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Bath
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Kennebec River Map of the U.S. state of Maine showing major cities, county seats, and state boundaries. The map highlights Maine's borders with New Hampshire, Quebec, and New Brunswick, and marks the Atlantic Ocean coastline. A small locator map in the corner shows Maine's position in the northeastern United States.
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Tower Bridge over the Thames River in London, England. Opened in 1894. Remains an Important Traffic Route with 40,000 Crossings Every Day.
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Kennebec River
Kennebec River Kennebec River, near Bath, Maine.

Bath

Maine, United States
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History

Bath, city, port of entry (since 1789), seat (1854) of Sagadahoc county, southwestern Maine, U.S. The city lies along the Kennebec River near its mouth on the Atlantic coast, 36 miles (58 km) northeast of Portland. Settled about 1670 and named for the English city, it was part of Georgetown until incorporated as a separate town in 1781. Its shipbuilding industry (exemplified in the Maine Maritime Museum there) dates from 1762, when Captain William Swanton launched the Earl of Bute. The Bath Iron Works (founded 1833 and the city’s main economic asset) has been building ships since 1889, reaching peak naval production during the world wars. Inc. city, 1847. Pop. (2000) 9,266; (2010) 8,514.

This article was most recently revised and updated by Chelsey Parrott-Sheffer.
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