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History · Island Falls

Island Falls’ post office opened in 1863, and 28% of its homes were built before 1940

Its Register listings are the William Sewall House, the Island Falls Opera House and the Former Town Office and Jail. Below: maps from 1900 on and the census since 1870.

1863first post office
3on the National Register
28%homes built before 1940
2famous people
Add an old photoShare a memory
Quick answers

How Island Falls began

When was Island Falls founded?

1863

The Island Falls post office opened in 1863, the earliest record of the town by name.

First census: 183 in 18702020 census: 758163 years
Founding year: the first Island Falls post office (Blevins & Helbock, CC0).

What stands out about Island Falls’ 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 Island Falls are in the public archives yet. The rest are in attics and albums.Boom and bustPeaked at 1,686 in 1910; 758 people lived here in 2020.Mapped building by building5 fire insurance maps, 1900 to 1929, drew every building in Island Falls.Old housesHalf of Island Falls’ homes were built before 1960.
★ What stands out · Help out

Start Island Falls’s collection

The first neighbors to add old photos shape how Island Falls’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

Island Falls, census by census

02004006008001,0001,2001,4001,6001,80018801900192019401960198020002020Peak: 1,686

Peaked at 1,686 in 1910; 758 people lived here in 2020.

16 censuses, 1870–2020.

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

Every building

Island Falls, building by building, 1900–1929

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.

Island Falls fire insurance map, 1900, sheet 11900Sheet 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.

The story so far

Island Falls, in brief

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

Island Falls is a town in Aroostook County, Maine, United States. The population was 758 at the 2020 census. The primary village of Island Falls in the town is situated at a falls in the West Branch Mattawamkeag River.

Its first post office opened in 1863. Between the 2010 and 2020 censuses its population fell from 837 to 758 (-9%).

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

Timeline

Island Falls, 1863 to 1961

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

  1. 19th century
  2. 1863Post officeThe Island Falls post office opens
  3. 1865BuiltWilliam Sewall House is built
  4. 20th century
  5. 1910CensusPopulation peaks at 1,686
  6. 1940On the mapFirst mapped by the U.S. Geological Survey
  7. 1958Born hereKimberly Rosen is born here
  8. 1961Born hereSteve Clifford is born here
By decade

Island Falls, decade by decade

Today6 recent
West Branch Mattawamkeag River, Maine2026West Branch Mattawamkeag River, MaineIsland Falls, Maine 20262026Island Falls, Maine 2026Island Falls, Maine2025Island Falls, MaineUniquefrontal2023UniquefrontalMEMap-location-of-Island Falls2017MEMap-location-of-Island FallsIslandFallsME OperaHouse2015IslandFallsME OperaHouse
On the map

Island Falls on the map, 1940 to 1986

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

Island Falls on the 1940 USGS mapIsland Falls on the 1975 USGS mapIsland Falls on the 1986 USGS map1940Island Falls 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 Island Falls.

On the National Register

3 historic places in Island Falls

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

places listed
3
National Historic Landmarks
0
none yet
historic buildings protected
3
each building in a district counts
first listed
1982
William Sewall House
William Sewall House, built 1865Island Falls Opera HouseFormer Town Office and Jail
Buildings

Architectural styles listings

Greek Revival1
William Sewall HouseGreek Revival · Built 1865
Island Falls Opera HouseBuilding
All 3 listings
Former Town Office and JailBuilding · listed 2019

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

Famous people

2 famous people were born in Island Falls

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

See all →
Steve CliffordAmerican basketball coach · b. 1961
K
Kimberly RosenMaine State Senator · b. 1958
Places that used to be

Old corners and burying grounds

Island Falls’s post office has been open since 1863.

Hamlets and corners on the map
Walker Settlement
2cemeteries and burying grounds inside Island Falls
Saint AgnesVillage

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.

CrystalIts storynot graded: under 1,000 residents or part of its townDyer BrookIts storynot graded: under 1,000 residents or part of its townSherman1 historic placenot graded: under 1,000 residents or part of its town

Questions about Island Falls’ history

What year was Island Falls founded?

The Island Falls post office opened in 1863, the earliest record of the town by name (U.S. post office records).

What is on the National Register in Island Falls?

Three places: the William Sewall House (listed 1982), the Island Falls Opera House (1984) and the Former Town Office and Jail (2019).

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). How TownRatings grades history →

From Wikimedia Commons (6), Wikidata (2), 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), 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.