14 places in town are on the National Register, among them a historic district with 38 buildings. Below: 3 old photos and papers, maps from 1885 on, and the census since 1850.
The Bellevue post office opened in 1846, the earliest record of the town by name. Another post office, Belleview (1836), opened inside today’s city and later closed.
First census: 362 in 18502020 census: 2,363180 years
How historic is Bellevue?
A
More historic than 94% of U.S. towns, on its age, its old homes and the National Register.
Founding year: the first Bellevue post office (Blevins & Helbock, CC0).The full story ↓
History grade
What drives Bellevue’s History grade
On its age, its old homes and the National Register, Bellevue is more historic than 94% of U.S. towns. All 3 inputs are above most U.S. towns; its National Register listings ranks highest and its age lowest.
A
HistoryA character grade: shown, never part of Bellevue’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 Bellevue’s 226 sits above most of its state (94% of Iowa towns have fewer) while its 51 historic buildings outnumber those of 85% of U.S. towns.
How sure. Graded on any two of the three inputs instead, the letter would still be A. The pre-1940 share is a Census survey estimate (±5.5 points). The founding year is the first post office, not a stated founding date.
Founding year: the first post office (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 Bellevue’s past
Read from the archive, the National Register and the record. The page puts what stands out first.
Jackson County, along with Jones and Linn Counties were established in 1837 and Bellevue was the named the seat of justice for all three counties. Prior to the formal opening of the county, Bellevue was laid out by John D. Bell in 1835. He built a cabin there and was the town's first postmaster. The first hotel was built by Peter Dutell in 1836, and was called the Bellevue House. When Iowa became a territory in 1838, the first census was taken and Jackson County had 881 people. The town of Bellevue constructed a city hall that serves as the Bellevue Public Library on the upper level. The Bellevue War of 1840 gave the town an unsavory reputation and discouraged settlement in its aftermath. However, the population would double within two years. In 1838 the town of Andrew was designated as the county seat. Between 1848 and 1876, the struggle between Andrew and Bellevue for the county sea…
Passages that mention Bellevue, cut from the printed page as they were published.
History of Jackson County, Iowa1910 · page 75Read the page →
Read the text
Squire William Morden had laid out the town of Fulton in the early fifties, and a petition was presented to the County Court in 1857, asking for a vote at the next April election, for the county seat between Fulton and Bellevue, and the vote was ordered accordingly; but although the contest was sharp and vigorous, Bellevue won by a majority of twenty. A contest was begun by the Fulton peo¬ ple alleging that a sufficient number of illegal votes had been cast in the town of Bellevue to change the result. The action was by proceeding in quo warranto, and the friends of Bellevue retorted that more illegal votes had been cast in
Text read by machine from the scan; it may contain errors.
History of Jackson County, Iowa1910 · page 221Read the page →
Read the text
In January, 1867, Samuel/ S. Cronk was murdered near Cottonville for the money he was supposed to have with him. In 1881 Charles Towne shot Thomas Keithly to death in the streets of Bellevue, and in 1885, David Seeley shot William Horan to death with a pistol on the street of the same city. Same term Herman Ellinghouse was indicted for kicking the life out of Patsy Cook, in Bellevue, and, still later, Henry Weston shot and killed High Hoover, at Harmony Park, just outside of Bellevue, and on the 4th day of July, 1896, Christian Eckerliebe shot and beat to death his neighbor’s daughter, Minnie Iveil, some six miles from Bellevue.
Text read by machine from the scan; it may contain errors.
The history of Jackson County, Iowa, containing a history of the county, its cities, towns, &c., biographical sketches of citizens, war record of its volunteers in the late rebellion ... history of the Northwest, history of Iowa ... miscellaneous matters,1879 · page 541Read the page →
Read the text
A mail route was established between Bellevue and Andrew, which carried the mails three times a week on horseback, in 1845. In 1850, a tri-weekly mail was carried from Galena to Andrew, in coaches. Then, in 1860, it was changed to a tri-weekly from Bellevue to Maquoketa. and, in 1875, a daily mail by coach was put on between Bellevue and Maquoketa, and is now carried so.
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
Bellevue, 1836 to 1968
Woven from the archive, old maps, post office records, the National Register and the people born here.
U.S. Geological Survey historical topographic maps (public domain), via Esri’s collection of the scans. The red ring marks the center of Bellevue.
Every building
Bellevue, building by building, 1885–1914
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.
Lost post offices, places now gone and burying grounds
Bellevue’s post office has been open since 1846. Another post office, Belleview, opened and closed inside today’s town.
Belleview
1836–1846
Bellevue
1846–today
18301930today
Gone or out of use
Potter's Milllocale
3cemeteries and burying grounds inside Bellevue
First PresbyterianSaint John's LutheranSaint Josephs
US Post Offices dataset (Blevins & Helbock, CC0). Places and cemeteries from the USGS Geographic Names Information System (2021).
Questions about Bellevue’s history
What year was Bellevue founded?
The Bellevue post office opened in 1846, the earliest record of the town by name (U.S. post office records).
How does Bellevue rank for history?
Bellevue is more historic than 94% 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 Bellevue?
14 listings: 13 buildings, among them the Jackson County Courthouse (listed 1981, the first), and 1 historic district, the Bellevue Commercial Historic District, with 38 contributing buildings. 51 historic buildings in all.
How old are the homes in Bellevue?
27% of Bellevue’s homes were built before 1940 (Census estimate, ±5.5 points), against a typical 22% for an Iowa town; the median home was built in 1965.
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 (4), Wikidata (2), the National Register of Historic Places (14), 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.
2004
