Gardiner History

 

During the 1750’s, Dr. Silvester Gardiner, a leading surgeon of Boston, acquired the rights to develop the land at the confluence of the Kennebec River and Cobbosseeconte Stream.  Dr. Gardiner exploited the 130-foot drop during the last mile of Cobbossee Stream by erecting two saw mills, a fulling mill, a potash factory and a grist mill.  The grist mill was the only place within a 50-mile radius where the pioneers could grind their corn.  Therefore, Guardinerstown, as it was known, soon became an economic center for the entire region.  The community was also at the head of tide, and offered the best sites for the development of numerous wharves.

 

From the early 1800’s until the Civil War, shipbuilding and trading was the basis of the community’s economy.  By 1849, when Gardiner became a City, there were 10 large wharves along the City’s waterfront serving the shipping industry.  Water-borne commerce included vast quantities of lumber, as well as goods produced by many mills, tanneries and a large pottery mill located on the Cobbossee Stream.

 

Beginning in the 1860’s, numerous paper mills were located in Gardiner.  The ice industry flourished between the 1880’s and 1920’s.  Several shoe and leather companies, in conjunction with the paper mills, ensured a firm economic base until well after World War II.

 

Beginning in the 1960’s, many of the mills that formed the economic foundation of the community began a slow process of decline and eventually closure.  Gardiner is a bedroom community for state government workers in Augusta and employees of Bath Iron Works.  Many residents commute to Portland because the real estate market in Gardiner is within reach of middle-income workers. 

 

The change from a mill-based economy to a bedroom community, combined with the rise of malls and “big box” retailers, has changed the composition of downtown businesses.  Downtown has evolved from a retail center to a service center with a variety of offerings; including banking, convenience stores, real estate and professional offices, restaurants and fast food outlets, some retail offerings, specialty retail stores, service businesses and social/recreational enterprises.