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A−History
History · Freeport

17% of Freeport’s homes were built before 1940

More historic than 84% of U.S. towns · #64 of 143 in Maine. What drives it

5 places in town are on the National Register, among them two historic districts with 34 buildings between them. Below: 24 old photos and papers, maps from 1892 on, and the census since 1790.

5on the National Register
17%homes built before 1940
24old photos & papers
5famous people
Add an old photoShare a memory
From Freeport’s archive · credits on each photo
Quick answers

About Freeport’s history

How historic is Freeport?

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More historic than 84% of U.S. towns, on its age, its old homes and the National Register.

What drives the grade ↓
The full story ↓
History grade

What drives Freeport’s History grade

On its age, its old homes and the National Register, Freeport is more historic than 84% of U.S. towns, #64 of 143 in Maine. All 2 inputs are above most U.S. towns; its National Register listings ranks highest and its share of homes from before 1940 lowest.

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HistoryA character grade: shown, never part of Freeport’s overall grade.
Founding eraNo founding year we can rely on, so the grade uses the other two–Homes built before 194017.2% of homes (±6.7) · typical ME town 19.1% · U.S. 8.4%BNational Register5 listings, 42 historic buildings, 47.7 per 10,000 residents · typical ME town 15.9 · U.S. 2.4A−
All U.S. towns we grade (21,289)Ahead of 84%
NewerOlder
Maine towns of 2,500+ (143)Ahead of 56%

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 Freeport’s 47.7 sits above most of its state (75% of Maine towns have fewer) while its 42 historic buildings outnumber those of 84% of U.S. towns.

How sure. Graded on two of the three inputs, so a change in either one moves the letter more than it would with three. The pre-1940 share is a Census survey estimate (±6.7 points).

Founding year: our sources. 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 Freeport’s past

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

A town in postcards24 old photos, postcards and papers, 1887–1936.On the map since 18924 editions of the USGS map, 1892 to 1970. Watch Freeport change.Lost villages1 post office opened and closed inside today’s Freeport, and 7 old place names are still on the map.A historic districtThe Harraseeket Historic District takes in 25 historic buildings.
★ What stands out · By decade

Freeport, decade by decade

4 decades in the archive, from the 1880s to the 1930s. Scroll each row; tap a photo for its story.

1880s–1900s5 items
Colby's atlas of the state of Maine - including statistics and descriptions of its history, educational system, geology…1887Colby's atlas of the state of Maine - including stati…MapFish docks, Southport, Maine1900Fish docks, Southport, MaineOld Schoolhouse in South1905Old Schoolhouse in SouthPostcardOld Schoolhouse, Southc. 1905Old Schoolhouse, SouthPostcardCasco Castle & Park, South1906Casco Castle & Park, SouthPostcard
1910s–1930s19 items
View of Main Streetc. 1910View of Main StreetPostcardMain Street in1912Main Street inPostcardJameson-Codman Tavernc. 1915Jameson-Codman TavernPostcardB. H. Bartol Library, Carnegie Building, Freeport, Maine (66994)c. 1930B. H. Bartol Library, Carnegie Building, Freeport, Ma…PostcardCongregational Church and Hospital, Main Street, Freeport, Maine (66992)c. 1930Congregational Church and Hospital, Main Street, Free…PostcardPark, showing Soldiers' Monument, Freeport, Maine (66996)c. 1930Park, showing Soldiers' Monument, Freeport, Maine (66…PostcardPark, showing Soldiers' Monument, Freeport, Maine, by Tichnor Brothers, c. 1930-1945, from the Digital Commonwealth - 1…1930–1945Park, showing Soldiers' Monument, Freeport, Maine, by…PostcardPorter's Landing, looking south, Freeport, Maine (66991)c. 1930Porter's Landing, looking south, Freeport, Maine (669…PostcardSouth Freeport Harbor, Freeport, Maine (66995)c. 1930South Freeport Harbor, Freeport, Maine (66995)PostcardThe Old Tower, South Freeport, Maine (66993)c. 1930The Old Tower, South Freeport, Maine (66993)PostcardThe desert of Maine, Freeport, Maine, one of nature's strange phenomena (79414)c. 1930The desert of Maine, Freeport, Maine, one of nature's…PostcardDesert of Maine. Freeport, Maine1936Desert of Maine. Freeport, MaineHermit of Maine standing outside of his shack. Freeport, Maine1936Hermit of Maine standing outside of his shack. Freepo…Sign erected by the Hermit. Freeport, Maine1936Sign erected by the Hermit. Freeport, MaineDesert of Maine. Freeport. Sand covering grass1936Desert of Maine. Freeport. Sand covering grassThe "Hermit of Maine" playing the unique musical instrument1936The "Hermit of Maine" playing the unique musical inst…Desert of Maine. Freeport, Maine. Sand gradually covering up large barn1936Desert of Maine. Freeport, Maine. Sand gradually cove…Stone fence being submerged in sand. Desert of Maine. Freeport, Maine1936Stone fence being submerged in sand. Desert of Maine.…The Hermit of Maine playing his unique instrument, combination of two organs and a piano. Freeport, Maine1936The Hermit of Maine playing his unique instrument, co…
1940s–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
On the map

Freeport on the map, 1892 to 1970

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

Freeport on the 1892 USGS mapFreeport on the 1941 USGS mapFreeport on the 1957 USGS mapFreeport on the 1970 USGS map1892Freeport 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 Freeport.

