Once known as the village of Pequawket ('crooked place') by the Sokokis Abenakis who lived here, Fryeburg, Maine was first settled in 1763 by Nathaniel Smith and his family, as well as other veterans of the French and Indian Wars. In its earliest days, Fryeburg was a frontier outpost for the White Mountain region. It later developed into prime agricultural land and saw the construction of its first sawmill in 1766.
After the Civil War, the local economy of Fryeburg shifted from lumber and manufacturing to tourism-based services. Several boarding houses, inns and hotels were built to accommodate the growing number of city escapees during the hot summer months.
Fryeburg is home to the prestigious International Musical Arts Institute, as well as the Fryeburg Academy, a private prep school founded in 1792. Local attractions include the Fryeburg Historical Society Museum and the annual Fryeburg Fair - one of the largest county fairs in Maine. Famous natives and residents of Fryeburg include violinist Eric Rosenblith, Arctic explorer Robert Peary, Eastman Johnson, artist and founder of the Metropolitan Museum of Art in NYC, and statesman Daniel Webster, who served as headmaster of the Fryeburg Academy for one year.
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