Each edition grades its towns against each other only.
Below: maps from 1978 on and the census since 1900.
The Persia post office opened in 1882, the earliest record of the town by name.
Read from the archive, the National Register and the record. The page puts what stands out first.
The first neighbors to add old photos shape how Persia’s history is told.
Wikipedia doesn’t have a history of Persia yet. The photos, dates and memories neighbors add here are how it gets written.
Persia is a city in Harrison County, Iowa, United States. The population was 297 in the 2020 census, a decline from 363 in the 2000 census.
Its first post office opened in 1882. Between the 2010 and 2020 censuses its population fell from 319 to 297 (-7%).
Intro from Wikipedia. Population: U.S. Census Bureau.
Passages that mention Persia, cut from the printed page as they were published.
He then located at the then new town of Persia. He there practiced medicine and sold drugs. Other physicians at Persia were: Dr. C. B. McColm, a graduate of the Northwestern Medical College of St. Joseph, Missouri, who located at Persia in the autumn of 1886. He also engaged in the drug trade as well as practiced medicine. Later, he was in business at Logan, and from there removed to Council Bluffs.
Text read by machine from the scan; it may contain errors.
Frv. In 1891 the membership had reached one hundred and eight. A neat frame buildingwas erected for church purposes in 1884, costing two thousand four hundred dollars. This branch of the church is situated in Washington township, and is within the village of Persia. The present total membership of this branch is one hundred and fortyfive.
Text read by machine from the scan; it may contain errors.
to Valley View in Union Township, where they bought a piece of wild land compris¬ ing two hundred acres, which they im¬ proved. The Village of Persia was just started at this time (1882) and our sub¬ ject started in the general merchandising business at that point, his being the first dry-goods store of the place. He is still
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.
Woven from the archive, old maps, post office records, the National Register and the people born here.
On the mapFirst mapped by the U.S. Geological SurveyEvery edition of the U.S. Geological Survey’s map of Persia. Tap a year, or press play to watch the town change.
U.S. Geological Survey historical topographic maps (public domain), via Esri’s collection of the scans. The red ring marks the center of Persia.
Between 297 and 396 people in every census since 1900.
13 censuses, 1900–2020.
U.S. Census Bureau decennial counts, from the census table on Persia’s Wikipedia page.
Writers, athletes, leaders and more, ranked by how widely they’re known.
The Persia post office opened in 1882, the earliest record of the town by name (U.S. post office records).
What the archives can’t tell you, neighbors can.
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 (2), 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 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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