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–Not graded
History · Crystal

Crystal’s post office opened in 1868, and 20% of its homes were built before 1940

Below: maps from 1940 on and the census since 1870.

1868first post office
0on the National Register
20%homes built before 1940
Add an old photoShare a memory
Quick answers

How Crystal began

When was Crystal founded?

1868

The Crystal post office opened in 1868, the earliest record of the town by name.

First census: 250 in 18702020 census: 248158 years
Founding year: the first Crystal post office (Blevins & Helbock, CC0).

What stands out about Crystal’s past

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

A history waiting to be writtenNo old photos of Crystal are in the public archives yet. The rest are in attics and albums.Boom and bustPeaked at 508 in 1920; 248 people lived here in 2020.
★ What stands out · Help out

Start Crystal’s collection

The first neighbors to add old photos shape how Crystal’s history is told.

Decades since 1900 with photos
00s10s20s30s40s50s60s70s80s90s
0 of 10 decades. The empty ones are waiting for someone’s album.
Share a family photoSign in to add one+10
People over time

Crystal, census by census

010020030040050018801900192019401960198020002020Peak: 508

Peaked at 508 in 1920; 248 people lived here in 2020.

16 censuses, 1870–2020.

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

The story so far

Crystal, in brief

Wikipedia doesn’t have a history of Crystal yet. The photos, dates and memories neighbors add here are how it gets written.

Crystal is a town in Aroostook County, Maine, United States. The population was 248 at the 2020 census.

Its first post office opened in 1868. Between the 2010 and 2020 censuses its population fell from 269 to 248 (-8%).

Intro from Wikipedia. Population: U.S. Census Bureau.

Timeline

Crystal, 1868 to 1940

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

  1. 19th century
  2. 1868Post officeThe Crystal post office opens
  3. 1869Post officeThe Crystal post office closes
  4. 1878Post officeThe Crystal post office opens
  5. 20th century
  6. 1907Post officeThe Crystal post office closes
  7. 1920CensusPopulation peaks at 508
  8. 1940On the mapFirst mapped by the U.S. Geological Survey
By decade

Crystal, decade by decade

Today1 recent
MEMap-location-of-Crystal2017MEMap-location-of-Crystal
On the map

Crystal on the map, 1940 to 1989

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

Crystal on the 1940 USGS mapCrystal on the 1975 USGS mapCrystal on the 1989 USGS map1940Sherman 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 Crystal.

Places that used to be

Lost post offices and burying grounds

Crystal had its own post office from 1868 to 1869. Another post office, Crystal, opened and closed inside today’s town.

Crystal
1868–1869
Crystal
1878–1907
18601940today
1cemetery inside Crystal
Crystal

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

Stories next door

History across the town line

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

Patten1 historic placenot graded: under 1,000 residents or part of its townSherman1 historic placenot graded: under 1,000 residents or part of its townIsland Falls3 historic placesnot graded: under 1,000 residents or part of its townHerseyIts storynot graded: under 1,000 residents or part of its town

Questions about Crystal’s history

What year was Crystal founded?

The Crystal post office opened in 1868, the earliest record of the town by name (U.S. post office records).

Memory lane

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

Town Square →
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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 (1), U.S. Geological Survey historical maps, U.S. Census counts (via Wikipedia), the US Post Offices dataset (Blevins & Helbock) and the USGS Geographic Names Information System. Archive images are copied here with their credits and licenses, shown on each photo’s page. Refreshed monthly.