Oxford’s post office opened in 1831, and 11% of its homes were built before 1940
More historic than 61% of U.S. towns · #114 of 143 in Maine. What drives it
2 places in town are on the National Register, among them two historic districts with 2 buildings between them. Below: 4 old photos and papers, maps from 1942 on, and the census since 1800.
The Oxford post office opened in 1831, the earliest record of the town by name. Three smaller post offices, Craigie's Mills (1816), East Oxford (1830) and Welchville (1842), opened inside today’s town and later closed.
First census: 69 in 18002020 census: 4,229195 years
How historic is Oxford?
B
More historic than 61% of U.S. towns, on its age, its old homes and the National Register.
Founding year: the first Oxford post office (Blevins & Helbock, CC0).The full story ↓
History grade
What drives Oxford’s History grade
On its age, its old homes and the National Register, Oxford is more historic than 61% of U.S. towns, #114 of 143 in Maine. Its age holds the grade up; its National Register listings pull it down.
B
HistoryA character grade: shown, never part of Oxford’s overall grade.
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 Oxford’s 4.6 sits below most of its state (27% of Maine towns have fewer) while its 2 listings outnumber those of 60% of U.S. towns.
How sure. Graded on any two of the three inputs instead, the letter would range from C+ to B. The pre-1940 share is a Census survey estimate (±5.5 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 Oxford’s past
Read from the archive, the National Register and the record. The page puts what stands out first.
The land was part of Plantation (also called Bog Brook Plantation), granted on March 8, 1777, by the Massachusetts General Court to Alexander Shepard Jr. of Newton, Massachusetts. On March 6, 1792, the plantation was incorporated as Hebron, with Oxford its southwesterly portion. First settled in 1794, Oxford was set off and incorporated on February 27, 1829. It annexed land from Otisfield in 1830, and from Paris in 1838. The town was named after Oxford, in England.
Passages that mention Oxford, cut from the printed page as they were published.
Annals of Oxford, Maine, from its incorporation, February 27, 1829 to 1850. Prefaced by a brief account of the settlement of Shepardsfield plantation, now Hebron and Oxford, and supplemented with genealogical notes from the earliest records of both towns1903 · page 33Read the page →
Read the text
And said town of Hebron shvM pay to said town of Oxford the sum of five hundred dollars. And said town of Oxford shall receive their proportion (to be ascertained as aforesaid) of all debts and taxes due, and of all the personal property belonging to said town of Hebron at the time aforesaid.
Text read by machine from the scan; it may contain errors.
Annals of Oxford, Maine, from its incorporation, February 27, 1829 to 1850. Prefaced by a brief account of the settlement of Shepardsfield plantation, now Hebron and Oxford, and supplemented with genealogical notes from the earliest records of both towns1903 · page 115Read the page →
Read the text
He took an active interest in politics, was the first to represent the new town of Oxford in the Legislature and was again elected in 1833. He was the first town clerk, serving six years, a large portion of the time serving as treasurer also. His declining years were spent in Oxford village, residence next to that of his son John.
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.
Timeline
Oxford, 1816 to 2020
Woven from the archive, old maps, post office records, the National Register and the people born here.
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.
The Oxford post office opened in 1831, the earliest record of the town by name (U.S. post office records).
How does Oxford rank for history?
Oxford is more historic than 61% of U.S. towns, #114 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 Oxford?
Two places: the Oxford Congregational Church and Cemetery (listed 1994) and the Center Meeting House and Common (1997).
How old are the homes in Oxford?
11% of Oxford’s homes were built before 1940 (Census estimate, ±5.5 points), against a typical 19% for a Maine town; the median home was built in 1976.
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 (6), the National Register of Historic Places (2), Wikipedia, 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.
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