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History · Fairfield

Fairfield’s post office opened in 1912, and 29% of its homes were built before 1940

Below: maps from 1915 on and the census since 1920.

1912first post office
0on the National Register
29%homes built before 1940
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Quick answers

How Fairfield began

When was Fairfield founded?

1912

The Fairfield post office opened in 1912, the earliest record of the town by name.

First census: 280 in 19202020 census: 441114 years
Founding year: the first Fairfield post office (Blevins & Helbock, CC0).

What stands out about Fairfield’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 Fairfield are in the public archives yet. The rest are in attics and albums.
★ What stands out · Help out

Start Fairfield’s collection

The first neighbors to add old photos shape how Fairfield’s history is told.

Decades since 1900 with photos
00s10s20s30s40s50s60s70s80s90s
0 of 10 decades. The empty ones are waiting for someone’s album.
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The story so far

Fairfield, in brief

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

Fairfield is the county seat of and the only incorporated city in Camas County, Idaho. The population was 441 at the time of the 2020 census, nearly half of the rural county's population.

Its first post office opened in 1912. Between the 2010 and 2020 censuses its population grew from 416 to 441 (+6%).

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

By decade

Fairfield, decade by decade

Today5 recent
Sawtooth National Forest Map2012Sawtooth National Forest MapMapSawtooth National Forest Map with roads2012Sawtooth National Forest Map with roadsMapTractors by Josh Parrish2007Tractors by Josh ParrishCaboose by Josh Parrish2007Caboose by Josh ParrishIDMap-doton-Fairfield2004IDMap-doton-Fairfield
On the map

Fairfield on the map, 1957 to 1986

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

Fairfield on the 1957 USGS mapFairfield on the 1986 USGS map1957Fairfield sheet · 1:62,500

U.S. Geological Survey historical topographic maps (public domain), via Esri’s collection of the scans. The red ring marks the center of Fairfield.

Every building

Fairfield, building by building, 1915–1920

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 year, then a sheet.

Fairfield fire insurance map, 1915, sheet 11915Sheet 1 of 1
Edition
Sheets
BrickWoodStone

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

People over time

Fairfield, census by census

0100200300400500192019401960198020002020Peak: 511

Between 280 and 511 people in every census since 1920.

11 censuses, 1920–2020.

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

Questions about Fairfield’s history

What year was Fairfield founded?

The Fairfield post office opened in 1912, 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 →
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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 (5), 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.