On its age, its old homes and the National Register, Trenton is more historic than 25% of U.S. towns. Its share of homes from before 1940 holds the grade up; its National Register listings pull it down.
C−
HistoryA character grade: shown, never part of Trenton’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 Trenton’s 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.
How sure. Graded on two of the three inputs, so a change in either one moves the letter more than it would with three. The pre-1940 share is a Census survey estimate (±4.3 points).
Founding year: our sources. 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 Trenton’s past
Read from the archive, the National Register and the record. The page puts what stands out first.
Lost two-thirds of its people between 1860 and 1920, then grew 5-fold.
24 censuses, 1790–2020.
U.S. Census Bureau decennial counts, from the census table on Trenton’s Wikipedia page.
Places that used to be
Lost post offices, old corners, places now gone and burying grounds
Four other post offices opened and closed inside today’s town.
West Trenton
1835–1902
Oakpoint
1885–1902
Bayside
1893–1902
Goose Cove
1898–1901
18301930today
Hamlets and corners on the map
BaysideWest Trenton
Gone or out of use
Naval Auxiliary Air Station Bar Harbormilitary
11cemeteries and burying grounds inside Trenton
AlleyAndersonGoose CoveGrayHaynes - Gilley - JordanHaynesLelandMooreMurchOak PointOak Point
US Post Offices dataset (Blevins & Helbock, CC0). Places and cemeteries from the USGS Geographic Names Information System (2021).
On the map
Trenton on the map, 1904 to 1981
Every edition of the U.S. Geological Survey’s map of Trenton. Tap a year, or press play to watch the town change.
1904Mount Desert 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 Trenton.
The story so far
Trenton, in brief
Wikipedia doesn’t have a history of Trenton yet. The photos, dates and memories neighbors add here are how it gets written.
Trenton is a town in Hancock County, Maine, United States, near Acadia National Park. The population was 1,584 at the 2020 census. Hancock County-Bar Harbor Airport is located in Trenton. In January 1969, town voters defeated 144–77 an attempt to build a nuclear power plant and aluminum refinery in Trenton.
Between the 2010 and 2020 censuses its population grew from 1,481 to 1,584 (+7%).
Intro from Wikipedia. Population: U.S. Census Bureau.
Timeline
Trenton, 1771 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.
Trenton is more historic than 25% 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.
How old are the homes in Trenton?
11% of Trenton’s homes were built before 1940 (Census estimate, ±4.3 points), against a typical 19% for a Maine town; the median home was built in 1991.
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), 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.
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