Wiscasset dates to 1663, and 18% of its homes were built before 1940
More historic than 93% of U.S. towns · #32 of 143 in Maine. What drives it
6 places in town are on the National Register, among them the Nickels-Sortwell House, a National Historic Landmark, and a historic district with 26 buildings. Below: 11 old photos and papers, maps from 1884 on, and the census since 1790.
Founding year: Wikidata. First post office: 1787.The full story ↓
History grade
What drives Wiscasset’s History grade
On its age, its old homes and the National Register, Wiscasset is more historic than 93% of U.S. towns, #32 of 143 in Maine. All 3 inputs are above most U.S. towns; its age ranks highest and its share of homes from before 1940 lowest.
A
HistoryA character grade: shown, never part of Wiscasset’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 Wiscasset’s 80.0 sits above most of its state (83% of Maine towns have fewer) while its 31 historic buildings outnumber those of 82% of U.S. towns.
NoteThe founding year comes from Wikidata alone; no second source gives 1663.
How sure. Graded on any two of the three inputs instead, the letter would range from A− to A+. The pre-1940 share is a Census survey estimate (±7.6 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 Wiscasset’s past
Read from the archive, the National Register and the record. The page puts what stands out first.
In 1605, Samuel de Champlain is said to have landed here and exchanged gifts with the Indians. Situated on the tidal Sheepscot River, Wiscasset was first settled by Europeans in 1660. The community was abandoned during the French and Indian Wars, and the King Philip's War in 1675 and then resettled around 1730. In 1760, it was incorporated as Pownalborough after Colonial Governor Thomas Pownall. In 1802, it resumed its original Abenaki name, Wiscasset, which means "coming out from the harbor but you don't see where."
During the Revolutionary War, the British warship Rainbow harbored itself in Wiscasset Harbor and held the town at bay until the town gave the warship essential supplies.
be very considerable as it respects Jane Moffit it would not be amiss to consult Mr. Theophilus Parsons if the town of Wiscasset is liable for her support; should you think it proper to consult him take his answer in writing so as that we can charge the town with the fee — I
Text read by machine from the scan; it may contain errors.
lation of York at that time was larger than that cf any town in the district except Portland. The commercial im¬ portance of Wiscasset and Eastport was greater than that of any other two towns in Maine except that of Portland. The assessment rolls in Wiscasset show that besides taxable
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
Wiscasset, decade by decade
7 decades in the archive, from the 1870s to 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.
1884Sheet 1 of 1
Edition
Sheets
BrickWoodStone
Sanborn Map Company, via the Library of Congress. Editions published in 1930 or earlier, which are in the public domain.
In 1663, according to Wikidata. Wiscasset’s post office opened in 1787, and the first U.S. census counted 2,055 people here in 1790.
How does Wiscasset rank for history?
Wiscasset is more historic than 93% of U.S. towns, #32 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 Wiscasset?
6 listings: 5 buildings, among them the Nickels-Sortwell House (a National Historic Landmark since 1970) and the Wiscasset Jail and Museum (listed 1970, the first), and 1 historic district, the Wiscasset Historic District, with 26 contributing buildings. 31 historic buildings in all.
How old are the homes in Wiscasset?
18% of Wiscasset’s homes were built before 1940 (Census estimate, ±7.6 points), against a typical 19% for a Maine town; the median home was built in 1982.
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 (25), the Library of Congress (4), Wikidata (1), the National Register of Historic Places (6), 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), 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.
1923
1958
1980
1980
1980
2026
2024
2022
2022
2022
2018
2018
2017
2015
2015
2015
2015
2011
2011
2011
2010
2009
2005
