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–Not graded
History · Carey

Carey’s post office opened in 1884, and 16% of its homes were built before 1940

Below: maps from 1928 on and the census since 1910.

1884first post office
0on the National Register
16%homes built before 1940
2famous people
Add an old photoShare a memory
Photo: User:akampfer · CC BY-SA 3.0
Quick answers

How Carey began

When was Carey founded?

1884

The Carey post office opened in 1884, the earliest record of the town by name.

First census: 701 in 19102020 census: 685142 years
Founding year: the first Carey post office (Blevins & Helbock, CC0).The full story ↓

What stands out about Carey’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 Carey are in the public archives yet. The rest are in attics and albums.Shrank, then grewLost two-thirds of its people between 1920 and 1940, then grew 6-fold.
★ What stands out · Help out

Start Carey’s collection

The first neighbors to add old photos shape how Carey’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
People over time

Carey, census by census

0200400600800192019401960198020002020740 in 1920Low: 100

Lost two-thirds of its people between 1920 and 1940, then grew 6-fold.

12 censuses, 1910–2020.

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

The story

How Carey came to be

From Wikipedia’s history of Carey.

Read it all →

Carey was founded ca. 1884 by a colony of members of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. The community was named after James Carey, a pioneer settler.

Text from Wikipedia, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0.

Timeline

Carey, 1884 to 1979

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

  1. 19th century
  2. 1884Post officeThe Carey post office opens
  3. 20th century
  4. 1917Born herePete T. Cenarrusa is born here
  5. 1920CensusPopulation peaks at 740
  6. 1935Born hereCarolyn Meline is born here
  7. 1979On the mapFirst mapped by the U.S. Geological Survey
By decade

Carey, decade by decade

Today9 recent
US 20 west 58232024US 20 west 5823US 20 west 58212024US 20 west 5821Oasis Exxon (5-19-24) 58222024Oasis Exxon (5-19-24) 5822Little Wood River Ir Dist 58172024Little Wood River Ir Dist 5817Ireland Bank (5-19-24) 58202024Ireland Bank (5-19-24) 5820Carey City Hall (5-19-24) 58182024Carey City Hall (5-19-24) 5818NPS craters-of-the-moon-regional-map2016NPS craters-of-the-moon-regional-mapBookCarey, Idaho2013Carey, IdahoSawtooth National Forest Map with roads2012Sawtooth National Forest Map with roadsMap
On the map

Carey on the map in 1979

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

Carey on the 1979 USGS map1979Carey 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 Carey.

Every building

Carey, building by building, 1928

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 sheet.

Carey fire insurance map, 1928, sheet 11928Sheet 1 of 1
Sheets
BrickWoodStone

Sanborn Map Company, via the Library of Congress. Editions published in 1930 or earlier, which are in the public domain.

Famous people

2 famous people were born in Carey

Writers, athletes, leaders and more, ranked by how widely they’re known.

See all →
Pete T. CenarrusaAmerican politician · b. 1917
C
Carolyn MelineDemocratic representative · b. 1935

Questions about Carey’s history

What year was Carey founded?

The Carey post office opened in 1884, 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 (9), 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 and Sanborn fire insurance maps (Library of Congress). Archive images are copied here with their credits and licenses, shown on each photo’s page. Refreshed monthly.