These Are The 10 Maine Cities With The Largest Black Population For 2018

The Black community is one of the fastest growing communities in America this decade.

There are now 42 million people who identify as Black or African American living in America, making up 12% of the total population. According to the most recent American Community Survey, the Black population in Maine is 15,472 – at 1.2% of the total population of Maine.

The percentage growth of Blacks in America is the third largest percentage change for any race according to the Census’s race and ethnicity definition. As most scholars and historians agree, an increase in the diversity in America is a good thing.

We agree.

But how has the increase impacted Maine? Which cities and towns in Maine have seen the greatest increase in its Black population?

We broke down the most recent census data to determine the cities in Maine with the largest African American population in 2018:

1. Portland (Photos)
2. Lewiston (Photos)
3. Caribou (Photos)
4. Waterville (Photos)
5. Biddeford
6. Westbrook (Photos)
7. Bangor (Photos)
8. Bath (Photos)
9. Old Town (Photos)
10. Saco (Photos)

Portland took the number one over all spot for the largest Black population in Maine for 2018.

Read on below to see how we crunched the numbers and how your town ranked.

To see where Maine ranked as a state on diversity, we have a ranking of the most diverse states in America.

And if you already knew these places were Black, check out the best places to live in Maine or the most diverse places in Maine.

How We Determined The Cities In Maine With The Largest Black Population For 2018

We still believe in the accuracy of data — especially from the census. So that’s where we went to get the breakdown of race across Maine.

That lead us to the Census’s most recently available data, the 2012-2016 American Community Survey data from the US Census.

Specifically, we looked at table B03002: Hispanic OR LATINO ORIGIN BY RACE. Here are the category names as defined by the Census:

• Hispanic or Latino
• White alone*
• Black or African American alone*
• American Indian and Alaska Native alone*
• Asian alone*
• Native Hawaiian and Other Pacific Islander alone*
• Some other race alone*
• Two or more races*

Our particular column of interest here was the number of people who identified as Black or African American.

We limited our analysis to non-CDPs with a population greater than 5,000 people. That left us with 19 cities.

We then calculated the percent of residents that are Black or African American. The percentages ranked from 8.2% to 0.1%.

Finally, we ranked each city based on the percent of Black population with a higher score being more Black than a lower score. Portland took the distinction of being the most Black, while Brewer was the least African American city.

Read on for more information on how the cities in Maine ranked by population of African American residents or, for a more general take on diversity in America, head over to our ranking of the most diverse cities in America.

1. Portland

Population: 66,649
% African American: 8.17%
# Of African American Residents: 5,447
Percent Change Since 2010: 46.42%

2. Lewiston

Population: 36,277
% African American: 3.78%
# Of African American Residents: 1,370
Percent Change Since 2010: 14.84%

3. Caribou

Population: 7,902
% African American: 3.34%
# Of African American Residents: 264
Percent Change Since 2010: 8700.0%

4. Waterville

Population: 16,134
% African American: 3.34%
# Of African American Residents: 539
Percent Change Since 2010: 1.13%

5. Biddeford

Population: 21,341
% African American: 2.29%
# Of African American Residents: 488
Percent Change Since 2010: 96.77%

6. Westbrook

Population: 17,969
% African American: 2.28%
# Of African American Residents: 409
Percent Change Since 2010: -32.06%

7. Bangor

Population: 32,491
% African American: 1.36%
# Of African American Residents: 442
Percent Change Since 2010: 10.5%

8. Bath

Population: 8,334
% African American: 1.3%
# Of African American Residents: 108
Percent Change Since 2010: -43.16%

9. Old Town

Population: 7,655
% African American: 1.16%
# Of African American Residents: 89
Percent Change Since 2010: 102.27%

10. Saco

Population: 19,008
% African American: 1.06%
# Of African American Residents: 202
Percent Change Since 2010: 188.57%

There You Have It – Black Populations Across Maine

If you’re looking for a breakdown of African American populations across Maine according to the most recent data, this is an accurate list.

If you’re curious enough, here are the least African American places in Maine:

1. Brewer
2. Gardiner
3. Presque Isle

For more Maine reading , check out:

• These Are The 10 Worst Places To Live In Maine
• These Are The 10 Most Ghetto Cities In Maine
• These Are The 10 Most Dangerous Cities In Maine

Detailed List Of The Most African American Cities In Maine

City	Rank	Population	% African American
Portland	1	66,649	8.17%
Lewiston	2	36,277	3.78%
Caribou	3	7,902	3.34%
Waterville	4	16,134	3.34%
Biddeford	5	21,341	2.29%
Westbrook	6	17,969	2.28%
Bangor	7	32,491	1.36%
Bath	8	8,334	1.3%
Old Town	9	7,655	1.16%
Saco	10	19,008	1.06%
Augusta	11	18,691	0.93%
Auburn	12	22,943	0.89%
South Portland	13	25,397	0.86%
Rockland	14	7,220	0.78%
Ellsworth	15	7,879	0.74%
Belfast	16	6,641	0.59%
Presque Isle	17	9,298	0.52%
Gardiner	18	5,670	0.21%
Brewer	19	9,284	0.14%