Founding year: Wikidata. First post office: 1855.The full story ↓
History grade
What drives Bedford’s History grade
On its age, its old homes and the National Register, Bedford is more historic than 88% of U.S. towns. Its share of homes from before 1940 holds the grade up; its age pulls it down.
A
HistoryA character grade: shown, never part of Bedford’s overall grade.
Iowa towns list more on the Register than most of the country (a typical Iowa town has 9.1 per 10,000 residents, the U.S. 2.4), so Bedford’s 352 sits above most of its state (98% of Iowa towns have fewer) while its 47 historic buildings outnumber those of 84% of U.S. towns.
How sure. Graded on any two of the three inputs instead, the letter would range from B+ to A+. The pre-1940 share is a Census survey estimate (±8.3 points). Two sources give 1855.
Founding year: Wikidata (other dates in Quick answers). Homes: Census ACS 2020–24. National Register: National Park Service, May 2026 list; each listing counted once (boundary changes and added documentation belong to their listing), and a historic district counts its contributing buildings. How TownRatings grades history →
What stands out about Bedford’s past
Read from the archive, the National Register and the record. The page puts what stands out first.
The community is believed to have gotten its name from Thomas J. Bedford, who was the first west bound Pony Express rider to deliver the mail on its final leg from Benicia, California to Oakland, California on April 23, 1861. Bedford is believed to have operated Bedfords Store and Trading Post in 1848 within the city limits. He moved to California later that year, in the California Gold Rush.
The community was called "Grove" when a post office was established on June 30, 1855. On June 24, 1856 it was changed to Bedford. Other histories have noted possible other sources of the name:
Bedford in England (possible original home of early settlers)
Bedford, Pennsylvania (reputed home of a "government engineer")
Passages that mention Bedford, cut from the printed page as they were published.
History of Taylor County, Iowa1881 · page 600Read the page →
Read the text
the State and #n impetus was given to business. About this time, or perhaps a little before it, W. II. Allison and J. Majors laid off some town lots in the southwest corner of Marshall township, and called them Lexington. For a time it presented strong opposition to Bedford, claiming that as it was the nearest the geographical center of the county, the seat of justice should be removed from Bedford to Lexington. Considerable business was done at Lexington for several years, but as the settlements were principally south, Lexington gradually died out and the erection of the court-house at Bed-
Text read by machine from the scan; it may contain errors.
History of Taylor County, Iowa1910 · page 220Read the page →
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The township of Bedford embraces the city and independent school district of Bedford, hence its history is practically a part of the history of the town. How the territory was organized into a township has been explained elsewhere.
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History of Taylor County, Iowa1881 · page 415Read the page →
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At the January session of the board of supervisors in 1880, the township of Benton was so divided that all the territory within the corporate limits of the city of Bedford should compose a township organization, and be known as Bedford township. The boundaries of this township were subsequently amended to read as follows: Bedford township shall be comprised of the east % of sections 22, 27 and 34, all of sections 23, 25, 26, 35, and 36, and south half of section 24, township 68 north, of range 34 west.
Text read by machine from the scan; it may contain errors.
History of Taylor County, Iowa1910 · page 170Read the page →
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In 1855, the flow of immigration to the county began. About this time, or possible a little earlier, W. FI. Allison and J. Majors laid off some town lots in the southwest corner of what was later Marshall township, and called the to-be village, Lexington. For a time it presented strong opposition to Bedford, claim¬ ing the right to the county seat, because of closer proximity to the geographical center of the county. Considerable business was done at Lexington for several years, but as the settlements were principally south, Lexington gradually died out and the erection of the courthouse in Bedford in 1864 extinguished its last hope.
Text read by machine from the scan; it may contain errors.
Scans and text from the Internet Archive. Books published in 1930 or earlier, which are in the public domain.
Timeline
Bedford, 1855 to 1940
Woven from the archive, old maps, post office records, the National Register and the people born here.
Every edition of the U.S. Geological Survey’s map of Bedford. Tap a year, or press play to watch the town change.
1940Bedford sheet · 1:62,500
U.S. Geological Survey historical topographic maps (public domain), via Esri’s collection of the scans. The red ring marks the center of Bedford.
Every building
Bedford, building by building, 1886–1918
Fire insurance maps drew every building, what it was made of and what it was used for, so insurers could price the risk of fire. Pick a year, then a sheet.
Sanborn Map Company, via the Library of Congress. Editions published in 1930 or earlier, which are in the public domain.
Places that used to be
Lost post offices and places now gone
Bedford’s post office has been open since 1856. Another post office, Grove, opened and closed inside today’s town.
Grove
1855–1856
Bedford
1856–today
18501940today
Gone or out of use
Bedfordlocale
US Post Offices dataset (Blevins & Helbock, CC0). Places and cemeteries from the USGS Geographic Names Information System (2021).
Questions about Bedford’s history
What year was Bedford founded?
In 1855, according to Wikidata. Bedford’s post office opened in 1855, and the census of 1870 counted 720 people here.
How does Bedford rank for history?
Bedford is more historic than 88% of U.S. towns. The History grade combines the town’s founding era, the share of homes built before 1940 and its National Register listings. It’s a character grade, so it isn’t part of the overall grade. How it works.
What is on the National Register in Bedford?
5 listings: 4 buildings, among them the Bedford House (listed 1977, the first), and 1 historic district, the Bedford Commercial Historic District, with 43 contributing buildings. 47 historic buildings in all.
How old are the homes in Bedford?
47% of Bedford’s homes were built before 1940 (Census estimate, ±8.3 points), against a typical 22% for an Iowa town; the median home was built in 1949.
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).
From Wikimedia Commons (6), the National Register of Historic Places (5), 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), the USGS Geographic Names Information System, Sanborn fire insurance maps (Library of Congress) and old county and town histories (Internet Archive). Archive images are copied here with their credits and licenses, shown on each photo’s page. Refreshed monthly.
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