Swans Island, Maine
Swans Island, Maine Location within the state of Maine
Coordinates: 44°9′8″N 68°26′36″W / 44.15222, -68.44333
Country	United States
State	Maine
County	Hancock
Area
- Total	82.4 sq mi (213.4 km²)
- Land	14.0 sq mi (36.1 km²)
- Water	68.4 sq mi (177.3 km²)
Elevation	13 ft (4 m)
Population (2000)
- Total	327
- Density	23.4/sq mi (9.0/km²)
Time zone	Eastern (EST) (UTC-5)
- Summer (DST)	EDT (UTC-4)
ZIP code	04685
Area code(s)	207
FIPS code	23-75455
GNIS feature ID	0582757

Swan's Island is an island town in Hancock County, Maine, United States. It is named after Colonel James Swan of Fifeshire, Scotland who purchased this island and some surrounding areas and organized their colonization in the 18^th century.^[1] The population was 327 at the 2000 census. The town is accessible by ferry from Bass Harbor.

The island has a summertime population of about 1,000. There is a general store on the island, open in Spring 2007. There are also a number of small cottage industry shops. The main industry is lobster fishing, which employees 40 people full-time and many others in part-time work.^[2]

History

Swan's Island was first charted in 1606 by Samuel de Champlain's expedition, and at the time was used as a seasonal hunting ground of local indians. James Swan purchased the island in 1786, but in 1791, David Smith, an American Revolutionary War veteran, became the first white man to settle on the island.^[3]

The population slowly grew to over 1,000 by 1900. Fish processing was the dominant industry into the 1930s, when it no longer was profitable in the area. The state-run ferry, which began service in 1960, helped make Swan's Island a popular summer tourism destination. ^[3]

Geography

According to the United States Census Bureau, the town has a total area of 82.4 square miles (213.4 km²), of which, 13.9 square miles (36.1 km²) of it is land and 68.4 square miles (177.3 km²) of it (83.07%) is water.

There are three villages in the town: Swan's Island, Atlantic and Minturn.

Demographics

As of the census^[4] of 2000, there were 327 people, 142 households, and 90 families residing in the town. The population density was 23.4 people per square mile (9.1/km²). There were 421 housing units at an average density of 30.2/sq mi (11.7/km²). The racial makeup of the town was 98.17% White, 0.31% African American, and 1.53% from two or more races.

There were 142 households out of which 26.8% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 59.2% were married couples living together, 2.1% had a female householder with no husband present, and 36.6% were non-families. 30.3% of all households were made up of individuals and 13.4% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.30 and the average family size was 2.87.

In the town the population was spread out with 23.9% under the age of 18, 8.3% from 18 to 24, 24.5% from 25 to 44, 24.8% from 45 to 64, and 18.7% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 41 years. For every 100 females there were 105.7 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 112.8 males.

The median income for a household in the town was $28,438, and the median income for a family was $32,083. Males had a median income of $29,028 versus $18,750 for females. The per capita income for the town was $14,515. About 11.3% of families and 16.0% of the population were below the poverty line, including 15.1% of those under age 18 and 21.7% of those age 65 or over.

External links

• http://www.swansisland.org/
• http://www.swans-island-maine.us/
• Swan's Island Library Online Catalog

References

• A History of Swan's Island, Maine. By Herman Wesley Small. Published 1898.

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