On this last day of 2024, we’ll take a wistful look at the wannabe mountain known as Blue Hill across Blue Hill Bay and above the Town of Blue Hill, Maine:
At the time those were named, any earthen mound had to be at least 1000 feet tall to be called a mountain, but the mound at the end of the bay there is 34 feet short of that.
The original name of the area was known to Colonists as “Plantation No. 5.” But, by 1778, the Township was known as “Bluehill” and a little later as “Blue Hill.” That’s a lot more pleasing denomination than Plantation No. 5 (and, nowadays, a more politically correct one). Today’s name is descriptive of the blueish hue that the Hill sometimes turns in certain light (or, as I like to imagine, when the Hill is feeling down).
If the Hill had been 66 feet taller, the Town and area likely would now be called “Blue Mountain.” But “Blue Hill” seems more appropriate for a charming seacoast settlement with no alpine aspirations. (Image taken in Blue Hill, Maine, on December 19, 2024.)