History · Clinton

Clinton’s post office opened in 1823, and 46% of its homes were built before 1940

More historic than 96% of U.S. towns · #54 of 593 in Indiana. What drives it

2 places in town are on the National Register, among them a historic district with 46 buildings. Below: 29 old photos and papers, maps from 1886 on, and the census since 1850.

1823first post office

2on the National Register

46%homes built before 1940

29old photos & papers

8famous people

Add an old photo Share a memory

From Clinton’s archive · credits on each photo

Quick answers

How Clinton began

When was Clinton founded?

1823

The Clinton post office opened in 1823, the earliest record of the town by name. Wikidata gives 1829.

First census: 321 in 18502020 census: 4,831203 years

How historic is Clinton?

A⁺

More historic than 96% of U.S. towns, on its age, its old homes and the National Register.

What drives the grade ↓

Founding year: the first Clinton post office (Blevins & Helbock, CC0). Wikidata: 1829.The full story ↓

History grade

What drives Clinton’s History grade

On its age, its old homes and the National Register, Clinton is more historic than 96% of U.S. towns, #54 of 593 in Indiana. All 3 inputs are above most U.S. towns; its share of homes from before 1940 ranks highest and its age lowest.

A⁺

HistoryA character grade: shown, never part of Clinton’s overall grade.

Founding era1823, from the first post office: founded 1776–1849, an older era than 75% of U.S. townsA⁻Homes built before 194045.9% of homes (±7.9) · typical IN town 14.4% · U.S. 8.4%A⁺National Register2 listings, 47 historic buildings, 98.0 per 10,000 residents · typical IN town 7.9 · U.S. 2.4A⁻

All U.S. towns we grade (21,289)Ahead of 96%

NewerOlder

Indiana towns of 2,500+ (593)Ahead of 91%

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 Clinton’s 98.0 sits above most of its state (81% of Indiana towns have fewer) while its 47 historic buildings outnumber those of 84% of U.S. towns.

How sure. Graded on any two of the three inputs instead, the letter would range from A to A+. The pre-1940 share is a Census survey estimate (±7.9 points). The founding year is the first post office, not a stated founding date; Wikidata’s 1829 falls in the same era, so the grade doesn’t depend on which one is used.

Founding year: the first post office (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 Clinton’s past

Read from the archive, the National Register and the record. The page puts what stands out first.

A town in old photos29 old photos, postcards and papers, 1908–1940.Mapped building by building7 fire insurance maps, 1886 to 1921, drew every building in Clinton.A historic districtThe Clinton Downtown Historic District takes in 46 historic buildings.Boom and bustPeaked at 10,962 in 1920; 4,831 people lived here in 2020.

★ What stands out · By decade

Clinton, decade by decade

4 decades in the archive, from the 1900s to the 1940s. Scroll each row; tap a photo for its story.

1910s–1940s6 items

1913Clinton Paving and Building Brick Company

1921Alida in Clinton Township, LaPorte County, Indiana

1921Haskells in Clinton Township, LaPorte County, Indiana

1940Bowling. Clinton, Indiana

1940Diner. Clinton, Indiana

1940Girl bowling. Clinton, Indiana

1950s–1990snothing yet

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.

Add from your album

Every building

Clinton, building by building, 1886–1921

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.

Clinton fire insurance map, 1886, sheet 1

1886Sheet 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.

On the National Register

2 listings protect 47 historic buildings

The country’s official list of buildings and places worth saving.

places listed

National Historic Landmarks

none yet

historic buildings protected

each building in a district counts

first listed

1997

Hill Crest Community Center

BuildingsDistricts

Architectural styles listings

Queen Anne1

Prairie School1

Colonial Revival1

Italianate1

Renaissance1

Bungalow/Craftsman1

Hill Crest Community CenterQueen Anne · Built 1911

Clinton Downtown Historic DistrictItalianate

National Park Service, National Register of Historic Places. Photos from Wikimedia Commons, credited on each place’s page.

The story

How Clinton came to be

From Wikipedia’s history of Clinton.

Read it all →

The city was established in 1829 and is named for DeWitt Clinton, governor of New York from 1817 to 1823. Many of Clinton's original settlers were immigrants working in coal mines, many from Italy. According to Vermillion County naturalization records, "...from 1856 to 1952... Vermillion County received almost 3,550 new citizens of foreign birth, the largest number coming during the first twelve years of [the 20th] century. Italians accounted for one-third, or 1,178, of the total number who filed Declarations, with Austrians the next largest group (675) and then Scots. At least 77 percent of the Italians were from the northern regions of Italy." This was in contrast to the majority of Italian immigrants to America during this same time period that hailed from southern Italy. Over time, the coal mining industry in Clinton ended but many of the Italian settlers stayed at Clinton.

Text from Wikipedia, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0.

From the old history books

What they wrote about Clinton, 1880–1883

Passages that mention Clinton, cut from the printed page as they were published.

