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Our Genealogy Helper

Introduction ...

We have a couple of goals for our Gazetteer:

  • That it be a tool which helps us with planning our trips.
  • We're trying to shape our Gazetteer as a tool to help us understand the community in which our ancestors lived, the community that was part of their daily lives.
  • On our trips, we try to visit those places where our ancestors left their footprints.

By learning about Old Town (and the surrounding area) during the time that our ancestors lived, we hope to have a better understanding of both their community and its relationship to their lifes. We hope that this tool helps to give us an insight into their world.

As we add data and organize our Gazetteer to help with our family research, we will be adding to this our Genealogical Helper for Old Town. While we don't have information that is specific to any given person or family, we intend to expand our understanding about where and how people lived.

Name Variations for Old Town ...

When searching records, keep in mind that names and their spelling can change over time. Our sources include documents like maps, railroad schedules, Travel, Express and Shipping Guides. Many of these documents date from the 1800's and it's common to find spelling differences.

Although we can't give a definitive list, hopefully the following will give you a feel for the variations that might occur.

Another variation: Oldtown.

You might be interested in other communities that are also named Old Town. More information can be found on our Tidbits & Trivia Page for Old Town.

If you have information about these names (such as the reason for the change, date of change, the origin of the name), please Contact Us.

Neighboring Counties ...

When searching for family records, we have frequently made the mistake of not checking the neighboring counties.

For example, we have great-grandparents who lived in the northwest corner of their home county. During their lives, most doctors were in the next county to the west. Almost all of the nearby churches and cemeteries were in the county to the north.

So when searching for records, we had our best success by looking in neighboring counties instead of the county in which they lived:  their home county contained property and probate records; the county to the west contained birth and death records; the county to the north contained their burial records. If we hadn't included the neighboring counties, we would have missed many valuable sources of information.

If you're in a similar situation, we hope that the following information helps.

Old Town is located in Penobscot County.

To see how the shape of Maine's counties may have changed over time, we recommend the Atlas of Historical County Boundaries.

The following counties adjoin and form the boundaries of Penobscot County: Aroostook, Hancock, Piscataquis, Somerset, Waldo & Washington.

Below are the counties that are near Old Town. For each of these counties, we show a sample of those communities that are closest to Old Town:

