Oskaloosa’s post office opened in 1844, and 34% of its homes were built before 1940
More historic than 96% of U.S. towns · #13 of 140 in Iowa. What drives it
40 places in town are on the National Register, among them four historic districts with 78 buildings between them. Below: 2 old photos and papers, maps from 1885 on, and the census since 1850.
The Oskaloosa post office opened in 1844, the earliest record of the town by name. Another post office, Mahaska (1844), opened inside today’s city and later closed.
First census: 625 in 18502020 census: 11,558182 years
How historic is Oskaloosa?
A+
More historic than 96% of U.S. towns, on its age, its old homes and the National Register.
Founding year: the first Oskaloosa post office (Blevins & Helbock, CC0).The full story ↓
History grade
What drives Oskaloosa’s History grade
On its age, its old homes and the National Register, Oskaloosa is more historic than 96% of U.S. towns, #13 of 140 in Iowa. All 3 inputs are above most U.S. towns; its share of homes from before 1940 ranks highest and its age lowest.
A+
HistoryA character grade: shown, never part of Oskaloosa’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 Oskaloosa’s 127 sits above most of its state (86% of Iowa towns have fewer) while its 146 historic buildings outnumber those of 91% of U.S. towns.
How sure. Graded on any two of the three inputs instead, the letter would range from A to A+. The pre-1940 share is a Census survey estimate (±4.6 points). The founding year is the first post office, not a stated founding date.
Founding year: the first post office (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 Oskaloosa’s past
Read from the archive, the National Register and the record. The page puts what stands out first.
Oskaloosa derives its name from Ouscaloosa who, according to town lore, was a Creek princess who married Seminole chief Osceola. A local tradition was that her name meant "last of the beautiful". (This interpretation of "last of the beautiful" is not correct. "Oskaloosa" in the Mvskoke-Creek language means "black rain", from the Mvskoke words "oske" (rain) and "lvste" (black). "loosa" is an English corruption of the Mvskoke word "lvste". For example, see the Wikipedia entry for Tuskaloosa, eponym of the town of Tuscaloosa, Alabama. In addition the Mvskoke word "Ouscaloosa" means "Black Water"). The first European-American settlers arrived in 1835, led by Nathan Boone, youngest son of frontiersman Daniel Boone. Acting on instructions from Stephen W. Kearny, he selected this as the first site of Fort Des Moines, located on a high ridge between the Skunk and Des Moines rivers. The ridge …
Passages that mention Oskaloosa, cut from the printed page as they were published.
The history of Mahaska County, Iowa, containing a history of the county, its cities, towns, &c., a biographical directory of its citizens, war record of its volunteers in the late rebellion, general and local statistics ..1878 · page 348Read the page →
Read the text
This road has a station at Beacon, two and one-half miles southwest of Oskaloosa, and for several years this was the only railroad station near the county seat, a fact which has long been a source of regret, not only to the friends of the road, but likewise to the citizens of Oskaloosa. It w'ill be remembered that it was, and lias been, a question of a good deal of interest why the road was not built through Oskaloosa, and we will endeavor to answer the same.
Text read by machine from the scan; it may contain errors.
The history of Mahaska County, Iowa, containing a history of the county, its cities, towns, &c., a biographical directory of its citizens, war record of its volunteers in the late rebellion, general and local statistics ..1878Read the page →
Read the text
children are as follows: Porter C, born in Pella, June 12, 1862; died in Pella, August 12, 1863; buried at Knoxville. John Mason, born in Pella, January 12, 1864. Rachel Anna, born in Pella, January 12, 1866. Olla Mary, l3oru in Oskaloosa, January 28, 1868, William Francis, born in Oskaloosa, January S, 1870, Emma May, born in Oskaloosa, May 28, 1871. Fannie Belle, born in Oskaloosa, May 17, 1874, Peter Cooper, born in Oskaloosa, February 6, 1877.
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
Oskaloosa, 1844 to 1986
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.
Every edition of the U.S. Geological Survey’s map of Oskaloosa. Tap a year, or press play to watch the town change.
1968Oskaloosa 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 Oskaloosa.
Every building
Oskaloosa, building by building, 1885–1927
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.
The Oskaloosa post office opened in 1844, the earliest record of the town by name (U.S. post office records).
How does Oskaloosa rank for history?
Oskaloosa is more historic than 96% of U.S. towns, #13 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 Oskaloosa?
40 listings: 34 buildings, among them the Daniel Nelson House and Barn (listed 1974, the first), 4 historic districts with 78 contributing buildings, 1 site, and 1 structure. 146 historic buildings in all.
How old are the homes in Oskaloosa?
34% of Oskaloosa’s homes were built before 1940 (Census estimate, ±4.6 points), against a typical 22% for an Iowa town; the median home was built in 1966.
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), Wikidata (4), the National Register of Historic Places (40), 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.
