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History · Prescott

Prescott’s post office opened in 1870, and 59% of its homes were built before 1940

Below: maps from 1980 on and the census since 1880.

1870first post office
0on the National Register
59%homes built before 1940
Add an old photoShare a memory
Photo: Jared Winkler · CC BY-SA 4.0
Quick answers

How Prescott began

When was Prescott founded?

1870

The Prescott post office opened in 1870, the earliest record of the town by name.

First census: 248 in 18802020 census: 191156 years
Founding year: the first Prescott post office (Blevins & Helbock, CC0).

What stands out about Prescott’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 Prescott are in the public archives yet. The rest are in attics and albums.Old housesHalf of Prescott’s homes were built before 1938.Boom and bustPeaked at 446 in 1900; 191 people lived here in 2020.
★ What stands out · Help out

Start Prescott’s collection

The first neighbors to add old photos shape how Prescott’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

Prescott, in brief

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

Prescott is a city in Prescott Township, Adams County, Iowa, United States. The population was 191 at the time of the 2020 census.

Its first post office opened in 1870. Between the 2010 and 2020 censuses its population fell from 257 to 191 (-26%).

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

People over time

Prescott, census by census

010020030040018801900192019401960198020002020Peak: 446

Peaked at 446 in 1900; 191 people lived here in 2020.

15 censuses, 1880–2020.

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

Timeline

Prescott, 1870 to 1980

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

  1. 19th century
  2. 1870Post officeThe Prescott post office opens
  3. 20th century
  4. 1900CensusPopulation peaks at 446
  5. 1980On the mapFirst mapped by the U.S. Geological Survey
By decade

Prescott, decade by decade

Today2 recent
Prescott, IA2019Prescott, IAIAMap-doton-Prescott2004IAMap-doton-Prescott
On the map

Prescott on the map, 1980 to 1993

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

Prescott on the 1980 USGS mapPrescott on the 1993 USGS map1980Prescott 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 Prescott.

Famous people

Famous people close to Prescott

Nobody well known was born in Prescott itself, so here are the best known from just nearby.

See all →
Henry A. WallaceAmerican politician (1888–1965); Vice President… · b. 1888
Johnny CarsonAmerican talk show host and comedian · b. 1925
Marcia Wallace PeamsAmerican actress and comedian · b. 1942
W
Walter CunninghamAmerican astronaut · b. 1932
Julee CruiseAmerican musician · b. 1956
Virginia ChristineAmerican actress · b. 1920

Questions about Prescott’s history

What year was Prescott founded?

The Prescott post office opened in 1870, 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 (2), 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.