  • Penobscot County     (The home county of Old Town)
    • The following are listed by their distance from Old Town, with the one closest to Old Town listed first.
    • Milford
      (Less than 2 miles to the north)
    • Bradley
      (Less than 2 miles to the southeast)
    • Stillwater
      (2 miles [3.2 km] to the southwest)
      • Stillwater is located in Penobscot County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Stillwater
    • Orono
      (3 miles [4.8 km] to the south)
      • Orono is located in Penobscot County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Orono
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 10,636 people
      • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Orono <1>
    • Webster
      (3 miles [4.8 km] to the south)
      • Webster is located in Penobscot County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Webster
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 82 people
    • Costigan
      (5 miles [8 km] to the north)
      • Costigan is located in Penobscot County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Costigan
    • Alton
      (7 miles [11.3 km] to the northwest)
      • Alton is located in Penobscot County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Alton
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 858 people
      • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Alton <1>
    • West Old Town
      (7 miles [11.3 km] to the northwest)
      • West Old Town is located in Penobscot County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for West Old Town
    • Eddington
      (7 miles [11.3 km] to the south)
    • Veazie
      (7 miles [11.3 km] to the southwest)
      • Veazie is located in Penobscot County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Veazie
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 1,824 people
      • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Veazie <1>
    • Lucky Landing
      (7 miles [11.3 km] to the west)
      • Lucky Landing is located in Penobscot County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Lucky Landing
    • Old Town Landing
      (7 miles [11.3 km] to the west)
      • Old Town Landing is located in Penobscot County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Old Town Landing
    • East Bangor
      (9 miles [14.5 km] to the southwest)
      • East Bangor is located in Penobscot County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for East Bangor
  • Hancock County
    • The following are listed by their distance from Old Town, with the one closest to Old Town listed first.
    • Amherst
      (15 miles [24.1 km] to the southeast)
      • Amherst is located in Hancock County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Amherst
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 256 people
    • Aurora
      (16 miles [25.7 km] to the east)
    • Dedham
      (16 miles [25.7 km] to the south)
    • Great Pond
      (17 miles [27.4 km] to the east)
      • Great Pond is located in Hancock County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Great Pond
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 56 people
    • Otis
      (17 miles [27.4 km] to the southeast)
      • Otis is located in Hancock County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Otis
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 659 people
    • Mariaville
      (18 miles [29 km] to the southeast)
      • Mariaville is located in Hancock County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Mariaville
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 540 people
    • Waltham
      (21 miles [33.8 km] to the southeast)
      • Waltham is located in Hancock County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Waltham
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 340 people
    • North Ellsworth
      (22 miles [35.4 km] to the south)
      • North Ellsworth is located in Hancock County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for North Ellsworth
    • Osborn
      (22 miles [35.4 km] to the southeast)
      • Osborn is located in Hancock County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Osborn
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 66 people
    • Bucksport Center
      (22 miles [35.4 km] to the southwest)
      • Bucksport Center is located in Hancock County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Bucksport Center
    • Bucksport
      (25 miles [40.2 km] to the south)
    • East Orland
      (25 miles [40.2 km] to the south)
    • Eastbrook
      (25 miles [40.2 km] to the southeast)
  • Piscataquis County
    • The following are listed by their distance from Old Town, with the one closest to Old Town listed first.
    • Boyd Lake
      (21 miles [33.8 km] to the northwest)
      • Boyd Lake is located in Piscataquis County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Boyd Lake
    • Medford Center
      (23 miles [37 km] to the northwest)
      • Medford Center is located in Piscataquis County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Medford Center
    • Atkinson
      (25 miles [40.2 km] to the northwest)
      • Atkinson is located in Piscataquis County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Atkinson
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 311 people
    • Atkinson Mills
      (26 miles [41.8 km] to the northwest)
      • Atkinson Mills is located in Piscataquis County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Atkinson Mills
    • Medford
      (26 miles [41.8 km] to the northwest)
      • Medford is located in Piscataquis County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Medford
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 245 people
    • Milo
      (27 miles [43.5 km] to the northwest)
      • Milo is located in Piscataquis County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Milo
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 2,314 people
      • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Milo <1>
    • South Dover
      (27 miles [43.5 km] to the northwest)
      • South Dover is located in Piscataquis County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for South Dover
    • Adams
      (29 miles [46.7 km] to the northwest)
      • Adams is located in Piscataquis County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Adams
    • Dover South Mills
      (29 miles [46.7 km] to the northwest)
      • Dover South Mills is located in Piscataquis County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Dover South Mills
  • Waldo County
    • The following are listed by their distance from Old Town, with the one closest to Old Town listed first.
    • North Winterport
      (20 miles [32.2 km] to the southwest)
      • North Winterport is located in Waldo County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for North Winterport
    • Winterport
      (22 miles [35.4 km] to the southwest)
    • Frankfort
      (25 miles [40.2 km] to the southwest)
    • Prospect Ferry
      (26 miles [41.8 km] to the south)
      • Prospect Ferry is located in Waldo County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Prospect Ferry
    • Prospect
      (28 miles [45.1 km] to the south)
    • Monroe
      (28 miles [45.1 km] to the southwest)
      • Monroe is located in Waldo County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Monroe
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 948 people
    • Sandy Point
      (30 miles [48.3 km] to the south)
    • Monroe Center
      (30 miles [48.3 km] to the southwest)
      • Monroe Center is located in Waldo County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Monroe Center
    • North Searsport
      (30 miles [48.3 km] to the southwest)
      • North Searsport is located in Waldo County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for North Searsport
  • Washington County
    • Beddington
      (29 miles [46.7 km] to the east)

For an expanded list of the communities that are closest to Old Town, see our County-by-County Page for Old Town.

Cemeteries Near Old Town ...

Below are cemeteries that are in the vicinity of Old Town.

This is a new section and is likely to have errors. If you find an error, such as a missing cemetery or we have the wrong name, please let us know. If you know of them, we would also appreciate learning about previous or alternate names.

Although we don't have the information ourselves, if you need information about a burial or interment, photos, transcripts, how to contact the cemetery or local authorities, please visit our list of websites on our Genealogy Helper Page for Old Town - one of the links might be able to help.

If not found below, our Cemetery List for Old Town covers a larger area, with the cemeteries listed in alphabetical order.

The following cemeteries are listed based on their distance from Old Town, with the one closest to Old Town listed first.

Nearby Communities in 1895 ...

