Aroostook

Aroostook, county, northern Maine, U.S. It is bordered by Quebec, Canada, to the west and northwest and by New Brunswick, Canada, to the north and east. The northern boundary is defined by the St. Francis and St. John rivers. The county is a hilly highland region with numerous streams and lakes. Major waterways include the Allagash, Aroostook, Big Black, Little Madawaska, Machias, and Mattawamkeag rivers. Long, Square, Eagle, Squa Pan, and Grand lakes are among the largest lakes. Privately owned North Maine Woods, Inc., manages much of the county’s extensive timberland, on which thrive spruce, birch, maple, and aspen. Public lands include Aroostook State Park, Allagash Wilderness Waterway, and the Gardner-Deboulie Reserve.

Formed in 1839, Aroostook has the largest area of any county in New England, and Maine residents often call it “the” county. Its name is derived from a Mi’kmaq (Micmac) Indian word meaning “clear,” or “beautiful water.” The southern region was settled by English and Irish immigrants, while the northern region was settled by Acadians of French descent. A Maine–New Brunswick border dispute between Great Britain and the United States in the late 18th and early 19th centuries concluded with the Webster-Ashburton Treaty (1842) following the bloodless Aroostook War (1838–39). Built in 1839, the blockhouse in Fort Kent stands as a reminder of the event. In the 1870s Swedes began to settle near the city of Caribou. Eagle Lake was the northern terminus of an elevated, steam-driven tramway built in 1902 to move logs out of the county. The University of Maine has branches at Presque Isle (1903) and Fort Kent (1878).

Other communities are Limestone, Houlton (the county seat), Madawaska, and Fort Fairfield. The economy is based on forest-related industries such as logging, sawmills, and paper mills and on agriculture, especially potatoes and oats. The county is one of the few agriculturally productive regions in Maine; its rich soil is made up of a type called caribou loam. Area 6,672 square miles (17,280 square km). Pop. (2000) 73,938; (2010) 71,870.