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History · Mapleton

17% of Mapleton’s homes were built before 1940

Below: 4 old photos and papers and maps from 1940 on.

0on the National Register
17%homes built before 1940
4old photos & papers
Add an old photoShare a memory
From Mapleton’s archive · credits on each photo

What stands out about Mapleton’s past

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

A history waiting to be writtenOnly 4 old photos are in the public archives. The rest are in attics and albums.Old housesHalf of Mapleton’s homes were built before 1964.
★ What stands out · Help out

Start Mapleton’s collection

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

Decades since 1900 with photos
00s10s20s30s40s50s60s70s80s90s
1 of 10 decades. The empty ones are waiting for someone’s album.
Retake an old viewSawmill near Mapleton, Oregon: stand where they stood+15Share a family photoSign in to add one+10
The story

How Mapleton came to be

From Wikipedia’s history of Mapleton.

Read it all →

Mapleton was likely named by Julia Ann "Grandma" Bean for the abundance of Bigleaf Maple trees in the area. Grandma Bean's husband was Obediah Roberts Bean, and their eldest child was judge Robert S. Bean. Pioneers of 1852, the Beans moved to the Mapleton area in 1886 and the town was named shortly thereafter. There was a post office called Seaton established north of the locality in 1885, and when it moved to the Mapleton area in 1889, Mrs. Bean became postmaster. The post office was renamed Mapleton to match the town in 1896.

Text from Wikipedia, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0.

By decade

Mapleton, decade by decade

One decade in the archive so far: the 1930s. Scroll each row; tap a photo for its story.

1930s4 items
Sawmill near Mapleton, Oregon1936Sawmill near Mapleton, OregonSawmill near Mapleton, Oregon1936Sawmill near Mapleton, OregonResettlement work camp. Mapleton, Oregon1936Resettlement work camp. Mapleton, OregonA farm that has been cut over and allowed to become covered with ferns near Mapleton, Oregon1936A farm that has been cut over and allowed to become c…
1940s–1990snothing yet
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.
Add from your album
Today8 recent
Siuslaw River at2011Siuslaw River atMapleton, Oregon2011Mapleton, OregonMapleton High School (Oregon)2011Mapleton High School (Oregon)Sign in2009Sign inHochstein Nursery2009Hochstein NurseryDave Eisler2009Dave EislerSouthern Pacific Railroad No. 3815 - September 20072007Southern Pacific Railroad No. 3815 - September 2007ORMap-doton-Mapleton2004ORMap-doton-Mapleton
On the map

Mapleton on the map, 1940 to 1984

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

Mapleton on the 1940 USGS mapMapleton on the 1957 USGS mapMapleton on the 1984 USGS map1940Mapleton 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 Mapleton.

Then & now

Stand where they stood

No then-and-now pairs yet. Take a photo from the same spot as an old one and they appear here side by side.

Sawmill near Mapleton, Oregon
Retake this viewSawmill near Mapleton, Oregon, 1936

Find the spot, match the angle, and add your photo. It becomes the first then-and-now pair on Mapleton’s page.

Retake this view · +15
Famous people

Famous people close to Mapleton

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

See all →
Willis C. HawleyAmerican politician · b. 1864
Wayne FiskRecipient of the Silver Star · b. 1945
Kathryn ClarkeUS politician · b. 1873

Questions about Mapleton’s history

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 (8), the Library of Congress (4), Wikipedia, U.S. Geological Survey historical maps 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.