We've built the following list with information that came from an Atlas published by Rand McNally in 1895. The Atlas had details such as the population of the community (which appears to have come from the 1890 Census) and whether there was a post office and/or railroad service available. We also indicate if the community no longer exists and is now historic.<3>

The Rand McNally Atlas shows that Old Town had a population of 3,573 people in 1895 with a post office and railroad service. In 2020, Old Town had a population of 7,404 people.

These communities are listed based on their distance from Old Town, with the one closest to Old Town listed first.

  • Milford
    (Less than 2 miles to the north)
  • Great Works
    (Less than 2 miles to the south)
    • Great Works is located in Penobscot County
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Great Works
  • Bradley
    (Less than 2 miles to the southeast)
  • Orono
    (3 miles [4.8 km] to the south)
    • Orono is located in Penobscot County
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Orono
    • Population from the 2020 Census: 10,636 people
    • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Orono <1>
  • Webster
    (3 miles [4.8 km] to the south)
    • Webster is located in Penobscot County
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Webster
    • Population from the 2020 Census: 82 people
  • Basin Mills
    (4 miles [6.4 km] to the south)
    • Basin Mills is located in Penobscot County
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Basin Mills
  • Pea Cove
    (4 miles [6.4 km] to the northwest)
    • Pea Cove is located in Penobscot County
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Pea Cove
  • Costigan
    (5 miles [8 km] to the north)
    • Costigan is located in Penobscot County
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Costigan
  • Veazie
    (7 miles [11.3 km] to the southwest)
    • Veazie is located in Penobscot County
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Veazie
    • Population from the 2020 Census: 1,824 people
    • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Veazie <1>
  • Eddington
    (7 miles [11.3 km] to the south)
  • Alton
    (7 miles [11.3 km] to the northwest)
    • Alton is located in Penobscot County
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Alton
    • Population from the 2020 Census: 858 people
    • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Alton <1>
  • West Old Town
    (7 miles [11.3 km] to the northwest)
    • West Old Town is located in Penobscot County
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for West Old Town
  • Continue List   (17 more) ...
    • Cardville
      (8 miles [12.9 km] to the north)
      • Cardville is located in Penobscot County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Cardville
    • Argyle
      (8 miles [12.9 km] to the north)
      • Argyle is located in Penobscot County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Argyle
    • East Bangor
      (9 miles [14.5 km] to the southwest)
      • East Bangor is located in Penobscot County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for East Bangor

We've also created an expanded list of communities that existed in the 1890's and were located in the area around Old Town. See our List of 1890's Communities around Old Town.

Newspapers Published in the Vicinity of Old Town ...

An ongoing effort between the Library of Congress and the National Endowment for the Humanities (NEH) has resulted in the National Digital Newspaper Program (NDNP).

To share their results, the partnership has created the Chronicling America website. The goal of this partnership is to assemble a database about the current and historic newspapers of the United States. This includes a growing collection of scanned images from selected papers. All of it available to the public on their website.

Using information that we've taken from the Chronicling America website, we've identified 109 newspapers that have been published in the area around Old Town.

We have organized these newspapers into two lists:

  • A Local Newspaper List - focusing on the papers published in the immediate area of Old Town. There are actually two parts to this list - papers printed in the immediate area of Old Town and those printed in the larger area surrounding Old Town.
  • An Extended Newspaper List - a longer list, sorted by paper name and containing those papers published within 22 miles [35.4 km]<4> of Old Town.

Websites to Help With Your Genealogy Research ...

When we do our genealogical research, we start with the websites from Cyndi's List, FamilySearch and Genealogy Trails. These websites offer the information directly or else point to where you can find it. Their information is open to everyone.

To help you get started, the following links will take you to the pages that are relevant to Old Town:

Footnotes ...

<1>While we're fans and frequent users of TripAdvisor, you should know that we're also members of the TripAdvisor affiliate program.
<2>The Find-a-Grave website is an excellent research tool with information about a cemetery's location and interments. They also offer a forum for their members which can provide additional help. More information about Find-a-Grave can be found on their website: findagrave.com.
<3>We use the term 'Historic' broadly and it generally means that the community no longer exists. However, it can also mean that the community might still exist, but was significantly larger or had a more 'official' existence in the past than it does now. Unfortunately our sources of data have proven to be unreliable. If you can provide us with more specific information about Old Town, please let us know so that we can improve our accuracy.
<4>Our distances are not driving distances, but are calculated as a 'point-to-point' distance. A straight line distance ignores things like rivers, canyons, lakes, et cetera - it's truly a line drawn from Point A (ie- Old Town) to Point B. In other words: 'As the crow flies'.