Most of Lincoln was built recently: 7% of its homes predate 1940 and the median home dates from 1986. Below: 2 old photos and papers, maps from 1911 on, and the census since 1790.
Founding year: Wikidata. First post office: 1840.The full story ↓
History grade
What drives Lincoln’s History grade
On its age, its old homes and the National Register, Lincoln is more historic than 49% of U.S. towns. Its age holds the grade up; its National Register listings pull it down.
B−
HistoryA character grade: shown, never part of Lincoln’s overall grade.
New Hampshire towns list more on the Register than most of the country (a typical New Hampshire town has 9.5 per 10,000 residents, the U.S. 2.4), so Lincoln’s 0.0 sits below most of its state (8% of New Hampshire 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 1764.
How sure. Graded on any two of the three inputs instead, the letter would range from C− to B+. The pre-1940 share (±2.2 points) is firm at this size.
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 Lincoln’s past
Read from the archive, the National Register and the record. The page puts what stands out first.
In 1764, colonial Governor Benning Wentworth granted 32,456 acres (131.34 km2) to a group of approximately 70 land investors from Connecticut. Lincoln was named after Henry Fiennes Pelham-Clinton, 2nd Duke of Newcastle, 9th Earl of Lincoln – a cousin of the Wentworth governors. He held the position of comptroller of customs for the port of London under King George II and George III, which was important to trade between America and England.
"It was also at the Stover farm, when it was the property of Isaac and Mary Lincoln, that Thomas Lincoln, the father of Abraham Lincoln, worked for a while as a farmhand for his Uncle Isaac. (See Holland's Life of Lincoln, and Nicolay and Hay's Life of Lincoln.)
Text read by machine from the scan; it may contain errors.
In July, 1777, General Lincoln was despatched to the northern army, under Gates, to assist in opposing Burgoyne. Stationed at Manchester, in Vermont, Lincoln received and organized the New England militia as they joined him. A detachment of 500 men from his troops, under colonel Brown surprised the English at the landing at Lake George, took 293 men, and released 100 American prisoners. He then joined general Gate's
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
Lincoln, decade by decade
2 decades in the archive, from the 1910s to the 1960s. 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.
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.
Every edition of the U.S. Geological Survey’s map of Lincoln. Tap a year, or press play to watch the town change.
1929Franconia 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 Lincoln.
Every building
Lincoln, building by building, 1911–1921
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 1764, according to Wikidata. Lincoln’s post office opened in 1840, and the first U.S. census counted 22 people here in 1790.
How does Lincoln rank for history?
Lincoln is more historic than 49% 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 Lincoln?
7% of Lincoln’s homes were built before 1940 (Census estimate, ±2.2 points), against a typical 17% for a New Hampshire town; the median home was built in 1986.
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), 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.
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