Sagadahoc County, Maine

Sagadahoc County is a county in Maine, United States, on the lower reaches of the Kennebec River where it meets the Atlantic. It had a population of 36,699 at the 2020 census and covers 254 square miles (660 km2) of land centred near 43°56′58″N 69°51′26″W.

Bath is the county seat, and its postal code is 04530. The county has one city and nine towns, plus about three dozen unincorporated villages and hamlets, and one unorganized territory (Perkins Township). It sits in the Eastern time zone.

Towns & Villages in Sagadahoc County

Sagadahoc is Maine’s smallest county by land area, but its shoreline holds dozens of named coves, points and hamlets alongside its ten incorporated municipalities. The table below lists the city and towns first, then the unincorporated places carried over from the county’s older gazetteer. “CDP” marks a census-designated place; “Unincorp.” marks a village or locality with no municipal government of its own.

Georgetown and Arrowsic are separate island towns connected to the mainland by bridge; several of the unincorporated names above (Bay Point, Five Islands, Robinhood, Sebasco, Small Point) are peninsula and island hamlets within Georgetown and Phippsburg rather than standalone settlements.

ZIP Codes

• 04530 — Bath (also serves Arrowsic and West Bath)
• 04086 — Topsham
• 04357 — Richmond
• 04287 — Bowdoin
• 04579 — Woolwich
• 04008 — Bowdoinham
• 04562 — Phippsburg
• 04548 — Georgetown
• 04565 — Sebasco Estates (PO Box only)

Arrowsic and West Bath have no post office of their own and are served by Bath’s 04530 ZIP; the other unincorporated coves and points listed above use the ZIP of whichever town they sit within.

Geography

Sagadahoc is Maine’s smallest county by land area. The Kennebec River forms much of its eastern edge before opening into the Gulf of Maine below Bath, and the Androscoggin River flows along its northern boundary before joining the Kennebec near Merrymeeting Bay. The coastline south of Bath — through Phippsburg and Georgetown — is a string of rocky peninsulas, coves and small islands, while the county’s interior towns (Bowdoin, Bowdoinham, Richmond) are rolling farmland and forest.

Sagadahoc borders Kennebec County to the north, Lincoln County to the east, Cumberland County to the west, and Androscoggin County to the northwest.

Demographics

Sagadahoc County had 36,699 residents at the 2020 census. Topsham (9,560) and Bath (8,766) are its two largest communities, together holding roughly half the county’s population. The county’s median household income runs above the Maine median of $73,733, reflecting Topsham and Bath’s commuting distance to Portland and Augusta. At 254 square miles of land, the county’s overall density works out to about 145 people per square mile, concentrated heavily in Bath and Topsham.

Economy & Local Life

Bath Iron Works, founded in 1884, is the county’s dominant employer and one of the U.S. Navy’s principal shipbuilders — it has built warships on the Kennebec for more than a century and remains Bath’s largest single employer. The Maine Maritime Museum, home to the preserved schooner Wyoming, anchors the city’s waterfront tourism. Away from Bath, the county’s economy leans on fishing and lobstering along the Phippsburg and Georgetown coast, and on farming in the interior towns. The Topsham Fair, held annually since 1856 under the Sagadahoc Agricultural & Horticultural Society, is the county’s signature community event.

History

Sagadahoc County was organized on February 14, 1854, split off from Lincoln County. Its name is an Abenaki word meaning “mouth of the big river,” an old name for the Kennebec River. The county’s coast carries some of the earliest English settlement history in New England: the short-lived Popham Colony was founded at the mouth of the Kennebec in Phippsburg in 1607, one of the first English attempts to settle what became the United States. During the War of 1812, the American brig Enterprise captured HMS Boxer in a battle off the coast nearby. In the Civil War, the county furnished roughly 2,488 men to the Union.

Getting There

U.S. Route 1 runs the length of the county along the Kennebec, linking Woolwich, Bath and Topsham; Maine State Route 24 and Route 127 branch south toward Phippsburg and Georgetown.

• Portland — 35 miles southwest
• Augusta — 30 miles north
• Brunswick — 10 miles west
• Rockland — 35 miles northeast

The nearest commercial airport is Portland International Jetport. Amtrak’s Downeaster line does not stop within the county; the closest station is in Brunswick, just across the Androscoggin River.

Frequently Asked Questions

Where is Sagadahoc County?
It is on the midcoast of Maine, where the Kennebec River meets the Atlantic, between Cumberland County to the west and Lincoln County to the east.

What is the population of Sagadahoc County?
36,699 at the 2020 census.

How big is Sagadahoc County?
254 square miles (660 km2) of land, making it Maine’s smallest county by land area.

What is the county seat of Sagadahoc County?
Bath, home of Bath Iron Works and the Maine Maritime Museum.

How many towns are in Sagadahoc County?
One city (Bath) and nine towns, plus about three dozen unincorporated coastal hamlets and one unorganized territory, Perkins Township.

What ZIP codes are in Sagadahoc County?
Nine ZIP codes serve the county: 04530 (Bath), 04086 (Topsham), 04357 (Richmond), 04287 (Bowdoin), 04579 (Woolwich), 04008 (Bowdoinham), 04562 (Phippsburg), 04548 (Georgetown) and 04565 (Sebasco Estates, PO Box only).

What is Sagadahoc County’s biggest employer?
Bath Iron Works, a major U.S. Navy shipbuilder on the Kennebec River in Bath.

More counties in this state: Towns and villages in Maine.