Guest, Sign inJoin

Post to Gardiner

We’ll email a one-tap link to publish your post. No password, and nothing is public until you click it.
Already a member? Sign in
A+History
History · Gardiner

Gardiner’s post office opened in 1803, and 47% of its homes were built before 1940

More historic than 96% of U.S. towns · #17 of 143 in Maine. What drives it

6 places in town are on the National Register, among them the Edward Arlington Robinson House, a National Historic Landmark, and two historic districts with 47 buildings between them. Below: 9 old photos and papers, maps from 1878 on, and the census since 1810.

1803first post office
6on the National Register
47%homes built before 1940
9old photos & papers
20famous people
Add an old photoShare a memory
From Gardiner’s archive · credits on each photo
Quick answers

How Gardiner began

When was Gardiner founded?

1803

The Gardiner post office opened in 1803, the earliest record of the town by name.

First census: 1,029 in 18102020 census: 5,961223 years

How historic is Gardiner?

A+

More historic than 96% of U.S. towns, on its age, its old homes and the National Register.

What drives the grade ↓
Founding year: the first Gardiner post office (Blevins & Helbock, CC0).The full story ↓
History grade

What drives Gardiner’s History grade

On its age, its old homes and the National Register, Gardiner is more historic than 96% of U.S. towns, #17 of 143 in Maine. All 3 inputs are above most U.S. towns; its share of homes from before 1940 ranks highest and its age lowest.

A+
HistoryA character grade: shown, never part of Gardiner’s overall grade.
Founding era1803, from the first post office: founded 1776–1849, an older era than 75% of U.S. townsA−Homes built before 194047.4% of homes (±6.5) · typical ME town 19.1% · U.S. 8.4%A+National Register6 listings, 51 historic buildings, 83.8 per 10,000 residents · typical ME town 15.9 · U.S. 2.4A−
All U.S. towns we grade (21,289)Ahead of 96%
NewerOlder
Maine towns of 2,500+ (143)Ahead of 89%

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 Gardiner’s 83.8 sits above most of its state (84% of Maine towns have fewer) while its 51 historic buildings outnumber those of 85% 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 (±6.5 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 Gardiner’s past

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

On the map since 18925 editions of the USGS map, 1892 to 1991. Watch Gardiner change.Mapped building by building8 fire insurance maps, 1878 to 1922, drew every building in Gardiner.A historic districtThe Gardiner Historic District takes in 47 historic buildings.A National Historic Landmark6 places on the National Register, including Edward Arlington Robinson House, a National Historic Landmark.
★ What stands out · On the map

Gardiner on the map, 1892 to 1991

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

Gardiner on the 1892 USGS mapGardiner on the 1943 USGS mapGardiner on the 1957 USGS mapGardiner on the 1980 USGS mapGardiner on the 1991 USGS map1892Gardiner 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 Gardiner.

Every building

Gardiner, building by building, 1878–1922

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.

Gardiner fire insurance map, 1878, sheet 31878Sheet 3 of 3
Edition
BrickWoodStone

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

On the National Register

6 listings protect 51 historic buildings

The country’s official list of buildings and places worth saving. One is a National Historic Landmark, the highest tier.

places listed
6
National Historic Landmark
1
Edward Arlington Robinson House
historic buildings protected
51
each building in a district counts
first listed
1971
Edward Arlington Robinson House
Christ Episcopal Church, built 1820Oaklands, built 1835Gardiner Historic DistrictGardiner Railroad Station, built 1911Brunswick SquareEdward Arlington Robinson House★
BuildingsDistricts★ landmark

Architectural styles listings

Gothic1
Gothic Revival1
Art Deco1
Greek Revival1
Italianate1
Queen Anne1
★ Landmark
Edward Arlington Robinson HouseBuilding
Christ Episcopal ChurchGothic · Built 1820
OaklandsGothic Revival · Built 1835
Gardiner Historic DistrictArt Deco
Gardiner Railroad StationRomanesque · Built 1911
All 6 listings
Brunswick SquareDistrict · listed 2021

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

The story

How Gardiner came to be

From Wikipedia’s history of Gardiner.

Read it all →

Located at the head of navigation on the Kennebec River, Gardiner was founded as Gardinerstown Plantation in 1754 by Dr. Silvester Gardiner, a prominent Boston physician. Dr. Gardiner had made a fortune as a drug merchant, with one apothecary shop in Massachusetts and two in Connecticut, and became a principal proprietor of the Kennebec Purchase within the old Plymouth Patent. He proved a tireless promoter for his development, which once comprised over 100,000 acres (400 km2).

Text from Wikipedia, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0.

