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History · Battle Creek

Battle Creek dates to 1880, and 57% of its homes were built before 1940

Its Register listing is the Dr. Francis B. Warnock House. Its Register listing is the Dr. Francis B. Warnock House. Below: maps from 1967 on and the census since 1880.

1880founded
1on the National Register
57%homes built before 1940
1famous people
Add an old photoShare a memory
Quick answers

How Battle Creek began, and where its name came from

When was Battle Creek founded?

1880

Battle Creek dates its founding to 1880 (Wikipedia’s history). The census first counted it in 1880.

First census: 205 in 18802020 census: 700146 years

How did Battle Creek get its name?

Battle Creek was named after nearby Battle Creek.

Founding year: Wikipedia. First post office: 1887. Name: Wikipedia, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0.The full story ↓

What stands out about Battle Creek’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 Battle Creek are in the public archives yet. The rest are in attics and albums.Old housesHalf of Battle Creek’s homes were built before 1938.
★ What stands out · Help out

Start Battle Creek’s collection

The first neighbors to add old photos shape how Battle Creek’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
The story

How Battle Creek came to be

From Wikipedia’s history of Battle Creek.

Read it all →

Battle Creek got its start in the year 1877, following construction of the Chicago and North Western Railway through that territory. It was named after nearby Battle Creek. The town was incorporated in 1880.

Text from Wikipedia, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0.

Timeline

Battle Creek, 1880 to 1967

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

  1. 19th century
  2. 1880
    FoundingBattle Creek is established
  3. 1882Born hereEd H. Campbell is born here
  4. 1887Post officeThe Battle Creek post office opens
  5. 20th century
  6. 1967On the mapFirst mapped by the U.S. Geological Survey
By decade

Battle Creek, decade by decade

Today2 recent
Battle CreekIowaPopPlot2021Battle CreekIowaPopPlotIAMap-doton-BattleCreek2004IAMap-doton-BattleCreek
On the map

Battle Creek on the map, 1967 to 1982

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

Battle Creek on the 1967 USGS mapBattle Creek on the 1982 USGS map1967Battle Creek 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 Battle Creek.

On the National Register

1 historic place in Battle Creek

The country’s official list of buildings and places worth saving.

place listed
1
National Historic Landmarks
0
none yet
historic buildings protected
1
each building in a district counts
first listed
1988
Dr. Francis B. Warnock House
Dr. Francis B. Warnock House
Buildings

Architectural styles listings

Colonial Revival1
Queen Anne1
All 1 listings
Dr. Francis B. Warnock HouseBuilding · listed 1988

National Park Service, National Register of Historic Places. Photos from Wikimedia Commons, credited on each place’s page.

People over time

Battle Creek, census by census

02004006008001,00018801900192019401960198020002020Peak: 919

Between 205 and 919 people in every census since 1880.

15 censuses, 1880–2020.

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

Places that used to be

Places now gone

Battle Creek’s post office has been open since 1887.

Gone or out of use
Battle CreeklocaleMaple Number Five SchoolschoolMoorehead Schoolschool

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

Questions about Battle Creek’s history

What year was Battle Creek founded?

In 1880, according to Wikipedia’s history of the town. Battle Creek’s post office opened in 1887, and the census of 1880 counted 205 people here.

What is on the National Register in Battle Creek?

One place: the Dr. Francis B. Warnock House (listed 1988).

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), the National Register of Historic Places (1), 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.