5 places in town are on the National Register, among them the ISAAC H. EVANS (schooner), a National Historic Landmark. 5 places in town are on the National Register, among them the ISAAC H. EVANS (schooner), a National Historic Landmark. Below: 10 old photos and papers, maps from 1893 on, and the census since 1890.
From Boothbay Harbor’s archive · credits on each photo
Quick answers
How Boothbay Harbor began
When was Boothbay Harbor founded?
1889
The Boothbay Harbor post office opened in 1889, the earliest record of the town by name. Two smaller post offices, Haley (1882) and Bayville (1894), opened inside today’s town and later closed.
First census: 1,699 in 18902020 census: 2,027137 years
How historic is Boothbay Harbor?
A−
More historic than 79% of U.S. towns, on its age, its old homes and the National Register.
Founding year: the first Boothbay Harbor post office (Blevins & Helbock, CC0).The full story ↓
History grade
What drives Boothbay Harbor’s History grade
On its age, its old homes and the National Register, Boothbay Harbor is more historic than 79% of U.S. towns. Its share of homes from before 1940 holds the grade up; its age pulls it down.
A−
HistoryA character grade: shown, never part of Boothbay Harbor’s overall grade.
Maine towns list more on the Register than most of the country (a typical Maine town has 15.9 per 10,000 residents, the U.S. 2.4), so Boothbay Harbor’s 38.2 sits above most of its state (70% of Maine towns have fewer) while its 8 historic buildings outnumber those of 74% of U.S. towns.
How sure. Graded on any two of the three inputs instead, the letter would range from B to A. The pre-1940 share is a Census survey estimate (±6.8 points). The founding year is the first post office, not a stated founding date.
Founding year: the first post office (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 Boothbay Harbor’s past
Read from the archive, the National Register and the record. The page puts what stands out first.
Every edition of the U.S. Geological Survey’s map of Boothbay Harbor. Tap a year, or press play to watch the town change.
1893Boothbay 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 Boothbay Harbor.
Places that used to be
Lost post offices, old corners, places now gone and burying grounds
Boothbay Harbor’s post office has been open since 1889. Two other post offices opened and closed inside today’s town.
The Abenaki people that lived in the region called it Winnegance. The first European presence in the region was an English fishing outpost called Cape Newagen in 1623. An Englishman by the name of Henry Curtis purchased the right to settle Winnegance from the Abenaki Sachem Mowhotiwormet in 1666. However, the English were driven from their settlements by the Abenaki in 1676 during King Philip's War in 1676. The colonists returned after the war ended. In 1689 during King William's War, they were driven out again. Winnegance was abandoned entirely, and remained a desolate waste for 40 years.
Nothing in the archives for these yearsWeddings on Main Street, storms, parades, school pictures, the old store. If it’s in your family album, it belongs here.
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.
The Boothbay Harbor post office opened in 1889, the earliest record of the town by name (U.S. post office records).
How does Boothbay Harbor rank for history?
Boothbay Harbor is more historic than 79% of U.S. towns. 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 Boothbay Harbor?
5 listings: 4 buildings, among them the Boothbay Harbor Memorial Library (listed 1977, the first), and 1 structure. 8 historic buildings in all.
How old are the homes in Boothbay Harbor?
40% of Boothbay Harbor’s homes were built before 1940 (Census estimate, ±6.8 points), against a typical 19% for a Maine town; the median home was built in 1956.
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 (9), the Library of Congress (1), Wikidata (2), the National Register of Historic Places (5), 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 and Sanborn fire insurance maps (Library of Congress). Archive images are copied here with their credits and licenses, shown on each photo’s page. Refreshed monthly.
c. 1870
c. 1870
c. 1870
c. 1870
c. 1870
1887
1887