Timeline

Gardiner, 1803 to 1971

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

  1. 19th century
  2. 1803Post officeThe Gardiner post office opens
  3. 1820BuiltChrist Episcopal Church is built
  4. 1835BuiltOaklands is built
  5. 1842In the archiveVerso Gardiner Bank 2 dollars 1842
  6. 1851Born hereHenrietta Edgecomb Hooker is born here
  7. 1870Post officeThe South Gardiner post office opens
  8. 1873Born hereJohn R. Swanton is born here
  9. 1878In the archiveBird's eye view of Gardiner and Pittston, Kennebec Co., Maine, 1878
  10. 1892On the mapFirst mapped by the U.S. Geological Survey
  11. 1898In the archiveOld Church Yard
  12. 20th century
  13. 1902Born hereHorace Hildreth is born here
  14. 1911BuiltGardiner Railroad Station is built
  15. 1912In the archiveOld High School
  16. 1918Born hereMilton Gordon is born here
  17. 1971LandmarkEdward Arlington Robinson House named a National Historic Landmark
By decade

Gardiner, decade by decade

4 decades in the archive, from the 1840s to the 1910s. Scroll each row; tap a photo for its story.

1840s–1890s5 items
Verso Gardiner Bank 2 dollars 18421842Verso Gardiner Bank 2 dollars 1842Verso Gardiner Bank 2 dollars 18421845Verso Gardiner Bank 2 dollars 1842Bird's eye view of Gardiner and Pittston, Kennebec Co., Maine, 18781878Bird's eye view of Gardiner and Pittston, Kennebec Co…Bird's eye view of Gardiner and Pittston, Kennebec Co., Maine, 18781878Bird's eye view of Gardiner and Pittston, Kennebec Co…Old Church Yard1898Old Church YardPostcard
1910s4 items
Old High School1912Old High SchoolPostcardWater Street, Looking West1914Water Street, Looking WestPostcardDrying the sails1915Drying the sailsIndustries of War - Footwear - MANUFACTURING THE ARMY TRENCH SHOE, R.P. HAZZARD CO., GARDNER, MAINE1917Industries of War - Footwear - MANUFACTURING THE ARMY…
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
Today5 recent
Sunset2015SunsetMoon2015MoonGardinerME EdwinArlingtonRobinsonHouse2013GardinerME EdwinArlingtonRobinsonHouseGardinerME Downtown2012GardinerME DowntownGardiner, Maine2007Gardiner, Maine
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.

Verso Gardiner Bank 2 dollars 1842
Retake this viewVerso Gardiner Bank 2 dollars 1842, 1842

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

Retake this view · +15
People over time

Gardiner, census by census

05001,0001,5002,0002,5003,0003,5004,0004,5005,0005,5006,0006,5007,0007,5001850190019502000Peak: 6,897

Between 1,029 and 6,897 people in every census since 1810.

22 censuses, 1810–2020.

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

Famous people

20 famous people were born in Gardiner

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

See all →
John R. SwantonAmerican anthropologist and linguist · b. 1873
Horace HildrethAmerican politician, 59th Governor of Maine · b. 1902
Henrietta Edgecomb HookerAmerican botanist · b. 1851
M
Milton GordonAmerican sociologist · b. 1918
Charles Russell ClasonAmerican politician · b. 1890
John W. HeseltonAmerican politician · b. 1900
Places that used to be

Old corners, places now gone and burying grounds

Gardiner’s post office has been open since 1803.

Gardiner
1803–today
South Gardiner
1870–today
18001910today
Hamlets and corners on the map
Libby HillSouth Gardiner
Gone or out of use
Pleasant Pond Boat Facilitylocale
8cemeteries and burying grounds inside Gardiner
Christ ChurchChrist Church CenotaphsLibby HillMount HopeOak GroveSaint JosephsSouth GardinerWest Hill

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

Help out

Finish Gardiner’s story

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

Decades since 1900 with photos
00s10s20s30s40s50s60s70s80s90s
1 of 10 decades. The empty ones are waiting for someone’s album.
Retake an old viewVerso Gardiner Bank 2 dollars 1842: 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.

West GardinerIts storyC+Pittston4 historic placesA−Farmingdale2 historic placesBLitchfieldIts storyB−RandolphIts storyB−

Questions about Gardiner’s history

What year was Gardiner founded?

The Gardiner post office opened in 1803, the earliest record of the town by name (U.S. post office records).

How does Gardiner rank for history?

Gardiner is more historic than 96% of U.S. towns, #17 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 Gardiner?

6 listings: 4 buildings, among them the Edward Arlington Robinson House (a National Historic Landmark since 1971), and 2 historic districts, the Gardiner Historic District and the Brunswick Square, with 47 contributing buildings. 51 historic buildings in all.

How old are the homes in Gardiner?

47% of Gardiner’s homes were built before 1940 (Census estimate, ±6.5 points), against a typical 19% for a Maine town; the median home was built in 1944.

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 (13), the Library of Congress (1), Wikidata (4), the National Register of Historic Places (6), 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.