County · code 23009
Hancock CountyMaine
Hancock County is located in Maine and has its county seat in Ellsworth. The county was created in 1790 and named after John Hancock.
- Founded1790
- County seatEllsworth
- Named forJohn Hancock
- Land area1,587 sq mi + 758 sq mi water
- Population55,478 2020 Census
- Parcels mapped51,044 checked 16 October 2026
Where it is
Hancock on the map of Maine
Maine has 16 counties and county equivalents, each with its own records office. Shapes with a page are links.
History
Formed in 1790 from Lincoln County
An old deed may name a county that no longer exists, or a boundary that has since moved.
Hancock County was formed in 1790 from Lincoln County, and named after John Hancock. Ellsworth is the county seat.
Deeds and plats from before 1790 for land now in Hancock County may have been recorded in Lincoln County.
- 1790Hancock County created Hancock created by Massachusetts from Lincoln. · Mass. Acts 1789, ch. 25, sec. 1/p. 25
- 1791
- 1811
- 1812
- 1820Became part of Maine Hancock became a county in the state of Maine when Maine was separated from Massachusetts and admitted to the Union. · U.S. Stat., vol. 3, ch. 19 [1820]/p. 544
Show all 21 changes
- 1790Hancock County created Hancock created by Massachusetts from Lincoln. · Mass. Acts 1789, ch. 25, sec. 1/p. 25
- 1791
- 1799Boundary clarified Boundary between Hancock and Kennebec was clarified (no change).with Kennebecno change· Mass. Acts 1799, ch. 39, sec. 1/p. 275
- 1811
- 1812
- 1813
- 1816Lost territory Hancock lost to creation of Penobscot. · Mass. Acts 1816, ch. 121, sec. 1/p. 156
- 1816Lost territory Hancock lost to Penobscot when town of Hampden gained from town of Frankfurt and town of Orrington gained from town of Buckstown (now Bucksport). · Mass. Acts 1816, ch. 13, sec. 1/p. 195 and ch. 14/p. 196
- 1820Became part of Maine Hancock became a county in the state of Maine when Maine was separated from Massachusetts and admitted to the Union. · U.S. Stat., vol. 3, ch. 19 [1820]/p. 544
- 1827Lost territory Hancock lost to creation of Waldo. · Me. Pub. Acts 1827, ch. 354, sec. 1/p. 1109 and ch. 362/p. 1125
- 1831Exchanged territory Hancock exchanged with Washington. · Me. Priv. Acts 1831, ch. 154/p. 247
- 1835
- 1838Lost territory Hancock lost North Haven Island and Vinalhaven Island to Waldo. · Me. Priv. Acts 1838, ch. 451/p. 552
- 1841Lost territory Hancock lost to Penobscot when town of Lowell gained from Page's Mill Settlement. · Me. Laws 1841, ch. 102/p. 296
- 1841Lost territory Hancock lost small area to Penobscot when town of Brewer gained from towns of Bucksport and Dedham. · Me. Laws 1841, ch. 161/p. 357
- 1843Lost territory Hancock lost Matinicus Island to Lincoln. · Me. Laws 1843, Priv., ch. 118/p. 137
- 1844Boundary clarified Part of the boundary between Hancock and Washington was clarified (no change).with Washingtonno change· Me. Laws 1844, Pub., ch. 99, secs. 1-5/pp. 92-94
- 1850Lost territory Hancock lost small area to Penobscot when town of Orrington gained from town of Bucksport. · Me. Laws 1850, Priv., ch. 376, sec. 1/p. 519
- 1852Lost territory Hancock lost islands of Hacketash (now Ragged Island), Wooden Ball, Tenpound, No Man's Land, Two Bush, and Matinicus Rock to Lincoln. · Me. Laws 1852, Priv., ch. 578/p. 577
- 1858
- 1913
Land and parcels
What the maps cover in Hancock
Who publishes each layer, how good it is, and when we last checked.
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Parcels Good enough
Lot lines and tax-map numbers for 51,044 parcels from Maine GeoLibrary (Maine Office of GIS). Drawn for tax purposes: usually within a few feet of a survey, but not a survey.
edited 17 August 2026 · checked 16 October 2026 -
Address points Missing
No public address points layer found for Hancock County yet.
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Buildings Reference
Roof outlines traced from aerial imagery from FEMA Response Geospatial Office with Oak Ridge National Laboratory (ORNL). Good for seeing what is on a lot; not accurate enough to set a fence from.
checked 18 October 2026
- Official
- from the office that keeps the record
- Good enough
- a reliable statewide or national copy
- Fallback
- a guide only; check the official record
- Missing
- nothing public found yet
People and land
Hancock by the Census
Source: US Census Bureau, 2020 Census; US Census Bureau, 2020 Gazetteer Files. Not endorsed or certified by the Census Bureau.
Rules and offices
Who to ask before you build, dig or sell
Official county pages only. We link to them; we do not copy them, because they change.
In Maine, permits, zoning and assessing are handled by each city or town, not the county, and deeds are recorded at the county's registry of deeds.
Records
County government
- County government
The official website of Hancock County.
See your own lot on these maps
Open Hancock County on Parcel Chart's free map and click your parcel. Save it with a free account; the full record of your place (site map, projects, documents) is Pro, in early access.
Questions
Common questions about Hancock County
- When was Hancock County founded?
- Hancock County was founded in 1790, formed from Lincoln County, and named after John Hancock.
- What is the county seat of Hancock County?
- The county seat of Hancock County is Ellsworth.
- Is there an online parcel map for Hancock County?
- Yes. Maine GeoLibrary (Maine Office of GIS) publishes a parcel map of 51,044 parcels, rated good enough here. You can click any parcel on it in Parcel Chart's free map, no sign-in needed.
- Has Hancock County's boundary or name changed?
- Hancock County was created in 1790 from Lincoln County. Since then the Atlas of Historical County Boundaries records 18 later changes, chiefly involving Penobscot County, Lincoln County and Somerset County.
- Is my lot in a flood zone?
- We do not have flood maps for Hancock County yet. Look up the address on FEMA's Flood Map Service Center, which shows the effective flood map for any lot.
Nearby