The Exeter post office opened in 1824, the earliest record of the town by name. Four smaller post offices, Hill's Corner (1834), Exeter Mills (1844) and South Exeter (1854), opened inside today’s town and later closed.
First census: 582 in 18202020 census: 963202 years
How historic is Exeter?
B
More historic than 60% of U.S. towns, on its age, its old homes and the National Register.
Founding year: the first Exeter post office (Blevins & Helbock, CC0).The full story ↓
History grade
What drives Exeter’s History grade
On its age, its old homes and the National Register, Exeter is more historic than 60% of U.S. towns. Its age holds the grade up; its National Register listings pull it down.
B
HistoryA character grade: shown, never part of Exeter’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 Exeter’s 0.0 sits below most of its state (10% of Maine towns have fewer) while its 0 listings outnumber those of 23% of U.S. towns.
How sure. Graded on any two of the three inputs instead, the letter would range from C+ to A−. The pre-1940 share is a Census survey estimate (±14.3 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 Exeter’s past
Read from the archive, the National Register and the record. The page puts what stands out first.
In 1793 the Commonwealth of Massachusetts granted the township to Marblehead Academy of Marblehead, Massachusetts. The township was lotted in 1800 by Moses Hodsdon of Kenduskeag. Dr. John Blaisdell acted as agent for early proprietors. Among the proprietors were Benjamin Jay and William Turner of Boston. The first settlement was made in 1801 by Lemuel Tozier. Prior to incorporation the town was known as "Blaisdelltown".
The town incorporated on February 16, 1811. The name "Exeter" was selected in memory of Exeter, New Hampshire, from which some settlers had moved. The first school was taught by Miss Anna M. Stevens in 1804. The first mill was built by Levi Stevens in 1813.
Passages that mention Exeter, cut from the printed page as they were published.
History of Penobscot County, Maine1882 · page 295Read the page →
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north of the Waldo Patent, in the county of Somerset, as contained within the following described boundaries, be and is hereby incorporated as a town by the name of Corinna, viz: Eist by the town of Exeter, north by the town of Newport, and west by the town of St. Albans; and the inhabitants of the said town of Corinna are thereby vested with all the powers and privileges, and shall also be subjected to all the duties and requisitions of other towns according to the Constitution and the laws of this Commonwealth.
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History of Penobscot County, Maine1882 · page 310Read the page →
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From the northerly line of the town, and running in a southerly direction to Kenduskeag, are five main roads, viz : From Exeter, nearly on the line between Corinth (Ohio Settlement) and Levant, to Kenduskeag; from Exeter through the Eddy and Skinner settlements to Kenduskeag; from Charleston through East Corinth to Kenduskeag (between these two last roads runs the Kenduskeag Stream); from Charleston through East Ridge Set-
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History of Penobscot County, Maine1882 · page 310Read the page →
Read the text
From the northerly line of the town, and running in a southerly direction to Kenduskeag, are five main roads, viz : From Exeter, nearly on the line between Corinth (Ohio Settlement) and Levant, to Kenduskeag; from Exeter through the Eddy and Skinner settlements to Kenduskeag ; from Charleston through East Corinth to Kenduskeag (between these two last roads runs the Kenduskeag Stream); from Charleston through East Ridge Set-
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History of Penobscot County, Maine1882 · page 882Read the page →
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"Being a skilful mechanic, he was employed to make the coffin in which the brave General Wolfe was buried."* At the commencement of the War of 18 12 the little town of Exeter was only a "yearling," having been incorporated but a single year. But the "spirit of '76" still animated the sons of the sires; and though wanting in pecuniary resources, the infant town, both in its municipal and in its military capacity, was ready to turn out its
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
Exeter, 1818 to 1935
Woven from the archive, old maps, post office records, the National Register and the people born here.
The Exeter post office opened in 1824, the earliest record of the town by name (U.S. post office records).
How does Exeter rank for history?
Exeter is more historic than 60% 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.
How old are the homes in Exeter?
23% of Exeter’s homes were built before 1940 (Census estimate, ±14.3 points), against a typical 19% for a Maine town; the median home was built in 1991.
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 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.
