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History · Lee

Lee dates to 1832, and 18% of its homes were built before 1940

Its Register listings are the Abial Cushman Store and the Mallett Hall. Below: 2 old photos and papers, maps from 1920 on, and the census since 1840.

1832founded
2on the National Register
18%homes built before 1940
2old photos & papers
Add an old photoShare a memory
From Lee’s archive · credits on each photo
Quick answers

How Lee began

When was Lee founded?

1832

Lee dates its founding to 1832 (Wikipedia’s history). The census first counted it in 1840.

First census: 724 in 18402020 census: 916194 years
Founding year: Wikipedia. First post office: 1833.

What stands out about Lee’s past

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

A history waiting to be writtenOnly 2 old photos are in the public archives. The rest are in attics and albums.On the map since 19203 editions of the USGS map, 1920 to 1988. Watch Lee change.Deep rootsEstablished in 1832: 194 years of Lee.
★ What stands out · Help out

Start Lee’s collection

The first neighbors to add old photos shape how Lee’s history is told.

Decades since 1900 with photos
00s10s20s30s40s50s60s70s80s90s
0 of 10 decades. The empty ones are waiting for someone’s album.
Retake an old view[View of] Lee, Maine: stand where they stood+15Share a family photoSign in to add one+10
On the map

Lee on the map, 1920 to 1988

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

Lee on the 1920 USGS mapLee on the 1960 USGS mapLee on the 1988 USGS map1920Winn 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 Lee.

Timeline

Lee, 1832 to 1920

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

  1. 19th century
  2. 1832
    FoundingLee is established
  3. 1833Post officeThe Lee post office opens
  4. 1833Post officeThe Mallet's Mills post office opens
  5. 1833Post officeThe Mallet's Mills post office closes
  6. 1840BuiltAbial Cushman Store is built
  7. 1868In the archive[View of] Lee, Maine
  8. 1889BuiltMallett Hall is built
  9. 20th century
  10. 1920On the mapFirst mapped by the U.S. Geological Survey
The story so far

Lee, in brief

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

Lee is a town in Penobscot County, Maine, United States. It was incorporated in 1832. The town was originally called Mattekeunk, but changed it to Lee to give it an English name. Stephen Lee suggested the town be named Lee after Revolutionary general Henry "Light-Horse Harry" Lee. To further convince the townsfolk, he brought a barrel of rum to the meeting. The population was 916 at the 2020 census. Lee has been home to Lee Academy since 1845.

Lee was established in 1832. Its population held steady between the last two censuses: 922 in 2010, 916 in 2020.

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

From the old history books

What they wrote about Lee in 1882

Passages that mention Lee, cut from the printed page as they were published.

One of the most active business men of Lee was Arthur Prentiss, who came from Oxford to Paris, and was a trader in Lee, and blacksmith. He also built the Elm House building, and kept the first hotel in Lee.
History of Penobscot County, Maine1882 · page 887Read the page →
Read the text

One of the most active business men of Lee was Arthur Prentiss, who came from Oxford to Paris, and was a trader in Lee, and blacksmith. He also built the Elm House building, and kept the first hotel in Lee.

Text read by machine from the scan; it may contain errors.
One of the most active business men of Lee was Arthur Prentiss, who came from O.xford to Paris, and was a trader in Lee, and blacksmith. He also built the Elm House building, and kept the first hotel in Lee.
History of Penobscot County, Maine1882 · page 887Read the page →
Read the text

One of the most active business men of Lee was Arthur Prentiss, who came from O.xford to Paris, and was a trader in Lee, and blacksmith. He also built the Elm House building, and kept the first hotel in Lee.

Text read by machine from the scan; it may contain errors.
The town of Lee is not quite thirty-three miles from Bangor, but three and a half miles from the Penobscot River at its nearest point along the northeast line of Lincoln, and a little less from the European & North American Railroad. It is on the stage-route from Lincoln Station, on that road, thro…
History of Penobscot County, Maine1882 · page 884Read the page →
Read the text

The town of Lee is not quite thirty-three miles from Bangor, but three and a half miles from the Penobscot River at its nearest point along the northeast line of Lincoln, and a little less from the European & North American Railroad. It is on the stage-route from Lincoln Station, on that road, through the heart of the town to Topsfield in Washington county. It is in among towns and plantations that are still rather sparsely settled, but

Text read by machine from the scan; it may contain errors.
On February 2, 1832, Township No. 4, in the Second Range of townships east of the Penobscot River and north of Bingham's Purchase, was incorporated into a town by name of Lee. The act of incorporation is on the records of Lee attested by John A. Hyde, Town Clerk.
History of Penobscot County, Maine1882 · page 888Read the page →
Read the text

On February 2, 1832, Township No. 4, in the Second Range of townships east of the Penobscot River and north of Bingham's Purchase, was incorporated into a town by name of Lee. The act of incorporation is on the records of Lee attested by John A. Hyde, Town Clerk.

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.

By decade

Lee, decade by decade

One decade in the archive so far: the 1860s. Scroll each row; tap a photo for its story.

1860s2 items
[View of] Lee, Mainec. 1868[View of] Lee, Maine[View of] Lee, Mainec. 1868[View of] Lee, Maine
Today1 recent
JBER Soldiers test for the Expert Infantryman Badge 140909-F-LX370-0802014JBER Soldiers test for the Expert Infantryman Badge 1…
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.

[View of] Lee, Maine
Retake this view[View of] Lee, Maine, c. 1868

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

Retake this view · +15
On the National Register

2 historic places in Lee

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

places listed
2
National Historic Landmarks
0
none yet
historic buildings protected
2
each building in a district counts
first listed
1990
Abial Cushman Store
Abial Cushman Store, built 1840Mallett Hall, built 1889
Buildings

Architectural styles listings

Greek Revival1
Late Victorian1
All 2 listings
Abial Cushman StoreBuilding · listed 1990Mallett HallBuilding · listed 1993

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

People over time

Lee, census by census

02004006008001,0001850190019502000Peak: 960

Between 555 and 960 people in every census since 1840.

19 censuses, 1840–2020.

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

Places that used to be

Lost post offices, old corners and burying grounds

Lee’s post office has been open since 1833. Another post office, Mallet's Mills, opened and closed inside today’s town.

Lee
1833–today
Mallet's Mills
1833–1833
18301930today
Hamlets and corners on the map
Crockertown
2cemeteries and burying grounds inside Lee
AcademyWoodlawn

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.

Springfield1 historic placenot graded: under 1,000 residents or part of its townWinnIts storynot graded: under 1,000 residents or part of its townLincoln1 historic placeB

Questions about Lee’s history

What year was Lee founded?

In 1832, according to Wikipedia’s history of the town. Lee’s post office opened in 1833, and the census of 1840 counted 724 people here.

What is on the National Register in Lee?

Two places: the Abial Cushman Store (listed 1990) and the Mallett Hall (1993).

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 (3), the National Register of Historic Places (2), 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.