Lewiston
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Lewiston, city, Androscoggin county, southwestern Maine, U.S., on the Androscoggin River opposite Auburn, 34 miles (55 km) north-northeast of Portland. Lewiston is the second most populous city in the state.
In 1770 Paul Hildreth of Dracut, Massachusetts, settled the site, then called Lewistown. The name, according to a local history, was a tribute to a merchant from Boston named Job Lewis. Textile operations began in 1819 and expanded with the formation of the Androscoggin Falls, Dam Locks and Canal Company in 1836 (reorganized in 1842 as the Lewiston Water-Power Company). Lewiston remained a significant textile producer, with two hydroelectric dams giving the community ample power, until the second half of the 20th century; by the turn of the 21st century, the city’s mills had closed.
Lewiston is the seat of Bates College (founded 1855). Mount David, which is near the Bates College campus, is about 380 feet (116 meters) high and offers a panoramic view of the city. The Thorncrag Nature Sanctuary is 1.5 miles (2.4 km) east.
On October 25, 2023, Lewiston was the site of two mass shootings—first at a bowling alley and then at restaurant—that left 18 people dead. The perpetrator was later found dead from a self-inflicted gunshot wound.
Inc. town, 1795; city, 1861. Pop. (2010) 36,592; Lewiston-Auburn Metro Area, 107,702; (2020) 37,121; Lewiston-Auburn Metro Area, 111,139.