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Rutland iowaPhoto: Billwhittaker at English Wikipedia · CC BY-SA 3.0
–Not graded
History · Rutland

Rutland’s post office opened in 1868, and 58% of its homes were built before 1940

Below: maps from 1980 on and the census since 1910.

1868first post office
0on the National Register
58%homes built before 1940
Add an old photoShare a memory
Photo: Billwhittaker at English Wikipedia · CC BY-SA 3.0
Quick answers

How Rutland began, and where its name came from

When was Rutland founded?

1868

The Rutland post office opened in 1868, the earliest record of the town by name.

First census: 212 in 19102020 census: 113158 years

How did Rutland get its name?

Rutland was named after Rutland, Vermont.

Founding year: the first Rutland post office (Blevins & Helbock, CC0). Name: Wikipedia, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0.The full story ↓

What stands out about Rutland’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 Rutland are in the public archives yet. The rest are in attics and albums.Old housesHalf of Rutland’s homes were built before 1938.Boom and bustPeaked at 255 in 1940; 113 people lived here in 2020.
★ What stands out · Help out

Start Rutland’s collection

The first neighbors to add old photos shape how Rutland’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

How Rutland came to be

From Wikipedia’s history of Rutland.

Read it all →

Rutland was platted in 1869. It was named after Rutland, Vermont.

Rutland was formerly serviced by Iowa Highway 367, which was decommissioned in 1980.

Text from Wikipedia, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0.

People over time

Rutland, census by census

0100200192019401960198020002020Peak: 255

Peaked at 255 in 1940; 113 people lived here in 2020.

12 censuses, 1910–2020.

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

Timeline

Rutland, 1868 to 1980

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

  1. 19th century
  2. 1868Post officeThe Rutland post office opens
  3. 20th century
  4. 1940CensusPopulation peaks at 255
  5. 1980On the mapFirst mapped by the U.S. Geological Survey
By decade

Rutland, decade by decade

Today3 recent
Rutland dam2010Rutland damRutland iowa2009Rutland iowaIAMap-doton-Rutland2004IAMap-doton-Rutland
On the map

Rutland on the map in 1980

The U.S. Geological Survey’s map of Rutland.

Rutland on the 1980 USGS map1980Bode 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 Rutland.

Places that used to be

Places now gone

Rutland’s post office has been open since 1868.

Gone or out of use
Rutlandlocale

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

Questions about Rutland’s history

What year was Rutland founded?

The Rutland post office opened in 1868, 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 (3), Wikipedia, 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.