–Not graded

History · Brooksville

Brooksville dates to 1817, and 32% of its homes were built before 1940

3 places in town are on the National Register, among them a historic district with 6 buildings. Below: 7 old photos and papers, maps from 1904 on, and the census since 1820.

1817founded

3on the National Register

32%homes built before 1940

7old photos & papers

2famous people

Add an old photo Share a memory

From Brooksville’s archive · credits on each photo

Quick answers

How Brooksville began

When was Brooksville founded?

1817

Brooksville dates its founding to 1817 (Wikidata). The census first counted it in 1820.

First census: 972 in 18202020 census: 935209 years

Founding year: Wikidata. First post office: 1826.The full story ↓

What stands out about Brooksville’s past

Read from the archive, the National Register and the record. The page puts what stands out first.

Lost villages5 post offices opened and closed inside today’s Brooksville, and 10 old place names are still on the map.Boom and bustPeaked at 1,428 in 1860; 935 people lived here in 2020.On the map since 19044 editions of the USGS map, 1904 to 1981. Watch Brooksville change.Old burying grounds17 cemeteries and burying grounds inside Brooksville.

★ What stands out · Places that used to be

Lost post offices, old corners and burying grounds

Brooksville’s post office has been open since 1826. Five other post offices opened and closed inside today’s town.

Brooksville

1826–today

West Brooksville

1841–1961

South Brooksville

1856–1961

North Brooksville

1862–1961

Cape Rosier

1877–1961

Harborside

1890–today

Herricks

1900–1929

18201920today

Hamlets and corners on the map

Cape RosierFlat LandingGoose FallsHarborsideHerricksNorth BrooksvilleNorumbegaSouth BrooksvilleStover CornerWest Brooksville

17cemeteries and burying grounds inside Brooksville

Blodgett FamilyCarver FieldColeman FamilyDodges PointDyerEvergreenIndian BarIndian PointJesse GrayJohn B GrayLakeviewMoses BlakeMount RestOld BakemanValerius BlackWest Brooksville Congregational ChurchWood

US Post Offices dataset (Blevins & Helbock, CC0). Places and cemeteries from the USGS Geographic Names Information System (2021).

People over time

Brooksville, census by census

Peaked at 1,428 in 1860; 935 people lived here in 2020.

21 censuses, 1820–2020.

U.S. Census Bureau decennial counts, from the census table on Brooksville’s Wikipedia page.

On the map

Brooksville on the map, 1904 to 1981

Every edition of the U.S. Geological Survey’s map of Brooksville. Tap a year, or press play to watch the town change.

1904Blue Hill 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 Brooksville.

The story

How Brooksville came to be

From Wikipedia’s history of Brooksville.

Read it all →

The Brooksville area has likely been inhabited for over 11,000 years. In the centuries prior to European settler colonists arrival, Native Americans of the Wabanaki confederation lived in the region. The people living in the Brooksville area were probably Penobscot. According to the Brooksville Historical Society there is a story, difficult to confirm, that Englishmen massacred a Wabanaki village at Walker Pond some time between 1690 and 1704. Archaeologists found a grave of Native American origin on the northern edge of Walker Pond in 1912, but the date of the burial was not established.

Text from Wikipedia, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0.

From the old history books

What they wrote about Brooksville in 1875

Passages that mention Brooksville, cut from the printed page as they were published.

The town of Brooksville was incorporated by act of the General Court of Massachusetts, on June 13, 1817. It was named after Honorable John Brooks, the Governor of the Commonwealth of Massachusetts, at that time. The general history of Brooksville, prior to its incorporation, is included in that of … — **History of Castine, Penobscot, and Brooksville, Maine**1875 · page 241Read the page →
Read the text
The town of Brooksville was incorporated by act of the General Court of Massachusetts, on June 13, 1817. It was named after Honorable John Brooks, the Governor of the Commonwealth of Massachusetts, at that time. The general history of Brooksville, prior to its incorporation, is included in that of Penobscot and Castine — of which it formerly composed a part — with the exception of the small pbrtion derived from Sedgwick. In the half century that
Text read by machine from the scan; it may contain errors.

The town of Brooksville was incorporated by act of the General Court of Massachusetts, on June 13, 1817. It was named ufter Honorable John Brooks, the Governor of the Commonwealth of Massachusetts, at that time. The general history of Brooksville, prior to its incorporation, is included in that of … — **History of Castine, Penobscot and Brooksville, Maine [microform]**1875 · page 239Read the page →
Read the text
The town of Brooksville was incorporated by act of the General Court of Massachusetts, on June 13, 1817. It was named ufter Honorable John Brooks, the Governor of the Commonwealth of Massachusetts, at that time. The general history of Brooksville, prior to its incorporation, is included in that of Penobscot and Castine—of which it formerly composed a part—with the exception of the small portion derived from Sedgwick. In the half century that
Text read by machine from the scan; it may contain errors.

