In 2013, Gorham was voted second-best town in Maine after Hampden by a financial website.

Initially named Narragansett Number 7, the village was renamed Gorhamtown Plantation in honor of the famous New England Ranger John Gorham I,[3] the great grandfather of John Gorham 4th.

The land was first settled in 1736 by Captain John Phinney and his family, followed in 1738 by Hugh McLellan and Daniel Mosher.

[5] Narragansett Number 7 suffered its first Indian raid in 1745 during King George's War, when the meeting house and Gorham's sawmill were burned.

Incursions during the French and Indian Wars would finally end, however, with the 1763 Treaty of Paris.

Good soil benefited agriculture, and numerous falls provided water power for industry.

The town developed into a manufacturing center, with Portland serving as a nearby market.

Products produced there included textiles, clothing, carpet, lumber, barrels, chairmans, carriages, wagons and sleighs.

The Cumberland and Oxford Canal opened in 1829 connecting Casco Bay with Sebago Lake, although it would be discontinued in 1871, having been rendered obsolete by John A.

Designed by Samuel Elder, the Federal style Gorham Academy Building was erected in 1806.

The institution would evolve into Western Maine Normal School, and later Gorham State Teachers College.

The majority of Gorham's industry is based along its border with Westbrook, and many of the mills that formerly existed along the Presumpscot River are now underwater, flooded with the construction of the Dundee Dam.

In recent decades Gorham has increased in popularity as a bedroom community of Portland.

Positioned near Sebago Lake, Gorham also offers a plethora of recreational activities such as trails for hiking and a river for kayaking, canoeing and swimming.