The story
Read it all →How Montville came to be
From Wikipedia’s history of Montville.
The area that is now the town of Montville was originally inhabited by the Wawenoec Indians.
Text from Wikipedia, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0.
AHistory
History · Montville
Montville dates to 1807, and 31% of its homes were built before 1940
More historic than 94% of U.S. towns. What drives it
3 places in town are on the National Register, among them a historic district with 15 buildings. Below: maps from 1916 on and the census since 1810.
1807founded
3on the National Register
31%homes built before 1940
4famous people
Quick answers
How Montville began
When was Montville founded?
1807
Montville dates its founding to 1807 (Wikidata). The census first counted it in 1810.
First census: 864 in 18102020 census: 1,020219 years
How historic is Montville?
A
What drives the grade ↓More historic than 94% of U.S. towns, on its age, its old homes and the National Register.
Founding year: Wikidata. First post office: 1834.The full story ↓
History grade
What drives Montville’s History grade
On its age, its old homes and the National Register, Montville is more historic than 94% of U.S. towns. 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 Montville’s overall grade.
Founding era1807, from Wikidata: founded 1776–1849, an older era than 75% of U.S. townsA−Homes built before 194031.4% of homes (±14.3) · typical ME town 19.1% · U.S. 8.4%ANational Register3 listings, 19 historic buildings, 209 per 10,000 residents · typical ME town 15.9 · U.S. 2.4A
All U.S. towns we grade (21,289)Ahead of 94%
NewerOlder
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 Montville’s 209 sits above most of its state (94% of Maine towns have fewer) while its 19 historic buildings outnumber those of 79% of U.S. towns.
NoteThe founding year comes from Wikidata alone; no second source gives 1807.
How sure. Graded on any two of the three inputs instead, the letter would still be A. The pre-1940 share is a Census survey estimate (±14.3 points).
Founding year: Wikidata (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 Montville’s past
Read from the archive, the National Register and the record. The page puts what stands out first.
Lost villages2 post offices opened and closed inside today’s Montville, and 10 old place names are still on the map.A history waiting to be writtenNo old photos of Montville are in the public archives yet. The rest are in attics and albums.Shrank, then grewLost two-thirds of its people between 1840 and 1960, then more than doubled.On the map since 19164 editions of the USGS map, 1916 to 1973. Watch Montville change.
★ What stands out · Places that used to be
Lost post offices, old corners and burying grounds
Two other post offices opened and closed inside today’s town.
Center Montville
Halldale
18301930today
Hamlets and corners on the map
Beans CornerCenter MontvilleConnors CornerGregorys CornerHalldaleMcFarlands CornerPolands CornerSouth MontvilleWest MontvilleWhites Corner
7cemeteries and burying grounds inside Montville
CarterFoster CarterGreenwoodMount ReposePierce HillVoseWhitten
US Post Offices dataset (Blevins & Helbock, CC0). Places and cemeteries from the USGS Geographic Names Information System (2021).
Help out
Start Montville’s collection
The first neighbors to add old photos shape how Montville’s history is told.
Decades since 1900 with photos
00s10s20s30s40s50s60s70s80s90s
0 of 10 decades. The empty ones are waiting for someone’s album.People over time
Montville, census by census
Lost two-thirds of its people between 1840 and 1960, then more than doubled.
22 censuses, 1810–2020.
U.S. Census Bureau decennial counts, from the census table on Montville’s Wikipedia page.
Timeline
Montville, 1807 to 1916
Woven from the archive, old maps, post office records, the National Register and the people born here.
- 19th century
- 1807FoundingMontville is established
- 1827BuiltMontville Town House is built
- 1829
Born hereRichard S. Ayer is born here - 1831
Born hereSeth L. Milliken is born here - 1834Post officeThe Center Montville post office opens
- 1840CensusPopulation peaks at 2,153
- 1845
Born hereJohn D. Terry is born here - 1859
Born hereEverard E Hatch is born here - 1883Post officeThe Halldale post office opens
- 20th century
- 1903Post officeThe Halldale post office closes
- 1905Post officeThe Center Montville post office closes
- 1916
On the mapFirst mapped by the U.S. Geological Survey
By decade
Montville, decade by decade
2012
2012
2012
2012On the map
Montville on the map, 1916 to 1973
Every edition of the U.S. Geological Survey’s map of Montville. Tap a year, or press play to watch the town change.
1916Liberty sheet · 1:62,500U.S. Geological Survey historical topographic maps (public domain), via Esri’s collection of the scans. The red ring marks the center of Montville.
On the National Register
3 listings protect 19 historic buildings
The country’s official list of buildings and places worth saving.
places listed
3
National Historic Landmarks
0
none yet
historic buildings protected
19
each building in a district counts
first listed
2002
Ebenezer Knowlton House
BuildingsDistricts
Architectural styles listings
Early Republic2
Federal1
All 3 listings
National Park Service, National Register of Historic Places. Photos from Wikimedia Commons, credited on each place’s page.
Famous people
See all →4 famous people were born in Montville
Writers, athletes, leaders and more, ranked by how widely they’re known.
Stories next door
History across the town line
Each neighbor’s History grade, on the same three inputs.
Questions about Montville’s history
What year was Montville founded?
In 1807, according to Wikidata. Montville’s post office opened in 1834, and the census of 1810 counted 864 people here.
How does Montville rank for history?
Montville is more historic than 94% 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.
What is on the National Register in Montville?
Three places: the Ebenezer Knowlton House (listed 2002), the Montville Town House (2012) and the Camp NEOFA (2024).
How old are the homes in Montville?
31% of Montville’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 1982.
Memory lane
What the archives can’t tell you, neighbors can.
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 (4), the National Register of Historic Places (3), 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) and the USGS Geographic Names Information System. Archive images are copied here with their credits and licenses, shown on each photo’s page. Refreshed monthly.