Androscoggin homeland Prior to
European colonization, the region of Lewiston was inhabited by the
Androscoggin, an
Abenaki people. During the 17th century, Androscoggin were among the first
Native American tribes to make contact with European colonists in Maine.
Colonial beginnings A grant comprising the area of Lewiston was given to Moses Little and Jonathan Bagley, members of the
Pejepscot Proprietors, colonial land investors, on January 28, 1768, on the condition that fifty families live in the area before June 1, 1774. The sales of stock attracted
Boston investors—including Thomas J. Hill, Lyman Nichols, George L. Ward and
Alexander De Witt. Impressed with the labor force and "working spirit" of the Lewistonions, Bates founded the Bates Manufacturing Company, leading to the construction of five mills starting with the flagship
Bates Mill. Bates positioned the mill in Lewiston due to the location of the Lewiston Falls which provided the mill with power. Under Bates' supervision, during the Civil War, the mill produced textiles for the
Union Army. His mills generated employment for thousands of Irish, Canadians, and immigrants from Europe. and created budding affluent districts such as the
Main Street–Frye Street Historic District. By 1854, one quarter of Lewiston's population was Irish, the highest concentration in Maine. This brought a significant influx of
Québécois millworkers who worked alongside Irish immigrants and Yankee mill girls. Lewiston incorporated as a city in 1863 and the seminary was renamed
Bates College a year later to honor early backer Benjamin Bates. In 1872, St. Peter's church was built in the city. In 1880,
Le Messager, a French-language newspaper, began printing in Lewiston to serve its predominant ethnic population. The local
Kora Shrine was organized in 1891 and held its first meetings in a
Masonic temple on Lisbon Street. This group would from 1908 to 1910 build the
Kora Temple on Sabattus Street, the largest home of a fraternal organization in the state.
20th century and canal At the start of the century, city leaders decided to build a cathedral to which the Roman Catholic
Diocese of Portland could relocate. Construction of the
Church of Saints Peter and Paul began in 1905 and ended in 1938, funded mostly through thousands of small donations from Lewiston residents. It is the largest Roman Catholic Church in Maine and the city's most prominent landmark. In 1937, one of the
largest labor disputes in Maine history occurred in Lewiston and Auburn, lasting from March to June and at its peak involved 4,000 to 5,000 workers. Governor
Lewis Barrows sent in the
Maine Army National Guard to quell the protestors. Some labor leaders, among them CIO Secretary
Powers Hapgood, were imprisoned for months after the
Maine Supreme Judicial Court issued an injunction seeking to end the strike. After World War I, profits from the textile industry in New England mill towns such as Lewiston began to decline. The population began to slowly decline after 1970, decreasing at a greater rate in the 1990s. Sixty years later, a statue of Ali would be unveiled in Lewiston to commemorate the match.
21st century Since the 2000s, the city has passed a variety of laws and economic initiatives aimed at
urban renewal. Lewiston earned a 2007
All-America City Award designation by the
National Civic League. During this time, Lewiston's affordable housing initiatives attracted refugees from
Somalia migrating due to the
Somali Civil War. From the mid-2000s onward, ethnic
Somalis migrated to the former mill town, and after 2005, many
Somali Bantus, a separate ethnicity, followed suit. This initially created social tension with city's existing population. In October 2023, on the outskirts of Lewiston, a
spree shooting occurred at two locations where 18 people were killed, and 13 others were injured. It was the deadliest
mass shooting in the history of Maine. In January 2026, U.S. federal agencies, including
immigration enforcement (ICE), carried out raids within the city's Somali population. In line with broader federal raids against
Somalis in Maine, the economy of Lewiston was negatively impacted. As a
sanctuary city, protests against ICE from Lewiston residents followed. ==Geography==