Bluffton dates to 1838, and 27% of its homes were built before 1940
More historic than 93% of U.S. towns · #118 of 593 in Indiana. What drives it
4 places in town are on the National Register, among them two historic districts with 83 buildings between them. Below: 4 old photos and papers, maps from 1885 on, and the census since 1850.
Founding year: Wikidata; Wikipedia’s history section gives the same year. First post office: 1839.The full story ↓
History grade
What drives Bluffton’s History grade
On its age, its old homes and the National Register, Bluffton is more historic than 93% of U.S. towns, #118 of 593 in Indiana. All 3 inputs are above most U.S. towns; its National Register listings ranks highest and its age lowest.
A
HistoryA character grade: shown, never part of Bluffton’s overall grade.
Indiana towns list more on the Register than most of the country (a typical Indiana town has 7.9 per 10,000 residents, the U.S. 2.4), so Bluffton’s 81.7 sits above most of its state (80% of Indiana towns have fewer) while its 86 historic buildings outnumber those of 88% of U.S. towns.
How sure. Graded on any two of the three inputs instead, the letter would still be A. The pre-1940 share is a Census survey estimate (±4.0 points). Two sources give 1838.
Founding year: Wikidata (other dates in Quick answers). Homes: Census ACS 2020–24. National Register: National Park Service, May 2026 list; each listing counted once (boundary changes and added documentation belong to their listing), and a historic district counts its contributing buildings. How TownRatings grades history →
What stands out about Bluffton’s past
Read from the archive, the National Register and the record. The page puts what stands out first.
National Park Service, National Register of Historic Places. Photos from Wikimedia Commons, credited on each place’s page.
Every building
Bluffton, building by building, 1885–1919
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.
The first non-Native American settlers arrived in what is now Bluffton in 1835. They arrived as a result of the end of the Black Hawk War as well as the completion of the Erie Canal. They consisted entirely of settlers from New England. These were "Yankee" settlers, that is to say they were descended from the English Puritans who settled New England in the colonial era. They were primarily members of the Congregational Church though due to the Second Great Awakening many of them had converted to Methodism and some had become Baptists before coming to what is now Bluffton. The Congregational Church subsequently has gone through many divisions and some factions are now known as the Church of Christ and Church of God. When the New England settlers arrived in what is now Bluffton there was nothing but a dense virgin forest and wild prairie.
Nothing in the archives for these yearsWeddings on Main Street, storms, parades, school pictures, the old store. If it’s in your family album, it belongs here.
US Post Offices dataset (Blevins & Helbock, CC0). Places and cemeteries from the USGS Geographic Names Information System (2021).
Questions about Bluffton’s history
What year was Bluffton founded?
In 1838, according to Wikidata and Wikipedia’s history of the town. Bluffton’s post office opened in 1839, and the census of 1850 counted 477 people here.
How does Bluffton rank for history?
Bluffton is more historic than 93% of U.S. towns, #118 of 593 in Indiana. The History grade combines the town’s founding era, the share of homes built before 1940 and its National Register listings. It’s a character grade, so it isn’t part of the overall grade. How it works.
What is on the National Register in Bluffton?
4 listings: 2 buildings, among them the Wells County Courthouse (listed 1979, the first), and 2 historic districts, the Villa North Historic District and the Bluffton Commercial Historic District, with 83 contributing buildings. 86 historic buildings in all.
How old are the homes in Bluffton?
27% of Bluffton’s homes were built before 1940 (Census estimate, ±4.0 points), against a typical 14% for an Indiana town; the median home was built in 1972.
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).
From Wikimedia Commons (14), the Library of Congress (2), Wikidata (2), the National Register of Historic Places (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), 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.
Date?
Date?
Date?
2023
2023
2011
2011
2011
2011
2011
2011
2011
2011
2005
2001
