L/A Origins

Before Lewiston and Auburn, the land belonged to the Wabanaki Indians. Even under dominion of the 13 colonies, Maine was still sparsely populated by colonist prior to the Seven Years' War. Warfare with the British disrupted stability among the Wabanaki, and the aftermath of the war made Maine more accessible to settlers. Maine became a safer investment for companies to speculate and buy large tracts of land, promoting more settlement. The population of Maine was 21,000 in 1765, but grew to 96,000 by the end of the century. Pejepscot Proprietors got involved by granting 5 square miles of land along the Androscoggin River to Jonathan Bagley and Moses Little. These land developers would name this territory Lewiston.

Lewiston and Auburn started off as an agrarian settlement, yet still recognized as a potential contributor to cotton manufacturing. Lewiston Falls Manufacturing Company completed a mill in 1834. A building with textile looms was built by the Androscoggin in 1844, and by the following year the Lewiston Falls Cotton Mill Company was created by prominent Lewiston businessmen. Lewiston and Auburn was ideally located by the Great Falls of the Androscoggin, which could be used for industrial efforts and produce power. The Lewiston Water Power Company (LWPC) planned to utilize the river to transmit energy from the falls. Benjamin Bates and Alexander DeWitt initiated the construction of canals and dams. In 1854, the completion of the canal signified the beginning of Lewiston's Golden Era.

The industrialists of Lewiston had authority over political and construction efforts that was beneficial to them and the city. Furthermore, the expansion and development of L/A as textile cities depended on a tight relationship between city officials and businessmen. An example of this was the battle between the city and the Maine Central Railroad. L/A businessmen fought against the centralized Maine Central Railroad due to unfair railroad rates. To encourage rate competition, L/A industrialists constructed an independent railroad between Lewiston and St. Lawrence in 1874.

Lewiston's industrialists were also responsible for building and revamping religious institutions, yet the Catholic community struggled for recognition. After an Irish chapel was burned down in Lincoln St, industrialists and city officials initially refused to grant the church funds to build a new church. Eventually, a housing lot was sold to the church for an agreeable price. This church is present day Saint Joseph's in Auburn. St. Patrick's and St. Peter's were built later on, and served as a center for Franco Canadians to congregate and preserve their culture.

Textile Capitalists contributed in development of recreational sectors in downtown Lewiston. Modern day Kennedy Park was created in 1861 as a park for factory workers. Across the park is City Hall, first built in 1873 and rebuilt in 1892. Andrew Carnegie contributed $60,000 to build Lewiston Public Library in 1902, but the mill companies had been collecting books since 1860.

Industrialists involved in Lewiston had an important role in funding educational institutions. Probably the most prominent education structure in L/A is Bates College. Benjamin Bates in particular was highly invested in the affairs of Lewiston, and donated a generous sum of $100,000 to Oren Cheney. Cheney used this money to establish Bates College in 1855. Cheney was an abolitionist, and constructed Bates on the foundation of inclusivity. A second truth of Bates' funding from an industry that fueled slavery must be acknowledged. Although slavery existed in the colonies since the 17th century, the colonies depended on Britain to import finished cotton goods. Once America declared independence, southern states deliberately prioritized cotton as their main produce, and northern states invested in industry and textile mills. African American slaves fed the demand for raw cotton, cotton that fed the demand for textiles, and in return bolster the American economy and make millions for textile companies. America became the worlds second largest exporter of textiles by the 1850s. Therefore many institutions established around this time period have a direct correlation with the persistence of exploitation and free labor.

The Irish Famine in the 1850s aroused a huge wave of immigrants throughout the Untied States. In search for food, shelter, and a better life, Irish refugees settled enmasse to urban centers where industrialization offered work. Inevitably, the Irish began to settle and form a large community in Lewiston. Irish laborers filled the demand for important work that accelerated the industrial evolution of Lewiston and the textile mills. Between 1848-1854, 400 Irishmen dug up 220,000 cubic yards of soil to build canals. They also worked in bleacheries, and excavated and built foundations for textile mills and homes.

The most influential ethnic group for the history of L/A were the French Canadians, who began to settle in large numbers during the 1860s. Franco Canadians have always been present in Maine, but their younger generations typically assimilated to Yankee culture. Since the aftermath of the Seven Years' War, French Canadians were displaced from Nova Scotia and Quebec. However, economic shifts in the mid 19th century was the driving force for widespread immigration to Lewiston and Auburn. Canadians of the Beauce region were impacted by capitalism and the mechanization of farming. To make ends meet, many migrated seasonally to lumber camps in northern Maine, while others worked in construction sites and industrial factories. The textile cities of Lewiston and Auburn were the perfect home for these immigrants in search for work, especially during times of prosperity. The connection of the Canadian Grand Trunk Railway to Lewiston further stimulated the wave of Canadian immigrants. These people were designated to live in "Little Canada," neighborhoods previously owned by Franklin Company. Prior to the Canadians, mill workers were predominantly Yankee girls of English origin. However, in 1870, 80% of the Franco Canadian community worked in the textile industry. Women and children provided cheap labor, and 99% of working children were mill workers. The other groups that settled in L/A were Greeks, Poles, Italians, and Jews.

Early Irish immigrants lived in undesirable shanty towns known as the Gas Patch, corrupted with overcrowding and poor sanitation. These shoddy living conditions contributed to the disproportionate impact the 1854 Cholera epidemic had on the Irish community. The Irish also endured discrimination in Lewiston. At the time, Lewiston, like most of America, was dominated by Anglo-Protestant culture. When the Irish arrived, there were clear conflicts in the cultural and religious values between both communities. Irish citizens brought their customs of social drinking to Lewiston, defying prohibition laws.

The arrival of French Canadians caused ethnic tensions between the two groups. Little Canada and the Gas Patch were in close proximity of each other, yet violence was inflicted on those who cross onto the other's territory. These conflicts didn't seem to be from job competition because manual labor was mainly done by Irish workers, while French Canadians worked in the mills. Therefore, their conflicts stemmed from poverty and ethnic differences. What these groups did have in common was their socioeconomic status and their religion. Like the Irish, Franco Canadians lived in tenement housing which lacked running water, heat, and alleyways littered with garbage. The church served as the strongest communal institution for both groups in a country that rejected their way of life. Nativist Know-nothings burned down an Irish chapel in 1855. The city was also at times reluctant to fund the construction of Catholic churches compared to Protestant churches and other construction projects.

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Rice-Defosse, Mary, and James Myall. The Franco-Americans of Lewiston-Auburn. The History Press, 2015.