On its age, its old homes and the National Register, Sabattus is more historic than 47% of U.S. towns, #129 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 Sabattus’ 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 Sabattus’ 0.0 sits below most of its state (10% of Maine towns have fewer) while its 0 listings outnumber those of 23% of U.S. towns.
NoteThe founding year comes from Wikidata alone; no second source gives 1788.
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 (±5.9 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 Sabattus’ past
Read from the archive, the National Register and the record. The page puts what stands out first.
The town was set off from Lisbon, and incorporated as Webster on March 7, 1840. The name Sabattus comes from one of the chiefs of the Native American tribe that lived in the area. The tribe had moved on when the settlers came. The only parts of the town to bear the name Sabattus were the lake, river, and mountain. The spelling changed from Sabattis to the current spelling.
Passages that mention Sabattus, cut from the printed page as they were published.
History of Androscoggin County, Maine ..1891 · page 436Read the page →
Read the text
Occupation of First Settlers, Mills, etc. — The inhabitants paid little attention to farming, but devoted their time to lumbering, as the township was covered with a superior pine, and was a part of the great pine nursery in this section of the state. Saw-mills were erected on the Sabattus, at Robinson's Corner (now known as Bryant's privilege), at Lisbon Factory, and at Farnsworth's, a mile below. At Little River, on the Androscoggin, were at one time, from 1790 to 1800, six large saw-mills, a corn and grist-mill, and a carding-mill. The lumber sawed at these mills was conveyed by teams
Text read by machine from the scan; it may contain errors.
History of Androscoggin County, Maine ..1891 · page 483Read the page →
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The meeting-house, finished in 1824, was built of wood and stood upon an elevation in the northwest part of the town about one mile from Sabattus village, and was used for religious purposes until 1870. This society was the First church until 1836, wlien it was. re-organized as Lisbon Corner church, and in 1843 as the Second Webster church. Its early days, under Rev. Ichabod Temple and Elder Cole, from 1797 to 1806 when Mr Tein})le resigned, were its most prosperous ones. In 1817, Rev. Daniel Pierce was licensed, and in 1819, ordained. Rev. James Stuart, Elder Pierce, Rev. S. Owen, and Rev. Mr
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
Sabattus, decade by decade
One decade in the archive so far: the 1980s. Scroll each row; tap a photo for its story.
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.
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.
In 1788, according to Wikidata. the census of 1990 counted 3,696 people here.
How does Sabattus rank for history?
Sabattus is more historic than 47% of U.S. towns, #129 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.
How old are the homes in Sabattus?
12% of Sabattus’ homes were built before 1940 (Census estimate, ±5.9 points), against a typical 19% for a Maine town; the median home was built in 1990.
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), Wikipedia, Wikidata and Wikipedia for famous people, U.S. Geological Survey historical maps, U.S. Census counts (via Wikipedia), the USGS Geographic Names Information System, Sanborn fire insurance maps (Library of Congress) 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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