This town lies on Lake Champlain, in the northeast section of Clinton County, and is bounded on the north by the town of Champlain, in the same county, on the south by the town of Beekmantown, also in Clinton County, on the east by Lake Champlain, and on the west by the town of Altona, Clinton Coun… — **History of Clinton and Franklin Counties, New York**1880 · page 276Read the page →
Read the text
This town lies on Lake Champlain, in the northeast section of Clinton County, and is bounded on the north by the town of Champlain, in the same county, on the south by the town of Beekmantown, also in Clinton County, on the east by Lake Champlain, and on the west by the town of Altona, Clinton County. It comprehends an area of 52 square miles, and the population, as given in the census of 1875, is 3068. A United States lighthouse stands on
Text read by machine from the scan; it may contain errors.

The parish includes stations at Ellenburgh, Forest (in Altona), and at Clinton Mills. At the former point is a neat house of worship belonging to the denomination. The number of families in the parish is estimated at 300 at Clinton, 400 at Ellenburgh, and 12 at Forest. At Churubusco a fine brick pa… — **History of Clinton and Franklin Counties, New York**1880 · page 302Read the page →
Read the text
The parish includes stations at Ellenburgh, Forest (in Altona), and at Clinton Mills. At the former point is a neat house of worship belonging to the denomination. The number of families in the parish is estimated at 300 at Clinton, 400 at Ellenburgh, and 12 at Forest. At Churubusco a fine brick parsonage was erected in 1878, and a barn in 1879. The cemetery belonging to the denomination at Churubusco was laid out soon after the organization
Text read by machine from the scan; it may contain errors.

valleys. This was the era of borough, county, and township subscriptions, and the year in which that form of improvement mania reached its crisis in time to save the counties of Clinton, Centre, and Blair from a heavy railroad subscription debt. The demands for this method of transportation being s… — **History of Centre and Clinton Counties, Pennsylvania**1883 · page 169Read the page →
Read the text
valleys. This was the era of borough, county, and township subscriptions, and the year in which that form of improvement mania reached its crisis in time to save the counties of Clinton, Centre, and Blair from a heavy railroad subscription debt. The demands for this method of transportation being such that they could no longer be baffled, and the charter of 1853 not being elastic enough, the passage of the
Text read by machine from the scan; it may contain errors.

Scans and text from the Internet Archive. Books published in 1930 or earlier, which are in the public domain.

Timeline

Clinton, 1823 to 1952

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

19th century
1823Post officeThe Clinton post office opens
20th century
1908In the archiveClinton "Happyland" Pool
1911BuiltHill Crest Community Center is built
1913In the archiveClinton Paving and Building Brick Company
1917Born hereArmando Frigo is born here
1919Born hereBobby Sturgeon is born here
1920CensusPopulation peaks at 10,962
1921In the archiveAlida in Clinton Township, LaPorte County, Indiana
1940In the archiveBowling. Clinton, Indiana
1949Born hereClarine Nardi Riddle is born here
1951On the mapFirst mapped by the U.S. Geological Survey
1952Born hereCharles Edward Jones is born here

On the map

Clinton on the map, 1951 to 1986

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

1951Clinton 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 Clinton.

Then & now

Stand where they stood

No then-and-now pairs yet. Take a photo from the same spot as an old one and they appear here side by side.

Retake this viewClinton "Happyland" Pool, 1908

Find the spot, match the angle, and add your photo. It becomes the first then-and-now pair on Clinton’s page.

Retake this view · +15

People over time

Clinton, census by census

Peaked at 10,962 in 1920; 4,831 people lived here in 2020.

18 censuses, 1850–2020.

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

Famous people

8 famous people were born in Clinton

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

See all →

Charles Edward JonesAmerican astronaut · b. 1952

Armando FrigoAmerican soccer player · b. 1917

Bobby SturgeonMajor League Baseball player · b. 1919

Clarine Nardi RiddleAmerican lawyer · b. 1949

Jill Marie LandisAmerican writer · b. 1948

Bill JonesAmerican football player and coach · b. 1914

Help out

Finish Clinton’s story

Most archives stop around 1920. The photos from after that are in family albums, not libraries.

Decades since 1900 with photos

00s10s20s30s40s50s60s70s80s90s

4 of 10 decades. The empty ones are waiting for someone’s album.

Retake an old viewClinton "Happyland" Pool: stand where they stood+15 Share a family photoSign in to add one+10

Stories next door

History across the town line

Each neighbor’s History grade, on the same three inputs.

Florida Township4 historic placesA Clinton Township2 historic placesA Fairview ParkIts storyB⁻

Questions about Clinton’s history

What year was Clinton founded?

The Clinton post office opened in 1823, the earliest record of the town by name (U.S. post office records). Wikidata gives 1829.

How does Clinton rank for history?

Clinton is more historic than 96% of U.S. towns, #54 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 Clinton?

Two places: the Hill Crest Community Center (listed 1997) and the Clinton Downtown Historic District (2000).

How old are the homes in Clinton?

46% of Clinton’s homes were built before 1940 (Census estimate, ±7.9 points), against a typical 14% for an Indiana town; the median home was built in 1943.

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).

From Wikimedia Commons (26), the Library of Congress (3), Wikidata (1), the National Register of Historic Places (2), 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, Sanborn fire insurance maps (Library of Congress) and old county and town histories (Internet Archive). Archive images are copied here with their credits and licenses, shown on each photo’s page. Refreshed monthly.

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