Huntingburg dates to 1837, and 13% of its homes were built before 1940
More historic than 83% of U.S. towns · #203 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: 1 old photo or paper, maps from 1890 on, and the census since 1880.
Founding year: Wikidata; Wikipedia’s history section gives the same year. First post office: 1842.The full story ↓
History grade
What drives Huntingburg’s History grade
On its age, its old homes and the National Register, Huntingburg is more historic than 83% of U.S. towns, #203 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 Huntingburg’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 Huntingburg’s 73.5 sits above most of its state (79% 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 B+ to A. The pre-1940 share is a Census survey estimate (±5.6 points). Two sources give 1837.
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 Huntingburg’s past
Read from the archive, the National Register and the record. The page puts what stands out first.
National Park Service, National Register of Historic Places. Photos from Wikimedia Commons, credited on each place’s page.
Every building
Huntingburg, building by building, 1890–1921
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.
Huntingburg was platted in 1837 by Colonel Jacob Geiger who purchased 1,920 acres (7.8 km2) of land and became one of the city's first permanent settlers. It was likely so named because the site had been a popular hunting ground. Huntingburg was incorporated as a town in 1866.
The Huntingburg Commercial Historic District and Huntingburg Town Hall and Fire Engine House are listed on the National Register of Historic Places.
The Huntingburg post office has been in operation since 1842.
As part of Dubois County, Huntingburg re-entered the Eastern Time Zone on November 4, 2007, after 15 months on the Central Time Zone.
Passages that mention Huntingburg, cut from the printed page as they were published.
History and art souvenir of Dubois County1896Read the page →
Read the text
Maryland. Founded the city of Huntingburg in the year 1837, where he died, January 2, 18o7. His remains are at rest in Fairmount Cemetery, southwest of Huntingburg.
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
Huntingburg, 1837 to 1981
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.
Huntingburg’s post office has been open since 1842.
Gone or out of use
Huntingburg Pitmine
1cemetery inside Huntingburg
Fairmount
US Post Offices dataset (Blevins & Helbock, CC0). Places and cemeteries from the USGS Geographic Names Information System (2021).
Questions about Huntingburg’s history
What year was Huntingburg founded?
In 1837, according to Wikidata and Wikipedia’s history of the town. Huntingburg’s post office opened in 1842, and the census of 1880 counted 781 people here.
How does Huntingburg rank for history?
Huntingburg is more historic than 83% of U.S. towns, #203 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 Huntingburg?
Two places: the Huntingburg Town Hall and Fire Engine House (listed 1975) and the Huntingburg Commercial Historic District (2006).
How old are the homes in Huntingburg?
13% of Huntingburg’s homes were built before 1940 (Census estimate, ±5.6 points), against a typical 14% for an Indiana town; the median home was built in 1972.
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 (18), 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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