Founding year: Wikipedia. First post office: 1861.The full story ↓
History grade
What drives Nora Springs’ History grade
On its age, its old homes and the National Register, Nora Springs is more historic than 71% of U.S. towns. Its share of homes from before 1940 holds the grade up; its age pulls it down.
B+
HistoryA character grade: shown, never part of Nora Springs’ 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 Nora Springs’ 7.3 sits near the middle of its state (51% of Iowa towns have fewer) while its 1 listings outnumber those of 51% of U.S. towns.
How sure. Graded on any two of the three inputs instead, the letter would range from C to A−. The pre-1940 share is a Census survey estimate (±10.0 points). Two sources give 1857.
Founding year: Wikipedia (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 Nora Springs’ past
Read from the archive, the National Register and the record. The page puts what stands out first.
Nora Springs was founded in 1857 and was incorporated in 1875. It was first called Woodstock, but community pioneer Edson Gaylord, managed to persuade wealthy pioneer Edward Greeley of nearby Woodbridge (later Nashua) to come to town. Greeley agreed to buy and improve the gristmill, and to purchase 20 acres of land from Gaylord, if the town would change its name from Woodstock to Elnora, in honor of a former lady love from Vermont. Gaylord had wanted the town to be named "Springs" and as a result of a compromise, Woodstock became Elnora Springs, quickly shortened to Nora Springs. Shortly thereafter, Greeley made a trip to Vermont; upon his return, he sold the land back to Gaylord, returned to Woodbridge, and never visited Nora Springs again.
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.
Rock Groye Township derived its name from a ponderous boulder now in the public park, in the city of Nora Springs. This township is the northwestern one of Floyd County. It is bounded on the north by Union Township, in Mitchell County, on the 'east by the Township of Rudd, on tlie south by the Township of Rockford, and on the west by the Township of Portland, in Cerro Gordo County. It is seven miles long from north to south, aud the north half is six miles wide, from east to west. From the east side of
Text read by machine from the scan; it may contain errors.
History of Floyd County, Iowa1882 · page 1092Read the page →
Read the text
menced to learn the blacksmith's trade, at which avocation he was employed till he came to Iowa in 1851. He bcated first in Nora Springs, where he remained about two years; his first work in this county was to iron ofi'a saw-mill at Nora Springs, after which he taught the first singing school in Floyd County. While he resided at Nora Springs he worked at his trade, but the population was so scarce that he was unemployed three fourths of the time, though farmers came as far as 100 miles to get a plow layed; he had many
Text read by machine from the scan; it may contain errors.
Bock Grore Township derived its name from a ponderous boulder now in the public park, in the city of Nora Springs. This township is the northwestern one of Floyd County. It is bounded on the north by Union Township, in Mitchell County, on the 'east by the Township of Rudd, on the south by the Township of Rockford, and on the west by the Township of Portland, in Cerro Gordo County. It is seven miles long from north to south, and the north half is six miles wide, from east to west. From the east side of
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History of Floyd County, Iowa1882 · page 1123Read the page →
Read the text
of twenty-five he went to Dodge County, Wis., where he engaged in the milling business, and remained about twelve years, running a saw and grist mill about ten years of the time. In the year 1867 he became a citizen of Floyd County, locating in Nora Springs ) where, in company with Charles Paddleford, he bought the town site of Nora Springs, and erected the grist mill which is still extant and in good order. Tlie year following they built a double store, and rented it to parties who engaged in the mercantile business.
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
Nora Springs, 1857 to 1954
Woven from the archive, old maps, post office records, the National Register and the people born here.
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.
Nora Springs’s post office has been open since 1861.
Hamlets and corners on the map
Nora Junction
1cemetery inside Nora Springs
Park
US Post Offices dataset (Blevins & Helbock, CC0). Places and cemeteries from the USGS Geographic Names Information System (2021).
Questions about Nora Springs’ history
What year was Nora Springs founded?
In 1857, according to Wikipedia’s history of the town. Nora Springs’ post office opened in 1861, and the census of 1880 counted 617 people here.
How does Nora Springs rank for history?
Nora Springs is more historic than 71% 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 Nora Springs?
One place: the Hawkeye Street Underpass (listed 1998).
How old are the homes in Nora Springs?
52% of Nora Springs’ homes were built before 1940 (Census estimate, ±10.0 points), against a typical 22% for an Iowa town; the median home was built in 1938.
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 (5), the National Register of Historic Places (1), 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.
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