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History · Northeast Harbor

Northeast Harbor’s post office opened in 1864, and 61% of its homes were built before 1940

3 places in town are on the National Register. Below: 1 old photo or paper from 1905 on.

1864first post office
3on the National Register
61%homes built before 1940
1old photo or paper
1famous people
Add an old photoShare a memory
From Northeast Harbor’s archive · credits on each photo
Quick answers

How Northeast Harbor began

When was Northeast Harbor founded?

1864

The Northeast Harbor post office opened in 1864, the earliest record of the town by name.

2020 census: 370162 years
Founding year: the first Northeast Harbor post office (Blevins & Helbock, CC0).The full story ↓

What stands out about Northeast Harbor’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 1 old photo is in the public archives. The rest are in attics and albums.Old housesHalf of Northeast Harbor’s homes were built before 1938.
★ What stands out · Help out

Start Northeast Harbor’s collection

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

Decades since 1900 with photos
00s10s20s30s40s50s60s70s80s90s
1 of 10 decades. The empty ones are waiting for someone’s album.
Retake an old viewStreet View: stand where they stood+15Share a family photoSign in to add one+10
The story

How Northeast Harbor came to be

From Wikipedia’s history of Northeast Harbor.

Read it all →

The original settlers, the Someses and Richardsons, arrived circa 1761. The Asticou Inn—today's Asticou Hotel—was built by Augustus Chase ("A.C.") Savage (1832–1911), grandson of Glaswegian John C. Savage (1756–1816), who moved to the United States in 1770 and to Northeast Harbor in 1792.

In December 1966, a fire destroyed Wallace's Esso Garage, the Pastime Theater, the Hillcrest Market, and Mrs. Flye’s Sandwich Shop.

Text from Wikipedia, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0.

By decade

Northeast Harbor, decade by decade

One decade in the archive so far: the 1900s. Scroll each row; tap a photo for its story.

1900s1 item
Street Viewc. 1905Street View
1910s–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
3 Summit Road - Northeast Harbor, Maine - DSC0343220183 Summit Road - Northeast Harbor, Maine - DSC03432Northeast Harbor Autumn - Mt. Desert Island, Maine2016Northeast Harbor Autumn - Mt. Desert Island, MaineVillage of Northeast Harbor, ME IMG 21592014Village of Northeast Harbor, ME IMG 2159Boats docked at Northeast Harbor, ME IMG 21542014Boats docked at Northeast Harbor, ME IMG 2154Northeast Harbor, Mount Desert, Maine 20122012Northeast Harbor, Mount Desert, Maine 2012
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.

Street View
Retake this viewStreet View, c. 1905

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

Retake this view · +15
On the National Register

3 historic places in Northeast Harbor

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

places listed
3
National Historic Landmark
1
none yet
historic buildings protected
8
each building in a district counts

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

Stories next door

History across the town line

Each neighbor’s History grade, on the same three inputs.

Mount Desert11 historic placesA+Southwest Harbor4 historic placesACranberry Isles3 historic placesnot graded: under 1,000 residents or part of its town

Questions about Northeast Harbor’s history

What year was Northeast Harbor founded?

The Northeast Harbor post office opened in 1864, the earliest record of the town by name (U.S. post office records).

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), Wikipedia and Wikidata and Wikipedia for famous people. Archive images are copied here with their credits and licenses, shown on each photo’s page. Refreshed monthly.