Each edition grades its towns against each other only.
1 place in town is on the National Register, among them a historic district with 33 buildings. Below: maps from 1895 on and the census since 1880.
The Cromwell post office opened in 1851, the earliest record of the town by name.
Read from the archive, the National Register and the record. The page puts what stands out first.
The first neighbors to add old photos shape how Cromwell’s history is told.
From Wikipedia’s history of Cromwell.
Cromwell was platted in 1853, and so named for the fact its founder was an admirer of English politician Oliver Cromwell. A post office has been in operation at Cromwell since 1851. Cromwell was incorporated as a town in 1906.
The Cromwell Historic District was listed on the National Register of Historic Places in 2015.
Text from Wikipedia, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0.
The country’s official list of buildings and places worth saving.
National Park Service, National Register of Historic Places. Photos from Wikimedia Commons, credited on each place’s page.
Passages that mention Cromwell, cut from the printed page as they were published.
to publication. " Sir Anthony Ashley Cooper, who was first for the King, then for the Parliament, then in Cromwell's first assembly for the Reformation, and afterwards for Cromwell against the Reformation ; now being denied Cromwell's daughter, Mary, in marriage, he appears against Cromwell's design in the last assembly, and is therefore dismissed the Council, Cromwell being resolved to act there as the chief juggler himself." Oldmixon and
Text read by machine from the scan; it may contain errors.
to publication. " Sir Anthony Ashley Cooper, who was first for the King, then for the Parliament, then in Cromwell's first assembly for the Reformation, and afterwards for Cromwell against the Reformation ; now being denied Cromwell's daughter, Mary, in marriage, he appears against Cromwell's design in the last assembly, and is therefore dismissed the Council, Cromwell being resolved to act there as the chief juggler himself." Oldmixon and
Text read by machine from the scan; it may contain errors.
mile south of Albion, a sawmill, adding wool-carding machinery, which he operated until 1853. In the latter year. 1853. he founded the town of Cromwell, in Sparta township — laying out an ample plat, which he lived to see occupied by a thriving town.
Text read by machine from the scan; it may contain errors.
Moreover, the Rev. Mark Noble, in his " Memoirs of the House of Cromwell," published in 1787 (vol. i., p. 81), expressed an opinion that from Francis, the brother of " the Golden Knight," a family descended, who bore the name of Cromwell, alias Williams, and possessed property both in Huntingdonshire and Glamorganshire. Noble expresses himself very positively, saying, " It appears to me almost certain to a demonstration that these are 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.
Woven from the archive, old maps, post office records, the National Register and the people born here.
Born hereHarl Maggert is born here
On the mapFirst mapped by the U.S. Geological SurveyEvery edition of the U.S. Geological Survey’s map of Cromwell. Tap a year, or press play to watch the town change.
U.S. Geological Survey historical topographic maps (public domain), via Esri’s collection of the scans. The red ring marks the center of Cromwell.
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.
1895Sheet 1 of 1Sanborn Map Company, via the Library of Congress. Editions published in 1930 or earlier, which are in the public domain.
Between 350 and 520 people in every census since 1880.
13 censuses, 1880–2020.
U.S. Census Bureau decennial counts, from the census table on Cromwell’s Wikipedia page.
The Cromwell post office opened in 1851, the earliest record of the town by name (U.S. post office records).
One place: the Cromwell Historic District (listed 2015).
What the archives can’t tell you, neighbors can.
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 (2), the National Register of Historic Places (1), 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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