Harlan dates to 1858, and 38% of its homes were built before 1940
More historic than 83% of U.S. towns · #41 of 140 in Iowa. What drives it
4 places in town are on the National Register, among them a historic district with 38 buildings. Below: 6 old photos and papers, maps from 1886 on, and the census since 1860.
Founding year: Wikidata; Wikipedia’s history section gives the same year. First post office: 1857. Name: Wikipedia, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0.The full story ↓
History grade
What drives Harlan’s History grade
On its age, its old homes and the National Register, Harlan is more historic than 83% of U.S. towns, #41 of 140 in Iowa. Its share of homes from before 1940 holds the grade up; its age pulls it down.
A−
HistoryA character grade: shown, never part of Harlan’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 Harlan’s 83.8 sits above most of its state (81% of Iowa towns have fewer) while its 41 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 (±6.7 points). Two sources give 1858.
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 Harlan’s past
Read from the archive, the National Register and the record. The page puts what stands out first.
National Park Service, National Register of Historic Places. Photos from Wikimedia Commons, credited on each place’s page.
Every building
Harlan, 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.
Harlan was platted in 1858. It was named for one of Iowa's early U.S. Senators, James Harlan. Harlan was designated county seat in 1859. The town was incorporated on May 2, 1879.
On April 26, 2024, a multiple-vortex EF3 tornado tracked west of Harlan during a major regional outbreak. Although ground-level damage assessments supported a maximum intensity rating of EF3 with 160 miles (260 km) per hour winds, a mobile Doppler on Wheels (DOW) radar unit scanning the storm near Harlan measured winds aloft reaching roughly 224 miles (360 km) per hour: an intensity equivalent to an EF5 tornado. The storm severely damaged on rural farmsteads across Shelby County before finally dissipating.
Nothing in the archives for these yearsWeddings on Main Street, storms, parades, school pictures, the old store. If it’s in your family album, it belongs here.
In 1858, according to Wikidata and Wikipedia’s history of the town. Harlan’s post office opened in 1857, and the census of 1860 counted 47 people here.
How does Harlan rank for history?
Harlan is more historic than 83% of U.S. towns, #41 of 140 in Iowa. 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 Harlan?
4 listings: 3 buildings, among them the St. Paul's Episcopal Church (listed 1978, the first), and 1 historic district, the Harlan Courthouse Square Commercial District, with 38 contributing buildings. 41 historic buildings in all.
How old are the homes in Harlan?
38% of Harlan’s homes were built before 1940 (Census estimate, ±6.7 points), against a typical 22% for an Iowa town; the median home was built in 1959.
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 (2), the Library of Congress (4), the National Register of Historic Places (4), 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 and Sanborn fire insurance maps (Library of Congress). Archive images are copied here with their credits and licenses, shown on each photo’s page. Refreshed monthly.
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