Europeans, who had used windmills for grinding corn or pumping water since the early medieval period, brought this familiar technology with them when they settled in Maine.
The use of wind power was scattered, and there is not a well-documented historical record, though windmills were certainly in operation in Portland during the 1700s.
A windmill – visible in the middle of this print - stood on Free Street in Portland in 1775 and was used to pump water.
