Chelsea dates to 1624, and 50% of its homes were built before 1940
Among the most historic 1% of U.S. towns · #21 of 283 in Massachusetts. What drives it
9 places in town are on the National Register, among them the LUNA (tugboat), a National Historic Landmark, and four historic districts with 475 buildings between them. Below: 3 old photos and papers, maps from 1889 on, and the census since 1790.
Founding year: Wikidata. First post office: 1832.The full story ↓
History grade
What drives Chelsea’s History grade
On its age, its old homes and the National Register, Chelsea is among the most historic 1% of U.S. towns, #21 of 283 in Massachusetts. All 3 inputs are above most U.S. towns; its share of homes from before 1940 ranks highest and its National Register listings lowest.
A+
HistoryA character grade: shown, never part of Chelsea’s overall grade.
Massachusetts towns list more on the Register than most of the country (a typical Massachusetts town has 46.0 per 10,000 residents, the U.S. 2.4), so Chelsea’s 121 sits above most of its state (67% of Massachusetts towns have fewer) while its 481 historic buildings outnumber those of 97% of U.S. towns.
NoteThe founding year comes from Wikidata alone; no second source gives 1624.
How sure. Graded on any two of the three inputs instead, the letter would still be A+. The pre-1940 share is a Census survey estimate (±3.5 points).
Founding year: Wikidata (other dates in Quick answers). Homes: Census ACS 2020–24. National Register: National Park Service, May 2026 list; each listing counted once (boundary changes and added documentation belong to their listing), and a historic district counts its contributing buildings. How TownRatings grades history →
What stands out about Chelsea’s past
Read from the archive, the National Register and the record. The page puts what stands out first.
The area of Chelsea was first called Winnisimmet, meaning "swamp hill", by the Naumkeag tribe, which had lived there for thousands of years.
Samuel Maverick became the first European to settle permanently in Winnisimmet in 1624. His palisaded trading post is considered the first permanent settlement in Boston Harbor. In 1635, Maverick sold all of Winnisimmet except for his house and farm, to Richard Bellingham. The community remained part of Boston until it was incorporated in 1739 and named after Chelsea, a neighborhood in London, England.
Passages that mention Chelsea, cut from the printed page as they were published.
The memorial history of Boston1880 · page 612Read the page →
Read the text
read the almost frantic, and sometimes ludicrous, efforts made by the town to fill their quota. Some of the votes are as follows : — "Jan. 4, 1781. Voted, raised, and granted the sum of twenty thousand pounds, to be assessed on the polls and estates in the town of Chelsea, for the purchase of beef for the army, agreeably to a Resolve of the General Assembly of this State. " Then voted, raised, and granted one thousand Spanish mill dollars as a bounty to eight soldiers that shall enlist into the Continental service for three years, or during the war.
Text read by machine from the scan; it may contain errors.
The memorial history of Boston1880 · page 613Read the page →
Read the text
" Jan. 1 7, 1 784. Voted, not to give John Syckes thirty Dollars in lieu of two of the heffers that the town owe to him. Voted, to Reconsider said last vote relative to said heffers. Voted, to give said John Syckes thirty Dollars in lieu of two of the heffers or cows that the town of Chelsea owe to him. Voted, to raise thirty Dollars to pay to the said John Syckes in lieu of said two cows or heffers that the town owe to him. Voted, to raise thirty Dollars to pay for two cows for said John Syckes. Voted, to choose a Committee to by said two cows."
Text read by machine from the scan; it may contain errors.
Scans and text from the Internet Archive. Books published in 1930 or earlier, which are in the public domain.
By decade
Chelsea, decade by decade
One decade in the archive so far: the 1830s. Scroll each row; tap a photo for its story.
Every edition of the U.S. Geological Survey’s map of Chelsea. Tap a year, or press play to watch the town change.
1893Boston sheet · 1:62,500
U.S. Geological Survey historical topographic maps (public domain), via Esri’s collection of the scans. The red ring marks the center of Chelsea.
Every building
Chelsea, building by building, 1889–1911
Fire insurance maps drew every building, what it was made of and what it was used for, so insurers could price the risk of fire. Pick a year, then a sheet.
In 1624, according to Wikidata. Chelsea’s post office opened in 1832, and the first U.S. census counted 472 people here in 1790.
How does Chelsea rank for history?
Chelsea is among the most historic 1% of U.S. towns, #21 of 283 in Massachusetts. The History grade combines the town’s founding era, the share of homes built before 1940 and its National Register listings. It’s a character grade, so it isn’t part of the overall grade. How it works.
What is on the National Register in Chelsea?
9 listings: 3 buildings, 4 historic districts with 475 contributing buildings, 1 site, and 1 structure. 481 historic buildings in all.
How old are the homes in Chelsea?
50% of Chelsea’s homes were built before 1940 (Census estimate, ±3.5 points), against a typical 21% for a Massachusetts town; the median home was built in 1941.
Founding dates: Wikidata, Wikipedia, the U.S. post office records of Blevins & Helbock (CC0) and the Census. Homes by year built: Census ACS 2020–24. National Register of Historic Places: National Park Service (list of May 22, 2026). Old photos, postcards and papers: Wikimedia Commons, the Library of Congress and other public archives, credited on each item’s page. Maps: U.S. Geological Survey historical topographic maps (via Esri) and Sanborn fire-insurance maps (Library of Congress). History text and census tables: Wikipedia (CC BY-SA 4.0). Places that used to be: USGS Geographic Names Information System (2021).
From Wikimedia Commons (3), Wikidata (1), the National Register of Historic Places (9), Wikipedia, Wikidata and Wikipedia for famous people, U.S. Geological Survey historical maps, U.S. Census counts (via Wikipedia), the US Post Offices dataset (Blevins & Helbock), the USGS Geographic Names Information System, Sanborn fire insurance maps (Library of Congress) and old county and town histories (Internet Archive). Archive images are copied here with their credits and licenses, shown on each photo’s page. Refreshed monthly.
★ Landmark
1836
1836
