List of the oldest buildings in Maine

See also: List of the oldest buildings in the United States

This article attempts to list the oldest buildings in the state of Maine in the United States of America, including the oldest houses in Maine and any other surviving structures from the First Period or oldest buildings of their type in Maine. Some dates are approximate and based on architectural studies and historical records, other dates are based on dendrochronology. All entries should include citation with reference to: architectural features; a report by an architectural historian; dendrochronology; or other secondary source.

Verified through dendrochronology or architectural surveys

Building		Location	First Built	Notes
McIntire Garrison House		York, Maine	1707	Apparently built in 1707 thought traditionally held to be constructed in 1645.[1]
Old York Gaol		York, Maine	c. 1720	Construction of building began in 1720, with expansion continuing until 1806. The structure is one of the oldest surviving jails in the United States.[2]
Bray House		Kittery, Maine	c. 1720	While the Bray House was historically dated to the mid-1600s, a contemporary survey has deemed that assigning a date prior to 1710-1720 to the structure is "not really possible."[3]
First Congregational Church and Parsonage		Kittery, Maine	c. 1730	Oldest church building in Maine
Littlefield Tavern		Wells, Maine	1735	This structure is reported to be an early tavern.[4]
Ramsdell House		York, Maine	c. 1747	One of the oldest houses in Maine, dated using dendrochronology.[5] Located on Lindsay Road.
Tate House		Portland, Maine	c. 1755	House museum and one of the oldest houses in Portland
Burnham Tavern		Machias, Maine	1770	Possibly the oldest building east of the Penobscot River in Maine.[6]
Wadsworth-Longfellow House		Portland, Maine	1785-6	House museum built by Gen. Peleg and Eliza Wadsworth. Childhood home of their grandson, poet Henry Wadsworth Longfellow. [7]
Portland Head Light		Portland, Maine	c. 1790	Oldest lighthouse in Maine^[citation needed]

Currently unverified estimates

Building		Location	First Built	Notes
William Whipple House		Kittery, Maine	c. 1660	Purportedly the oldest portion of home at 88 Whipple Road is alleged to circa 1660 and was occupied by Robert Cutt; it was later the birthplace of General William Whipple, Signer of the Declaration of Independence; located at 88 Whipple Road[8][9] Possibly the oldest house in Maine. As of 2019 date not known to be confirmed with dendrochronology.
Francis Hooke House		Kittery Point, Maine	c. 1674	No known dendrochronology survey.[10][11]
William Pepperrell House		Kittery, Maine	1682	Allegedly one of the oldest houses in Maine[12][13] No known dendrochronology survey.
Hunnewell House		Scarborough, Maine	1684	The Hunnewell House is possibly the oldest surviving home in Scarborough.[14][15] No known dendrochronology survey.
Wells Homestead		Wells, Maine	1696[16]	No known dendrochronology survey.

See also

• List of the oldest buildings in the United States
• Timeline of architectural styles

Notes

1. "NHL nomination for McIntire Garrison House". National Park Service. Retrieved February 27, 2015.
2. "NHL nomination for Old York Gaol". National Park Service. Retrieved March 9, 2015.
3. "NRHP nomination for Bray House". National Park Service. Retrieved May 13, 2015.
4. "NRHP nomination for Littlefield Tavern". National Park Service. Retrieved May 11, 2015.
5. "Ramsdell House, Lindsay Road, York, Maine (43.142286, -70.653951)". Oxford Tree-ring Laboratory. Archived from the original on September 21, 2010. Retrieved April 25, 2023.
6. Dabney W. Caldwell, Roadside Geology of Maine (1998) pg. 92 https://books.google.com
7. "Wadsworth-Longfellow House". Maine Historical Society. Retrieved February 7, 2025.
8. "Restoring the house of legendary William Whipple" by D. Allan Kerr, Oct 9, 2017
9. Old Kittery and Her Families, by Everett Schermerhorn Stackpole, (Lewiston, ME: 1903) pg. 81 - Old Kittery and Her Families, by Everett Schermerhorn Stackpole, (Lewiston, ME: 1903) pg. 81
10. John Mead Howells, The Architectural Heritage of the Piscataqua: Houses and ... (1937), p. 207 https://books.google.com
11. John E. Frost (John Eldridge), Colonial Village, (1948), pg. 69 archive.org
12. "NRHP nomination for William Pepperrell House". National Park Service. Retrieved August 25, 2015.
13. "Historic American Buildings Survey" https://www.loc.gov/item/me0179/
14. [{National Register Information System". National Register of Historic Places. National Park Service. July 9, 2010 {National Register Information System". National Register of Historic Places. National Park Service. July 9, 2010]. {{cite web}}: Check |url= value (help); Missing or empty |title= (help)
15. "Hunnewell House, ca. 1950". November 15, 2016.
16. "NRHP nomination for Wells Homestead". National Park Service. Retrieved May 19, 2015.