Anonymously Contributed
Edited by Carol McCracken
that many of the streets on the Hill were named for prominent citizens who played an important role in the history of the Hill? Other streets were named for the Atlantic and St. Lawrence Railroad. As the weather warms up and everyone is outside much more than over the past winter, it might be a good time to take note of these streets and for whom they were named.
Atlantic Street – Named, along with St. Lawrence, for the Atlantic and St. Lawrence Railroad, the Grand Trunk, which left for northern Maine and Canada near the end of the two streets.
Beckett Street – Named for the prominent developer, poet and publisher of city directories, Sylvester B. Beckett.
Emerson Street – Named for Andrew L. Emerson, who in 1832 served as Portland’s first mayor.
Kellogg Street – Originally known as Warren Street after early landowner Thomas Warren, the street is now named in honor of Elijah Kellogg Sr., a pastor of the Second Parish Church.
Lafayette Street – Laid out in 1820 and named in honor of the French hero of the American Revolution, the Marquis de Lafayette, who visited the town in 1825.
Melbourne Street – Named after a town where the Grand Trunk Line stopped on its way to Canada.
Montreal Street – Named for the city on the opposite end of the Grand Trunk Line.
Monument Street – Once called “The Mall,” Monument Street is named for the Portland Monument Association, which built the nearby Portland Observatory.
Mountfort Street – Named for a colonial family whose house was near the Fore Street end of the street. Mountfort was called Battle Street at one time.
Morning Street – The north end of Morning Street, along with Vesper Street, was once the site of a swamp and not developed until the 1880s and 1890s.
North Street – Opened in 1795 as an extension of Mountjoy Street running to Tukey’s Bridge, North Street runs only a few degrees from true north.
O’Brien Street – Named after a city official, the street was named when Beckett Street was divided for the building of Marada Adams School in 1956.
Sheridan Street – Named in honor of Civil War Gen. Philip Sheridan. It was earlier known as Poplar Street.
Washington Avenue – Created in 1796 and named for President George Washington. It was originally planned as a residential drive and lined with trees.
Willis Street – Named for Portland Mayor William Willis. He wrote “The History of Portland” in 1832-33.