The story
Read it all →How Burt came to be
From Wikipedia’s history of Burt.
Burt was platted in 1881 when the railroad was extended to that point. It was named for Horace G. Burt, a railroad official.
Text from Wikipedia, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0.
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History · Burt
Burt dates to 1881, and 38% of its homes were built before 1940
Below: maps from 1915 on and the census since 1900.
1881founded
0on the National Register
38%homes built before 1940
2famous people
Quick answers
How Burt began, and where its name came from
When was Burt founded?
1881
Burt dates its founding to 1881 (Wikidata and Wikipedia’s history agree). The census first counted it in 1900.
First census: 504 in 19002020 census: 418145 years
How did Burt get its name?
Burt was named for Horace G. Burt, a railroad official.
Founding year: Wikidata; Wikipedia’s history section gives the same year. First post office: 1882. Name: Wikipedia, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0.The full story ↓
What stands out about Burt’s past
Read from the archive, the National Register and the record. The page puts what stands out first.
★ What stands out · Help out
Start Burt’s collection
The first neighbors to add old photos shape how Burt’s history is told.
Decades since 1900 with photos
00s10s20s30s40s50s60s70s80s90s
0 of 10 decades. The empty ones are waiting for someone’s album.People over time
Burt, census by census
Peaked at 689 in 1980; 418 people lived here in 2020.
13 censuses, 1900–2020.
U.S. Census Bureau decennial counts, from the census table on Burt’s Wikipedia page.
From the old history books
What they wrote about Burt in 1913
Passages that mention Burt, cut from the printed page as they were published.
History of Kossuth County, Iowa1913 · page 214Read the page →
Read the text
Burt and all the townships south of it received many settlers from 1865 to 1870, but their locations being so scattered no old-time settlements were formed having a distinctive name, except in Union where the settling of the McArthurs and Burts caused that vicinity to be known as the Scotch settlement. The Scotch schoolhouse is a name now frequently heard when reference is made to the schoolhouse in that neighborhood. The settlements up in Seneca were nameless, but in Fenton there were three that were well known. When the Darien colony in the latter sixties came in and covered every eighty of section 26, the settlement not
Text read by machine from the scan; it may contain errors.
History of Kossuth County, Iowa1913 · page 655Read the page →
Read the text
The Methodist church, like those in most of the towns in the county, was at first on the circuit. Pastors from Bancroft held services for several years before one was stationed at Burt. The church was formally organized and incorporated June 8, 1892, George E. Marble, Levi Toothman, J. B. Cork, J. N. Easterly and Charles Nichols being the first board of trustees. The church is worshiping in a neat little edifice, and Rev. G. \V. Eggleston is the pastor. Before him in turn, reaching back into the past, the pastors were Rev. Allen Wood. Rev. Marcy, Rev.
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
Burt, 1881 to 1980
Woven from the archive, old maps, post office records, the National Register and the people born here.
- 19th century
- 1881FoundingBurt is established
- 1882Post officeThe Burt post office opens
- 20th century
- 1924Born hereBob Thaves is born here
- 1957Born hereChuck Soderberg is born here
- 1972
On the mapFirst mapped by the U.S. Geological Survey - 1980CensusPopulation peaks at 689
By decade
Burt, decade by decade
Today2 recent
2021
2004On the map
Burt on the map, 1972 to 1985
Every edition of the U.S. Geological Survey’s map of Burt. Tap a year, or press play to watch the town change.
1972Burt sheet · 1:24,000U.S. Geological Survey historical topographic maps (public domain), via Esri’s collection of the scans. The red ring marks the center of Burt.
Every building
Burt, building by building, 1915
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 sheet.
1915Sheet 1 of 1Sheets
BrickWoodStone
Sanborn Map Company, via the Library of Congress. Editions published in 1930 or earlier, which are in the public domain.
Famous people
See all →2 famous people were born in Burt
Writers, athletes, leaders and more, ranked by how widely they’re known.
Questions about Burt’s history
What year was Burt founded?
In 1881, according to Wikidata and Wikipedia’s history of the town. Burt’s post office opened in 1882, and the census of 1900 counted 504 people here.
Memory lane
What the archives can’t tell you, neighbors can.
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), 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.