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B+History
History · Ellettsville

Ellettsville’s post office opened in 1837, and 1 of its places is on the National Register

More historic than 70% of U.S. towns · #290 of 593 in Indiana. What drives it

Most of Ellettsville was built recently: 4% of its homes predate 1940 and the median home dates from 1993. 1 place in town is on the National Register, among them a historic district with 50 buildings. Below: maps from 1895 on and the census since 1850.

1837first post office
1on the National Register
4%homes built before 1940
Add an old photoShare a memory
Quick answers

How Ellettsville began

When was Ellettsville founded?

1837

The Ellettsville post office opened in 1837, the earliest record of the town by name.

First census: 74 in 18502020 census: 6,655189 years

How historic is Ellettsville?

B+

More historic than 70% of U.S. towns, on its age, its old homes and the National Register.

What drives the grade ↓
Founding year: the first Ellettsville post office (Blevins & Helbock, CC0).The full story ↓
History grade

What drives Ellettsville’s History grade

On its age, its old homes and the National Register, Ellettsville is more historic than 70% of U.S. towns, #290 of 593 in Indiana. Its National Register listings hold the grade up; its share of homes from before 1940 pulls it down.

B+
HistoryA character grade: shown, never part of Ellettsville’s overall grade.
Founding era1837, from the first post office: founded 1776–1849, an older era than 75% of U.S. townsA−Homes built before 19404.2% of homes (±3.4) · typical IN town 14.4% · U.S. 8.4%CNational Register1 listing, 50 historic buildings, 74.6 per 10,000 residents · typical IN town 7.9 · U.S. 2.4A−
All U.S. towns we grade (21,289)Ahead of 70%
NewerOlder
Indiana towns of 2,500+ (593)Ahead of 51%

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 Ellettsville’s 74.6 sits above most of its state (79% of Indiana towns have fewer) while its 50 historic buildings outnumber those of 85% of U.S. towns.

How sure. Graded on any two of the three inputs instead, the letter would range from B− to A. The pre-1940 share is a Census survey estimate (±3.4 points). The founding year is the first post office, not a stated founding date.

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 Ellettsville’s past

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

A history waiting to be writtenNo old photos of Ellettsville are in the public archives yet. The rest are in attics and albums.A historic districtThe Ellettsville Downtown Historic District takes in 50 historic buildings.Mapped building by building4 fire insurance maps, 1895 to 1929, drew every building in Ellettsville.Deep rootsA post office since 1837: 189 years of Ellettsville.
★ What stands out · Help out

Start Ellettsville’s collection

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

Decades since 1900 with photos
00s10s20s30s40s50s60s70s80s90s
0 of 10 decades. The empty ones are waiting for someone’s album.
Share a family photoSign in to add one+10
On the National Register

1 listing protects 50 historic buildings

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

place listed
1
National Historic Landmarks
0
none yet
historic buildings protected
50
each building in a district counts
first listed
2006
Ellettsville Downtown Historic District
Ellettsville Downtown Historic District
Districts

Architectural styles listings

Late 19th and 20th Century American Movements: Commercial Style1
Late Victorian1
Queen Anne1
Gothic1
Bungalow/Craftsman1
Ellettsville Downtown Historic DistrictLate 19th and 20th Century American Movements: Commercial Style

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

Every building

Ellettsville, building by building, 1895–1929

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.

Ellettsville fire insurance map, 1895, sheet 11895Sheet 1 of 2
Edition
BrickWoodStone

Sanborn Map Company, via the Library of Congress. Editions published in 1930 or earlier, which are in the public domain.

The story

How Ellettsville came to be

From Wikipedia’s history of Ellettsville.

Read it all →

Ellettsville was platted in 1837. In 1818, Edward Ellett Sr. and his wife Eleanor settled in what is now known as Ellettsville with their four minor sons: David, Richard, Johnston and Barton. The first winter, they lived in a three-sided log cabin they built. Also settling that year were their two eldest sons, William and Samuel, with their wives and families. Within a few years daughters Sarah, Phoebe and Nancy settled in the area with their husbands. In 1826, their third eldest son, Edward Jr., also arrived in the town that was named Ellettsville in 1837. Samuel Ellett built the first courthouse in 1820. It was completed ahead of schedule and at the cost of $400. By 1822, the first school opened and with Samuel Ellett's children attending.

Text from Wikipedia, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0.

By decade

Ellettsville, decade by decade

Today9 recent
WIC In-Depth 20192019WIC In-Depth 2019Ellettsville, Indiana2016Ellettsville, IndianaEllettsville, Indiana building2016Ellettsville, Indiana buildingDraper-McNeely House2012Draper-McNeely HouseEllettsville Presbyterian Cemetery2011Ellettsville Presbyterian CemeteryEllettsville Church of Christ2011Ellettsville Church of ChristLog Cabin Museum in2010Log Cabin Museum inEllettsville post office2010Ellettsville post officeEllettsville library2010Ellettsville library
On the map

Ellettsville on the map, 1908 to 1910

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

Ellettsville on the 1908 USGS mapEllettsville on the 1910 USGS map1908Bloomington sheet · 1:62,500

U.S. Geological Survey historical topographic maps (public domain), via Esri’s collection of the scans. The red ring marks the center of Ellettsville.

People over time

Ellettsville, census by census

05001,0001,5002,0002,5003,0003,5004,0004,5005,0005,5006,0006,5007,00018501900195020006,655

Grew from 74 people in 1850 to 6,655 in 2020, more than tenfold.

16 censuses, 1850–2020.

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

Famous people

Famous people close to Ellettsville

Nobody well known was born in Ellettsville itself, so here are the best known from just nearby.

See all →
Eugene StonerAmerican firearms designer · b. 1922
William S. SadlerPsychiatrist and author · b. 1875
E
Etilmon J. StarkAmerican composer · b. 1867
J
Jesse Ianthus AlexanderAmerican politician · b. 1824

Questions about Ellettsville’s history

What year was Ellettsville founded?

The Ellettsville post office opened in 1837, the earliest record of the town by name (U.S. post office records).

How does Ellettsville rank for history?

Ellettsville is more historic than 70% of U.S. towns, #290 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 Ellettsville?

One place: the Ellettsville Downtown Historic District (listed 2006).

How old are the homes in Ellettsville?

4% of Ellettsville’s homes were built before 1940 (Census estimate, ±3.4 points), against a typical 14% for an Indiana town; the median home was built in 1993.

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 (9), Wikidata (1), the National Register of Historic Places (1), Wikipedia, 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.