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History · Lincoln

Lincoln’s post office opened in 1869, and 2 of its places are on the National Register

Most of Lincoln was built recently: 9% of its homes predate 1940 and the median home dates from 1977. Its Register listings are the Lincoln Lodge and the Lincoln Community Hall. Below: maps from 1968 on and the census since 2000.

1869first post office
2on the National Register
9%homes built before 1940
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Quick answers

How Lincoln began

When was Lincoln founded?

1869

The Lincoln post office opened in 1869, the earliest record of the town by name.

First census: 1,100 in 20002020 census: 998157 years
Founding year: the first Lincoln post office (Blevins & Helbock, CC0).The full story ↓

What stands out about Lincoln’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 Lincoln are in the public archives yet. The rest are in attics and albums.
★ What stands out · Help out

Start Lincoln’s collection

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

Decades since 1900 with photos
00s10s20s30s40s50s60s70s80s90s
0 of 10 decades. The empty ones are waiting for someone’s album.
Share a family photoSign in to add one+10
The story

How Lincoln came to be

From Wikipedia’s history of Lincoln.

Read it all →

Meriwether Lewis passed through the area on his return to St. Louis in 1806, following the famous "River of the Road to the Buffalo" created by Native Americans centuries before. Gold discoveries in the mid-1860s brought miners to a number of camps in the area, and Lincoln was eventually created when nearby Lincoln Gulch was abandoned in favor of the town's present location. Recreational, logging and mining activities along the Blackfoot River in the early 20th century made it a convenient commercial center. Nearby wilderness areas continue to attract visitors and residents.

Chapters"Unabomber" arrest2017 earthquake

Text from Wikipedia, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0.

By decade

Lincoln, decade by decade

Today6 recent
Lincoln Montana2015Lincoln MontanaInflation2014InflationYouth Wilderness Trip for the film Untrammeled2013Youth Wilderness Trip for the film UntrammeledYouth Forest Monitoring Program2013Youth Forest Monitoring ProgramAmphibian Monitoring at Heart Lake - YFMP2013Amphibian Monitoring at Heart Lake - YFMPAmphibian Monitoring at Heart Lake - YFMP2013Amphibian Monitoring at Heart Lake - YFMP
On the map

Lincoln on the map, 1968 to 2001

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

Lincoln on the 1968 USGS mapLincoln on the 2001 USGS map1968Lincoln sheet · 1:24,000

U.S. Geological Survey historical topographic maps (public domain), via Esri’s collection of the scans. The red ring marks the center of Lincoln.

On the National Register

2 historic places in Lincoln

The country’s official list of buildings and places worth saving.

places listed
2
National Historic Landmarks
0
none yet
historic buildings protected
3
each building in a district counts
first listed
1986
Lincoln Lodge
Lincoln LodgeLincoln Community Hall
Buildings

Architectural styles listings

Vernacular Rustic1
Adirondack Rustic1
Lincoln LodgeVernacular Rustic
Lincoln Community HallBuilding

National Park Service, National Register of Historic Places. Photos from Wikimedia Commons, credited on each place’s page.

People over time

Lincoln, census by census

02004006008001,0001,20020002020Peak: 1,100

Between 998 and 1,100 people in every census since 2000.

3 censuses, 2000–2020.

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

Famous people

Famous people close to Lincoln

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

See all →
Chase ReynoldsPlayer of American football · b. 1987
F
Frederick Clayton CasselmanCanadian politician · b. 1885
Places that used to be

Old corners

Lincoln’s post office has been open since 1869.

Hamlets and corners on the map
Huckleberry Trailer Court

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

Questions about Lincoln’s history

What year was Lincoln founded?

The Lincoln post office opened in 1869, the earliest record of the town by name (U.S. post office records).

What is on the National Register in Lincoln?

Two places: the Lincoln Lodge (listed 1986) and the Lincoln Community Hall (1987).

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 (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) 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.