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History · Henderson

Henderson’s post office opened in 1880, and 64% of its homes were built before 1940

Below: maps from 1978 on and the census since 1890.

1880first post office
0on the National Register
64%homes built before 1940
Add an old photoShare a memory
Photo: Jared Winkler · CC BY-SA 4.0
Quick answers

How Henderson began

When was Henderson founded?

1880

The Henderson post office opened in 1880, the earliest record of the town by name.

First census: 201 in 18902020 census: 144146 years
Founding year: the first Henderson post office (Blevins & Helbock, CC0).The full story ↓

What stands out about Henderson’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 Henderson are in the public archives yet. The rest are in attics and albums.Old housesHalf of Henderson’s homes were built before 1938.Boom and bustPeaked at 244 in 1900; 144 people lived here in 2020.
★ What stands out · Help out

Start Henderson’s collection

The first neighbors to add old photos shape how Henderson’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 Henderson came to be

From Wikipedia’s history of Henderson.

Read it all →

No buildings existed where the community lies in 1875. A community had formed by February 1877 as records show residents were forming a Church of Christ. The community was originally named Potter until 1881. Workers for railroad stayed local farmer Dave Henderson's yard and named the place Henderson Crossing; it was later shorted to Henderson. Henderson was platted in 1880 and incorporated in 1893.

Text from Wikipedia, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0.

People over time

Henderson, census by census

01002001900192019401960198020002020Peak: 244

Peaked at 244 in 1900; 144 people lived here in 2020.

14 censuses, 1890–2020.

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

Timeline

Henderson, 1880 to 1978

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

  1. 19th century
  2. 1880Post officeThe Henderson post office opens
  3. 20th century
  4. 1900CensusPopulation peaks at 244
  5. 1978On the mapFirst mapped by the U.S. Geological Survey
By decade

Henderson, decade by decade

Today3 recent
HendersonIowaPopPlot2021HendersonIowaPopPlotHenderson, IA2017Henderson, IAIAMap-doton-Henderson2004IAMap-doton-Henderson
On the map

Henderson on the map, 1978 to 1985

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

Henderson on the 1978 USGS mapHenderson on the 1985 USGS map1978Carson 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 Henderson.

Places that used to be

Places now gone

Henderson’s post office has been open since 1880.

Gone or out of use
HendersonlocaleHenderson Post Officepost office

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

Questions about Henderson’s history

What year was Henderson founded?

The Henderson post office opened in 1880, the earliest record of the town by name (U.S. post office records).

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 (3), Wikipedia, 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.