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20210331 18 McCallsburg, IowaPhoto: David Wilson · CC BY 2.0
–Not graded
History · McCallsburg

McCallsburg’s post office opened in 1883, and 24% of its homes were built before 1940

Below: maps from 1975 on and the census since 1910.

1883first post office
0on the National Register
24%homes built before 1940
1famous people
Add an old photoShare a memory
Photo: David Wilson · CC BY 2.0
Quick answers

How McCallsburg began

When was McCallsburg founded?

1883

The McCallsburg post office opened in 1883, the earliest record of the town by name. Another post office, Latrobe (1882), opened inside today’s city and later closed.

First census: 309 in 19102020 census: 353143 years
Founding year: the first McCallsburg post office (Blevins & Helbock, CC0).

What stands out about McCallsburg’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 McCallsburg are in the public archives yet. The rest are in attics and albums.
★ What stands out · Help out

Start McCallsburg’s collection

The first neighbors to add old photos shape how McCallsburg’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 so far

McCallsburg, in brief

Wikipedia doesn’t have a history of McCallsburg yet. The photos, dates and memories neighbors add here are how it gets written.

McCallsburg is a city in Story County, Iowa, United States. The population was 353 at the time of the 2020 census. It is part of the Ames, Iowa Metropolitan Statistical Area, which is a part of the larger Ames-Boone, Iowa Combined Statistical Area.

Its first post office opened in 1883. Between the 2010 and 2020 censuses its population grew from 333 to 353 (+6%).

Intro from Wikipedia. Population: U.S. Census Bureau.

Timeline

McCallsburg, 1882 to 1975

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

  1. 19th century
  2. 1882Post officeThe Latrobe post office opens
  3. 1883Post officeThe Latrobe post office closes
  4. 1883Post officeThe Mc Callsburg post office opens
  5. 20th century
  6. 1907Born hereChester Hougen is born here
  7. 1975On the mapFirst mapped by the U.S. Geological Survey
By decade

McCallsburg, decade by decade

Today4 recent
Untitled photo2021Untitled photoUntitled photo2021Untitled photoUntitled photo2021Untitled photoIAMap-doton-McCallsburg2004IAMap-doton-McCallsburg
On the map

McCallsburg on the map, 1975 to 1993

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

McCallsburg on the 1975 USGS mapMcCallsburg on the 1985 USGS mapMcCallsburg on the 1993 USGS map1975Mc Callsburg 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 McCallsburg.

People over time

McCallsburg, census by census

0100200300192019401960198020002020Peak: 353

Between 261 and 353 people in every census since 1910.

12 censuses, 1910–2020.

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

Places that used to be

Lost post offices

Another post office, Latrobe, opened and closed inside today’s town.

Latrobe
1882–1883
Mc Callsburg
1883–today
18801950today

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

Questions about McCallsburg’s history

What year was McCallsburg founded?

The McCallsburg post office opened in 1883, 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 (4), 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) 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.