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History · Ayrshire

Ayrshire’s post office opened in 1882, and 50% of its homes were built before 1940

Below: maps from 1972 on and the census since 1900.

1882first post office
0on the National Register
50%homes built before 1940
3famous people
Add an old photoShare a memory
Quick answers

How Ayrshire began

When was Ayrshire founded?

1882

The Ayrshire post office opened in 1882, the earliest record of the town by name.

First census: 329 in 19002020 census: 133144 years
Founding year: the first Ayrshire post office (Blevins & Helbock, CC0).The full story ↓

What stands out about Ayrshire’s past

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

A history waiting to be writtenNo old photos of Ayrshire are in the public archives yet. The rest are in attics and albums.Boom and bustPeaked at 391 in 1940; 133 people lived here in 2020.Old housesHalf of Ayrshire’s homes were built before 1940.
★ What stands out · Help out

Start Ayrshire’s collection

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

Decades since 1900 with photos
00s10s20s30s40s50s60s70s80s90s
0 of 10 decades. The empty ones are waiting for someone’s album.
Share a family photoSign in to add one+10
People over time

Ayrshire, census by census

01002003004001900192019401960198020002020Peak: 391

Peaked at 391 in 1940; 133 people lived here in 2020.

13 censuses, 1900–2020.

U.S. Census Bureau decennial counts, from the census table on Ayrshire’s Wikipedia page.

The story

How Ayrshire came to be

From Wikipedia’s history of Ayrshire.

Read it all →

In the 1880s the Des Moines and Fort Dodge Railroad (later part of Minneapolis and St. Louis Railway), having reached Fort Dodge, began building to the northwest. In October 1882 the rails reached the location of Ayrshire, and a depot was built the following month. The railroad had acquired 80 acres for a townsite, and by 1883 several businesses had been established.

Text from Wikipedia, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0.

Timeline

Ayrshire, 1882 to 1972

Woven from the archive, old maps, post office records, the National Register and the people born here.

  1. 19th century
  2. 1882Post officeThe Ayrshire post office opens
  3. 1893Born hereMaxine Albro is born here
  4. 20th century
  5. 1940Born hereEileen Ramsay is born here
  6. 1940CensusPopulation peaks at 391
  7. 1962Born hereJulie Bertagna is born here
  8. 1972On the mapFirst mapped by the U.S. Geological Survey
By decade

Ayrshire, decade by decade

Today2 recent
AyrshireIowaPopPlot2021AyrshireIowaPopPlotIAMap-doton-Ayrshire2004IAMap-doton-Ayrshire
On the map

Ayrshire on the map, 1972 to 1985

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

Ayrshire on the 1972 USGS mapAyrshire on the 1985 USGS map1972Ayrshire sheet · 1:24,000

U.S. Geological Survey historical topographic maps (public domain), via Esri’s collection of the scans. The red ring marks the center of Ayrshire.

Famous people

3 famous people were born in Ayrshire

Writers, athletes, leaders and more, ranked by how widely they’re known.

See all →
J
Julie BertagnaBritish writer · b. 1962
M
Maxine AlbroAmerican artist · b. 1893
E
Eileen RamsayBritish writer · b. 1940
Places that used to be

Places now gone

Ayrshire’s post office has been open since 1882.

Gone or out of use
Ayrshirelocale

US Post Offices dataset (Blevins & Helbock, CC0). Places and cemeteries from the USGS Geographic Names Information System (2021).

Questions about Ayrshire’s history

What year was Ayrshire founded?

The Ayrshire post office opened in 1882, the earliest record of the town by name (U.S. post office records).

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 (2), Wikipedia, Wikidata and Wikipedia for famous people, U.S. Geological Survey historical maps, U.S. Census counts (via Wikipedia), the US Post Offices dataset (Blevins & Helbock) 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.