Decatur dates to 1836, and 22% of its homes were built before 1940
More historic than 88% of U.S. towns · #162 of 593 in Indiana. What drives it
5 places in town are on the National Register, among them a historic district with 38 buildings. Below: 1 old photo or paper, maps from 1885 on, and the census since 1850.
Founding year: Wikidata; Wikipedia’s history section gives the same year. First post office: 1837.The full story ↓
History grade
What drives Decatur’s History grade
On its age, its old homes and the National Register, Decatur is more historic than 88% of U.S. towns, #162 of 593 in Indiana. All 3 inputs are above most U.S. towns; its National Register listings ranks highest and its share of homes from before 1940 lowest.
A
HistoryA character grade: shown, never part of Decatur’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 Decatur’s 43.8 sits above most of its state (73% of Indiana towns have fewer) while its 43 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 (±4.6 points). Two sources give 1836.
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 Decatur’s past
Read from the archive, the National Register and the record. The page puts what stands out first.
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 Decatur 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 Decatur. 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 Decatur there was nothing but a dense virgin forest and wild prairie.
"How truss" bridge across the Wabash at Ceylon. In 1873 he platted and laid out the town of Ceylon and erected the first steam grist mill in the county south of Decatur. In all of his enterprises he entered with the same energy and perseverance that marks effort with success.
Text read by machine from the scan; it may contain errors.
near the center of section 2, known as the Rawley school house. This township got a plastered school house in 1856, the first perhaps in the county outside of Decatur. This was the Fords school house, in section 35. In 1S52 Wabash township .had its first steam saw mill, located at Alexander, and there were nine frame school houses built in this
Text read by machine from the scan; it may contain errors.
History of Decatur County, Iowa, and its people1915 · page 16Read the page →
Read the text
He assisted his father until he was sixteen years of age and then began working out as a hired hand, so continuing for nine years, after which he came to Decatur county, Iowa, and located in Eden township, where from 1890 to 1900 he was engaged in railroad construction work, furnishing repair supplies for the Des Moines, Kansas City and the Chicago, Burlington & Quincy Railways on their lines through Decatur county. From 1896 to 1900 Mr. Shira also devoted some time to agricultural pursuits. In 1900 he was elected
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
Decatur, 1836 to 1969
Woven from the archive, old maps, post office records, the National Register and the people born here.
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.
In 1836, according to Wikidata and Wikipedia’s history of the town. Decatur’s post office opened in 1837, and the census of 1850 counted 231 people here.
How does Decatur rank for history?
Decatur is more historic than 88% of U.S. towns, #162 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 Decatur?
5 listings: 4 buildings, among them the Bowers, John S. House (listed 1982, the first), and 1 historic district, the Decatur Homesteads, with 38 contributing buildings. 43 historic buildings in all.
How old are the homes in Decatur?
22% of Decatur’s homes were built before 1940 (Census estimate, ±4.6 points), against a typical 14% for an Indiana town; the median home was built in 1969.
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 (5), Wikidata (1), the National Register of Historic Places (5), 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.
2022
2022
2012
2008
