I forgot to mention this last week - in response to my theory that Lewiston/Auburn should become the capital of Maine my aunt-in-law sent me a photocopy of this article, "How Augusta became and stayed the state capital" written by State Representative Neil Rolde and delivered before the Kennebec Historical Society in Commemoration of the 150th anniversary of the Maine State House on February 24th, 1982.

I wish it was online (I can't seem to find it anywhere) but for more info on the capital and the political intrigue and machinations behind it, check out this article on the state website, "A Brief History of the Maine State House".

Of course, I stand behind my L/A theory.

Labels: Augusta, capital, Lewiston/Auburn, Maine

Over the weekend I read an article about the new Androscoggin Riverlands State Park here in Maine. It lead me to their website, where I read this:

Located within an hour of 50% of the State’s population, the park will not only serve the Lewiston-Auburn area and Androscoggin County, but residents in the broader region, including primarily Cumberland, Sagadahoc, Kennebec and Oxford Counties.

Huh.

I've long been interested in why Augusta was chosen as the capital of the state. Well, I get it, it's fairly centrally located geographically, especially for Bangor, Aroostook County, etc. But it's pretty far for folks in Southern Maine to travel.

After reading this statistic, I think that Lewiston/Auburn should be the capital. Doesn't it seem more important to find the mean center of population than the geographic center of area?

Labels: Augusta, capital, Lewiston/Auburn, Maine