this book some of the records transcribed from the historical society’s holdings consist of pauper accounts and records, highway and municipal tax lists for 1823, naturalization records and some Baptist Church records. Only the highway and municipal tax lists for the year 1823 have been transcribed for this book since these records show inhabitants residing in the town of Richmond in 1823, the year the town was incorporated. The Richmond Historical & Cultural Society has many more volumes of records not transcribed or extracted for this book.