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History · Maitland

Maitland’s post office opened in 1880, and 44% of its homes were built before 1940

Below: maps from 1915 on and the census since 1890.

1880first post office
0on the National Register
44%homes built before 1940
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Photo: SamuelNelsonGISP · CC BY-SA 4.0
Quick answers

How Maitland began

When was Maitland founded?

1880

The Maitland post office opened in 1880, the earliest record of the town by name. Another post office, Whig Valley (1861), opened inside today’s city and later closed.

First census: 484 in 18902020 census: 276146 years
Founding year: the first Maitland post office (Blevins & Helbock, CC0).The full story ↓

What stands out about Maitland’s past

Read from the archive, the National Register and the record. The page puts what stands out first.

A history waiting to be writtenNo old photos of Maitland are in the public archives yet. The rest are in attics and albums.Boom and bustPeaked at 805 in 1900; 276 people lived here in 2020.Old housesHalf of Maitland’s homes were built before 1948.
★ What stands out · Help out

Start Maitland’s collection

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

Decades since 1900 with photos
00s10s20s30s40s50s60s70s80s90s
0 of 10 decades. The empty ones are waiting for someone’s album.
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People over time

Maitland, census by census

02004006008001900192019401960198020002020Peak: 805

Peaked at 805 in 1900; 276 people lived here in 2020.

14 censuses, 1890–2020.

U.S. Census Bureau decennial counts, from the census table on Maitland’s Wikipedia page.

The story

How Maitland came to be

From Wikipedia’s history of Maitland.

Read it all →

Maitland was platted on May 12, 1880. The town is named after John Skirving Maitland, who was a surveyor for the Nodaway Valley Railroad (the construction company for the Kansas City, St. Joseph and Council Bluffs Railroad) that arrived in Maitland in 1880 when its superintendent, John Fisk Barnard, purchased the land for the town from John S. and Delila Swope. The railroad would eventually be taken over by the Burlington Northern Railroad before eventually being abandoned.

Text from Wikipedia, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0.

From the old history books

What they wrote about Maitland in 1917

Passages that mention Maitland, cut from the printed page as they were published.

Maitland is served by one telephone exchange, in which respect she is more fortunate than those towns which suffer the annoyance of a dual service. The Farmers’ Mutual Telephone Company had its inception at a meeting held in Maitland Septemper 11, 1902, at which the farmers in the country nearby di…
History of Holt County, Missouri1917 · page 203Read the page →
Read the text

Maitland is served by one telephone exchange, in which respect she is more fortunate than those towns which suffer the annoyance of a dual service. The Farmers’ Mutual Telephone Company had its inception at a meeting held in Maitland Septemper 11, 1902, at which the farmers in the country nearby discussed with the business men of Maitland the business details of the proposition. The company was formally organized January 13, 1903, when the following officers were elected: Elijah

Text read by machine from the scan; it may contain errors.
and stood on section 9, of township 62, range 37. This was purchased by E. F. Weller, who, in 1876, built a store on the town site of Whig Valley. The business houses and their proprietors all moved from Whig Valley to the new town of Maitland when it was established. MAITLAND.
History of Holt County, Missouri1917 · page 195Read the page →
Read the text

and stood on section 9, of township 62, range 37. This was purchased by E. F. Weller, who, in 1876, built a store on the town site of Whig Valley. The business houses and their proprietors all moved from Whig Valley to the new town of Maitland when it was established. MAITLAND.

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

Maitland, 1861 to 1926

Woven from the archive, old maps, post office records, the National Register and the people born here.

  1. 19th century
  2. 1861Post officeThe Whig Valley post office opens
  3. 1880Post officeThe Whig Valley post office closes
  4. 1880Post officeThe Maitland post office opens
  5. 20th century
  6. 1900CensusPopulation peaks at 805
  7. 1926On the mapFirst mapped by the U.S. Geological Survey
By decade

Maitland, decade by decade

Today2 recent
Maitland Missouri 12 22 20242024Maitland Missouri 12 22 2024MOMap-doton-Maitland2004MOMap-doton-Maitland
On the map

Maitland on the map, 1926 to 1981

Every edition of the U.S. Geological Survey’s map of Maitland. Tap a year, or press play to watch the town change.

Maitland on the 1926 USGS mapMaitland on the 1981 USGS map1926Maitland 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 Maitland.

Every building

Maitland, building by building, 1915

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 sheet.

Maitland fire insurance map, 1915, sheet 11915Sheet 1 of 1
Sheets
BrickWoodStone

Sanborn Map Company, via the Library of Congress. Editions published in 1930 or earlier, which are in the public domain.

Famous people

Famous people close to Maitland

Nobody well known was born in Maitland itself, so here are the best known from just nearby.

See all →
Dale CarnegieAmerican writer and lecturer · b. 1888
Harley RaceAmerican professional wrestler, promoter and tr… · b. 1943
Sarah CaldwellAmerican opera conductor, impresario, and stage… · b. 1924
Forrest C. DonnellAmerican politician · b. 1884
Lynne OvermanAmerican actor · b. 1887
Frank AustinActor · b. 1877
Places that used to be

Lost post offices and places now gone

Maitland’s post office has been open since 1880. Another post office, Whig Valley, opened and closed inside today’s town.

Whig Valley
1861–1880
Maitland
1880–today
18601940today
Gone or out of use
Nodaway - Holt Middle Schoolschool

US Post Offices dataset (Blevins & Helbock, CC0). Places and cemeteries from the USGS Geographic Names Information System (2021).

Questions about Maitland’s history

What year was Maitland founded?

The Maitland post office opened in 1880, 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 (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, 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.