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History · Dunreith

Dunreith’s post office opened in 1867, and 26% of its homes were built before 1940

Below: 3 old photos and papers, maps from 1950 on, and the census since 1880.

1867first post office
0on the National Register
26%homes built before 1940
3old photos & papers
2famous people
Add an old photoShare a memory
From Dunreith’s archive · credits on each photo
Quick answers

How Dunreith began

When was Dunreith founded?

1867

The Dunreith post office opened in 1867, the earliest record of the town by name. Another post office, Coffin's Station (1861), opened inside today’s town and later closed.

First census: 149 in 18802020 census: 171159 years
Founding year: the first Dunreith post office (Blevins & Helbock, CC0).The full story ↓

What stands out about Dunreith’s past

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

A history waiting to be writtenOnly 3 old photos are in the public archives. The rest are in attics and albums.Boom and bustPeaked at 236 in 1960; 171 people lived here in 2020.Old housesHalf of Dunreith’s homes were built before 1960.
★ What stands out · Help out

Start Dunreith’s collection

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

Decades since 1900 with photos
00s10s20s30s40s50s60s70s80s90s
0 of 10 decades. The empty ones are waiting for someone’s album.
Date a photo3 archive items have no date. Guess the decade.+2Retake an old viewDunreith-indiana-from-above: stand where they stood+15Share a family photoSign in to add one+10
People over time

Dunreith, census by census

010020018801900192019401960198020002020Peak: 236

Peaked at 236 in 1960; 171 people lived here in 2020.

15 censuses, 1880–2020.

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

The story

How Dunreith came to be

From Wikipedia’s history of Dunreith.

Read it all →

Dunreith was originally called Coffin's Station, and under the latter name was platted in 1865 by Emery Dunreith Coffin.

In 1968, 250 residents of Dunreith had to be evacuated for 48 hours after two freight trains sideswiped, releasing flammable and poisonous liquids that resulted in a major fire and a huge explosion. The fire destroyed a cannery and seven houses; cyanide pollution of the water persisted for several months.

Chapters1968 blaze

Text from Wikipedia, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0.

Timeline

Dunreith, 1861 to 1960

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

  1. 19th century
  2. 1861Post officeThe Coffin's Station post office opens
  3. 1867Post officeThe Coffin's Station post office closes
  4. 1867Post officeThe Dunreith post office opens
  5. 20th century
  6. 1909Born hereArthur C. Cope is born here
  7. 1935Born hereGretchen Cryer is born here
  8. 1950On the mapFirst mapped by the U.S. Geological Survey
  9. 1960CensusPopulation peaks at 236
By decade

Dunreith, decade by decade

Date unknown3 to date
Dunreith-indiana-from-aboveDate?Dunreith-indiana-from-aboveOld Christian Church, DunriethDate?Old Christian Church, DunriethOld Christian Church, DunriethDate?Old Christian Church, Dunrieth
On the map

Dunreith on the map, 1950 to 1981

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

Dunreith on the 1950 USGS mapDunreith on the 1970 USGS mapDunreith on the 1981 USGS map1950Dunreith 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 Dunreith.

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.

Dunreith-indiana-from-above
Retake this viewDunreith-indiana-from-above

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

Retake this view · +15
Famous people

2 famous people were born in Dunreith

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

See all →
A
Arthur C. CopeAmerican chemist · b. 1909
Gretchen CryerAmerican playwright · b. 1935
Places that used to be

Lost post offices

Dunreith’s post office has been open since 1867. Another post office, Coffin's Station, opened and closed inside today’s town.

Coffin's Station
1861–1867
Dunreith
1867–today
18601940today

US Post Offices dataset (Blevins & Helbock, CC0). Places and cemeteries from the USGS Geographic Names Information System (2021).

Questions about Dunreith’s history

What year was Dunreith founded?

The Dunreith post office opened in 1867, 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 →
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). How TownRatings grades history →

From Wikimedia Commons (3), 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) and the USGS Geographic Names Information System. Archive images are copied here with their credits and licenses, shown on each photo’s page. Refreshed monthly.