3 places in town are on the National Register, among them a historic district with 32 buildings. Below: 1 old photo or paper, maps from 1918 on, and the census since 1830.
From East Machias’ archive · credits on each photo
Quick answers
How East Machias began
When was East Machias founded?
1826
The East Machias post office opened in 1826, the earliest record of the town by name. Three smaller post offices, East Falls Of Machias (1813), Mechisses (1840) and Jacksonville (1900), opened inside today’s town and later closed.
First census: 1,605 in 18302020 census: 1,326200 years
How historic is East Machias?
A
More historic than 92% of U.S. towns, on its age, its old homes and the National Register.
Founding year: the first East Machias post office (Blevins & Helbock, CC0).
History grade
What drives East Machias’ History grade
On its age, its old homes and the National Register, East Machias is more historic than 92% of U.S. towns. All 3 inputs are above most U.S. towns; its National Register listings ranks highest and its share of homes from before 1940 lowest.
A
HistoryA character grade: shown, never part of East Machias’ 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 East Machias’ 286 sits above most of its state (96% of Maine towns have fewer) while its 35 historic buildings outnumber those of 83% of U.S. towns.
How sure. Graded on any two of the three inputs instead, the letter would range from A− 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 East Machias’ past
Read from the archive, the National Register and the record. The page puts what stands out first.
National Park Service, National Register of Historic Places. Photos from Wikimedia Commons, credited on each place’s page.
The story so far
East Machias, in brief
Wikipedia doesn’t have a history of East Machias yet. The photos, dates and memories neighbors add here are how it gets written.
East Machias is a town in Washington County, Maine, United States on the East Machias River. At the 2020 census, the town population was 1,326. It is the home of Washington Academy, a private school founded in 1792.
Its first post office opened in 1826. Between the 2010 and 2020 censuses its population fell from 1,368 to 1,326 (-3%).
Intro from Wikipedia. Population: U.S. Census Bureau.
Timeline
East Machias, 1813 to 1918
Woven from the archive, old maps, post office records, the National Register and the people born here.
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.
The East Machias post office opened in 1826, the earliest record of the town by name (U.S. post office records).
How does East Machias rank for history?
East Machias is more historic than 92% 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 East Machias?
Three places: the East Machias Historic District (listed 1973), the "The Rim" and Site of Fort Foster (1973) and the James R. Talbot House (1983).
How old are the homes in East Machias?
23% of East Machias’ homes were built before 1940 (Census estimate, ±6.8 points), against a typical 19% for a Maine town; the median home was built in 1979.
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 (11), the Library of Congress (1), the National Register of Historic Places (3), 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) 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.
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