The forest products industry is the third largest employer. Data (table 2-15) 

 do not include fishermen, timber workers, or farmers. However, Colgan (1979) 

 estimates that there are 14,000 full-time fishermen in coastal Maine, which 

 constitutes 10% of those employed. Additional data on numbers of fishermen 

 are given in C. E. Maguire, Inc. (1978). The trade, services, and tourism 

 industries in the coastal zone grew in terms of number of persons employed 

 between 1973 and 1977 (Colgan 1979). The average wage for employed persons in 

 coastal Maine was $9150 in 1977 (Colgan 1979) . Unemployment in the coastal 

 counties averaged 8.5% in 1976. 



Transportation . Rail and air transport maps show existing routes and air 



terminals (figure 2-29). There are five airports on the coast, with air 



taxi services available to other smaller airports. No air service exists east 

 of Bar Harbor. 



Portland, Searsport, and Bangor are the three major marine cargo ports in 

 coastal Maine. Five others are considered minor (see figure 2-29). During 

 the period between 1970 and 1975, the amount of cargo handled at Maine coastal 

 ports decreased by 7% (table 2-16) 



Population . The first major settlements in Maine began along the 

 southern coast and spread gradually northward and eastward. By 1790 most 

 parts of the coast were sparsely settled and by 1860 the coastal towns were 

 well established. The populations of many Maine communities began to decline 

 by 1900 as colonization in the United States shifted westward. The overall 

 State population continued to grow during that period (figure 2-30) but less 

 rapidly after 1860. During the period between 1880 and 1970, Maine grew at an 

 average annual rate (0.4%) that was less than New England ( 1 . 4%) and the U.S. 

 as a whole (1.8%; Maine State Planning Office 1978). 



Although no early coastal population data have been assembled at the county 

 level, an approximation of trends (figure 2-32) can be made. Washington and 

 Hancock Counties showed rapid growth from 1840 to 1860, during the boom in 

 shipbuilding, lumber and timber, quarrying, and fishing. Their populations 

 peaked between 1880 and 1900 and began to decline thereafter. This rise, 

 peak, and decline is best exemplified by Washington County but probably 

 occurred in most coastal counties at an earlier time. 



Each county has begun a population increase following the decline that 

 occurred in this century. Washington County has been the last to follow in 

 this trend, with noticeable increases beginning there in 1970 (Bureau of 

 Census 1970) . Many coastal towns had much larger populations during the early 

 phases of the industrial age and are now, some hundred years later, 

 considerably smaller in population. 



The Maine coast has an average population density of about 65 persons/sq mi 

 according to 1974 data. The range of densities in each region varies from 

 about 540 persons/sq mi in region 1 to about 35 persons/sq mi in region 6 

 (table 2-17). The range of coastal densities by town varies from 3400 

 persons/sq mi in metropolitan Portland (region 1) to 0.45 persons/sq mi in 

 Centerville in region 6. The ten most densely populated towns in the coastal 

 regions are listed in table 2-18. 



2-65 



10-80 