Places that used to be

Lost post offices, old corners, places now gone and burying grounds

Freeport’s post office has been open since 1796. Another post office, Bustins Island, opened and closed inside today’s town.

Freeport
1796–today
South Freeport
1854–today
Bustins Island
1908–1967
17901910today
Hamlets and corners on the map
Bustins IslandCushing BriggsMast LandingPleasant HillPorter LandingSouth FreeportTodds Corners
Gone or out of use
Casco CastlebuildingPleasant Hill Chapelchurch
14cemeteries and burying grounds inside Freeport
BurrCollinsFirst Parish CementeryFlying PointLaneNorth FreeportPleasant HillPorters LandingPoteRandallSouth FreeportUpper Mast LandingWebsterWoodlawn

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

The story

How Freeport came to be

From Wikipedia’s history of Freeport.

Read it all →

The town was once a part of North Yarmouth called Harraseeket, after the Harraseeket River. First settled about 1700, it was set off and incorporated on February 14, 1789, as Freeport. It is probably named "from the openness of its harbor" (free from ice). Freeport developed as four villages—Mast Landing, Porter's Landing, South Freeport and Freeport Corner—all of which are now part of the Harraseeket Historic District, listed on the National Register of Historic Places.

Text from Wikipedia, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0.

Timeline

Freeport, 1796 to 1967

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

  1. 18th century
  2. 1796Post officeThe Freeport post office opens
  3. 19th century
  4. 1812Born hereAaron Lufkin Dennison is born here
  5. 1813Born hereCyrus Augustus Bartol is born here
  6. 1850Born hereSarah Pratt Carr is born here
  7. 1854Post officeThe South Freeport post office opens
  8. 1887In the archiveColby's atlas of the state of Maine - including statistics and descriptions of its histor…
  9. 1892On the mapFirst mapped by the U.S. Geological Survey
  10. 20th century
  11. 1900In the archiveFish docks, Southport, Maine
  12. 1908Post officeThe Bustins Island post office opens
  13. 1910In the archiveView of Main Street
  14. 1930In the archiveB. H. Bartol Library, Carnegie Building, Freeport, Maine (66994)
  15. 1933Born hereMarianne Brenton is born here
  16. 1967Post officeThe Bustins Island post office closes
Every building

Freeport, building by building, 1894–1912

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.

Freeport fire insurance map, 1894, sheet 11894Sheet 1 of 2
Edition
BrickWoodStone

Sanborn Map Company, via the Library of Congress. Editions published in 1930 or earlier, which are in the public domain.

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.

Fish docks, Southport, Maine
Retake this viewFish docks, Southport, Maine, 1900

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

Retake this view · +15
On the National Register

5 listings protect 42 historic buildings

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

places listed
5
National Historic Landmarks
0
none yet
historic buildings protected
42
each building in a district counts
first listed
1970
Capt. Greenfield Pote House
Capt. Greenfield Pote HousePettengill House and FarmHarraseeket Historic DistrictFreeport Main Street Historic DistrictE. B. Mallett Office Building
BuildingsDistricts

Architectural styles listings

Salt Box2
Greek Revival2
Italianate2
Federal2
Queen Anne1
Neo-Classical1
Capt. Greenfield Pote HouseSalt Box
Pettengill House and FarmSalt Box
Harraseeket Historic DistrictGreek Revival
Freeport Main Street Historic DistrictFederal
E. B. Mallett Office BuildingItalianate

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

People over time

Freeport, census by census

02,0004,0006,0008,000180018501900195020008,737

Grew from 1,320 people in 1790 to 8,737 in 2020, 6 times over.

24 censuses, 1790–2020.

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

Famous people

5 famous people were born in Freeport

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

See all →
Aaron Lufkin DennisonAmerican businessman and watchmaker · b. 1812
Marianne BrentonPolitician in Massachusetts, US · b. 1933
Cyrus Augustus BartolAmerican clergyman · b. 1813
Sarah Pratt CarrAmerican minister and writer · b. 1850
Gideon Lane Soule25 Jul 1796 - 28 May 1879 · b. 1796
Help out

Finish Freeport’s story

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

Decades since 1900 with photos
00s10s20s30s40s50s60s70s80s90s
3 of 10 decades. The empty ones are waiting for someone’s album.
Retake an old viewFish docks, Southport, Maine: stand where they stood+15Share 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.

Yarmouth11 historic placesABrunswick15 historic placesA+Harpswell18 historic placesAPownal3 historic placesADurham5 historic placesBChebeague Island2 historic placesnot graded: under 1,000 residents or part of its town

Questions about Freeport’s history

How does Freeport rank for history?

Freeport is more historic than 84% of U.S. towns, #64 of 143 in Maine. 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 Freeport?

5 listings: 3 buildings, among them the Capt. Greenfield Pote House (listed 1970, the first), and 2 historic districts, the Harraseeket Historic District and the Freeport Main Street Historic District, with 34 contributing buildings. 42 historic buildings in all.

How old are the homes in Freeport?

17% of Freeport’s homes were built before 1940 (Census estimate, ±6.7 points), against a typical 19% for a Maine town; the median home was built in 1984.

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).

From Wikimedia Commons (15), the Library of Congress (9), 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.