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History · Sully

Sully dates to 1882, and 30% of its homes were built before 1940

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

1882founded
0on the National Register
30%homes built before 1940
1famous people
Add an old photoShare a memory
Photo: PopePompus · CC BY-SA 4.0
Quick answers

How Sully began

When was Sully founded?

1882

Sully dates its founding to 1882 (Wikidata and Wikipedia’s history agree). The census first counted it in 1910.

First census: 282 in 19102020 census: 881144 years
Founding year: Wikidata; Wikipedia’s history section gives the same year. First post office: 1883.The full story ↓

What stands out about Sully’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 Sully are in the public archives yet. The rest are in attics and albums.Old housesHalf of Sully’s homes were built before 1963.
★ What stands out · Help out

Start Sully’s collection

The first neighbors to add old photos shape how Sully’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 Sully came to be

From Wikipedia’s history of Sully.

Read it all →

Sully was platted in 1882. The community was incorporated in 1901. It is located on the Diamond Trail, an historic auto trail between Des Moines and Iowa City.

The Sully Telephone Association was organized in 1903 and incorporated on May 4, 1904. Locally owned by shareholder-members of its community, Sully Telephone Association serves the town of Sully, Iowa and surrounding areas.

Sully no longer has railroad service. At one time, it served as a depot point for a branch line of the Minneapolis & St. Louis Railroad.

ChaptersHistorical infrastructure

Text from Wikipedia, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0.

Timeline

Sully, 1882 to 1980

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

  1. 19th century
  2. 1882
    FoundingSully is established
  3. 1883Post officeThe Sully post office opens
  4. 1893Born hereHenry Schultze is born here
  5. 20th century
  6. 1980On the mapFirst mapped by the U.S. Geological Survey
By decade

Sully, decade by decade

Today4 recent
SullyIAWineGarden2025SullyIAWineGardenSullyIAReformedChurch2025SullyIAReformedChurchSullyIACommunityCenter2025SullyIACommunityCenterJasperCoIAFreedomRock2025JasperCoIAFreedomRock
On the map

Sully on the map in 1980

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

Sully on the 1980 USGS map1980Sully 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 Sully.

People over time

Sully, census by census

02004006008001,000192019401960198020002020Peak: 904

Between 282 and 904 people in every census since 1910.

12 censuses, 1910–2020.

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

Places that used to be

Places now gone

Sully’s post office has been open since 1883.

Gone or out of use
Sullylocale

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

Questions about Sully’s history

What year was Sully founded?

In 1882, according to Wikidata and Wikipedia’s history of the town. Sully’s post office opened in 1883, and the census of 1910 counted 282 people here.

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 (4), 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) 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.