been set to the town of Penobscot, and one-fifth part which would have been set to Castine, according to the last valuation, shall be taken from said towns and set to the said town of Brooksville. Sec. 8. Be it further enacted, That William Abbott, Esquire, be, and he is hereby authorized to issue … — **History of Castine, Penobscot and Brooksville, Maine [microform]**1875 · page 351Read the page →
Read the text
been set to the town of Penobscot, and one-fifth part which would have been set to Castine, according to the last valuation, shall be taken from said towns and set to the said town of Brooksville. Sec. 8. Be it further enacted, That William Abbott, Esquire, be, and he is hereby authorized to issue a warrant, directed to some suitable inhabitant of said town of Brooksville, requiring him to notify the inhabitants thereof, to
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.

Timeline

Brooksville, 1817 to 1961

Woven from the archive, old maps, post office records, the National Register and the people born here.

19th century
1817
FoundingBrooksville is established
1826Post officeThe Brooksville post office opens
1841Post officeThe West Brooksville post office opens
1843Born hereMichael Connelly is born here
1850In the archiveFerry between Castine and Brooksville byAHFolsom
1856Post officeThe South Brooksville post office opens
1860CensusPopulation peaks at 1,428
1875In the archiveHistory of Castine Penobscot and
1875Born hereClarence M. Condon is born here
20th century
1904On the mapFirst mapped by the U.S. Geological Survey
1908In the archiveOld Bray House, West
1910In the archiveView of Buck's Harbor, South
1920BuiltTopside is built
1961Post officeThe West Brooksville post office closes
1961Post officeThe South Brooksville post office closes

By decade

Brooksville, decade by decade

4 decades in the archive, from the 1850s to the 1910s. Scroll each row; tap a photo for its story.

1850s–1900s6 items

1850Ferry between Castine and Brooksville byAHFolsom

1875History of Castine Penobscot and

1908Old Bray House, WestPostcard

1908Old Methodist Church, WestPostcard

1908The Corner, NorthPostcard

1909Steamer Leaving Dock, SouthPostcard

1910s1 item

c. 1910View of Buck's Harbor, SouthPostcard

1920s–1990snothing yet

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.

Add from your album

Today4 recent

Church or chapel in Brooksville, Maine, USA, with fall foliage

2011Church or chapel in Brooksville, Maine, USA, with fal…

2011Untitled photo

2007Cetrelia olivetorum-2

2007Cetrelia olivetorum-1

Then & now

Stand where they stood

No then-and-now pairs yet. Take a photo from the same spot as an old one and they appear here side by side.

Retake this viewFerry between Castine and Brooksville byAHFolsom, 1850

Find the spot, match the angle, and add your photo. It becomes the first then-and-now pair on Brooksville’s page.

Retake this view · +15

On the National Register

3 historic places in Brooksville

The country’s official list of buildings and places worth saving.

places listed

National Historic Landmarks

none yet

historic buildings protected

each building in a district counts

first listed

1975

Topside

BuildingsDistricts

Architectural styles listings

Greek Revival1

All 3 listings

TopsideBuilding · listed 1975 West Brooksville Congregational ChurchBuilding · listed 1995 Forest FarmDistrict · listed 2025

National Park Service, National Register of Historic Places. Photos from Wikimedia Commons, credited on each place’s page.

Famous people

2 famous people were born in Brooksville

Writers, athletes, leaders and more, ranked by how widely they’re known.

See all →

Clarence M. CondonUnited States Army Medal of Honor recipient · b. 1875

Michael ConnellyUnited States Navy Medal of Honor recipient · b. 1843

Help out

Finish Brooksville’s story

Most archives stop around 1920. The photos from after that are in family albums, not libraries.

Decades since 1900 with photos

00s10s20s30s40s50s60s70s80s90s

2 of 10 decades. The empty ones are waiting for someone’s album.

Retake an old viewFerry between Castine and Brooksville b…: stand where they stood+15 Share a family photoSign in to add one+10

Stories next door

History across the town line

Each neighbor’s History grade, on the same three inputs.

Sedgwick2 historic placesA Castine7 historic placesA⁺PenobscotIts storyB⁺Deer Isle6 historic placesA Islesboro7 historic placesnot graded: under 1,000 residents or part of its town

Questions about Brooksville’s history

What year was Brooksville founded?

In 1817, according to Wikidata. Brooksville’s post office opened in 1826, and the census of 1820 counted 972 people here.

What is on the National Register in Brooksville?

Three places: the Topside (listed 1975), the West Brooksville Congregational Church (1995) and the Forest Farm (2025).

Memory lane

What the archives can’t tell you, neighbors can.

Town Square →

Start a conversation

Sources

Where this page comes from

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). How TownRatings grades history →

From Wikimedia Commons (11), the National Register of Historic Places (3), 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 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.

Post to Brooksville

Check your email