| Official Name: | South Windham, Maine |
| Settlement Type: | Census-designated place |
| Mapsize: | 260px |
| Subdivision Type: | Country |
| Subdivision Name: | United States |
| Subdivision Type1: | State |
| Subdivision Name1: | Maine |
| Subdivision Type2: | County |
| Subdivision Name2: | Cumberland |
| Subdivision Type3: | Town |
| Subdivision Name3: | Windham |
| Unit Pref: | Imperial |
| Area Footnotes: | [1] |
| Area Total Km2: | 3.27 |
| Area Land Km2: | 3.09 |
| Area Water Km2: | 0.17 |
| Area Total Sq Mi: | 1.26 |
| Area Land Sq Mi: | 1.19 |
| Area Water Sq Mi: | 0.07 |
| Population As Of: | 2020 |
| Population Total: | 1215 |
| Population Density Km2: | 392.87 |
| Population Density Sq Mi: | 1017.59 |
| Timezone: | Eastern (EST) |
| Utc Offset: | -5 |
| Timezone Dst: | EDT |
| Utc Offset Dst: | -4 |
| Elevation Ft: | 154 |
| Coordinates: | 43.7361°N -70.4219°W |
| Area Code: | 207 |
| Blank Name: | FIPS code |
| Blank Info: | 23-72900 |
South Windham is a census-designated place (CDP) in the town of Windham in Cumberland County, Maine, United States. The population of the CDP was 1,374 at the 2010 census.[2] Prior to 2010, South Windham was part of the Little Falls-South Windham census-designated place.
It is part of the Portland - South Portland - Biddeford, Maine Metropolitan Statistical Area.
South Windham is located at 43.7361°N -70.4219°W, along the Presumpscot River. According to the United States Census Bureau, the CDP has a total area of 3.3km2, of which 3.1km2 is land and 0.2km2, or 5.31%, is water.[3]
The CDP of Little Falls is located directly across the Presumpscot River, in the town of Gorham. U.S. Route 202 and Maine State Route 4 run north-south in a concurrency through both communities.
The Presumpscot River was an early transportation corridor to interior Maine; and provided reliable water power at Little Falls. Major William Knight was operating a sawmill at the falls in 1756. As the local forests were cleared, the sawmill was replaced by William Johnson's grist mill and a wool carding mill operated by Leonard Bacon and Lathrop Crockett. Locks were constructed around the falls to complete the Cumberland and Oxford Canal in 1832.[4] The canal fell into disuse after the Portland and Ogdensburg Railway was completed through South Windham in 1875.[5] Maine Central Railroad leased the railway as their Mountain Division in 1888.[6] Availability of year-round transportation encouraged C.A. Brown and Company to build a large brick wood-paper board factory at South Windham in 1875. Androscoggin Pulp Company purchased the factory, and the industrial village of South Windham developed around the pulp mill.[7] On April 4, 1919, the legislature passed an act creating the Reformatory for Men at South Windham. It is now the Maine Correctional Center, a minimum to medium security facility for men and women.