This beautiful Castine garden was designed by famed Boothbay landscape architect Bruce Ridell, whose work includes several of the landscapes at Coastal Maine Botanical Gardens. Photo courtesy of Down East Magazine.

The Castine Historical Society hosts the Castine House & Garden Tour every 3-4 years. Our most recent tour was in 2022. Stay tuned on this page for when we announce the date of the next tour.

With history dating back to the 1600s, Castine has been home to many: Native Americans, French, Dutch, English and Colonial Americans. Castine is named after Baron Jean Vincent de Saint Castin, a French nobleman and officer. Its strategic peninsula location at the mouth of the Penobscot River made it highly desirable. The town once served as the seat of Hancock County, a merchant port for coastal trading, and a center for shipbuilding.

With growth and prosperity during the 19th century, grand Federal, Georgian, Greek Revival and Victorian style homes were built. These stately homes along with charming summer cottages still grace shady elm-lined streets.

Seaside Castine is one of the oldest towns in Maine and, according to DownEast and Yankee magazines, it is also one of the prettiest.  We hope you will join us!