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B+History
History · Kentland

Kentland dates to 1860, and 36% of its homes were built before 1940

More historic than 68% of U.S. towns. What drives it

Its Register listing is the Newton County Courthouse. Below: 5 old photos and papers, maps from 1886 on, and the census since 1870.

1860founded
1on the National Register
36%homes built before 1940
5old photos & papers
3famous people
Add an old photoShare a memory
From Kentland’s archive · credits on each photo
Quick answers

How Kentland began

When was Kentland founded?

1860

Kentland dates its founding to 1860 (Wikidata and Wikipedia’s history agree). The census first counted it in 1870.

First census: 802 in 18702020 census: 1,641166 years

How historic is Kentland?

B+

More historic than 68% of U.S. towns, on its age, its old homes and the National Register.

What drives the grade ↓
Founding year: Wikidata; Wikipedia’s history section gives the same year. First post office: 1860.The full story ↓
History grade

What drives Kentland’s History grade

On its age, its old homes and the National Register, Kentland is more historic than 68% of U.S. towns. Its share of homes from before 1940 holds the grade up; its age pulls it down.

B+
HistoryA character grade: shown, never part of Kentland’s overall grade.
Founding era1860, from Wikidata: founded 1850–1899, an older era than 37% of U.S. townsC+Homes built before 194035.9% of homes (±8.2) · typical IN town 14.4% · U.S. 8.4%ANational Register1 listing, 5.5 per 10,000 residents · typical IN town 7.9 · U.S. 2.4B−
All U.S. towns we grade (21,289)Ahead of 68%
NewerOlder

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 Kentland’s 5.5 sits near the middle of its state (55% of Indiana towns have fewer) while its 1 listings outnumber those of 51% of U.S. towns.

How sure. Graded on any two of the three inputs instead, the letter would range from C to A−. The pre-1940 share is a Census survey estimate (±8.2 points). Two sources give 1860.

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 Kentland’s past

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

Mapped building by building6 fire insurance maps, 1886 to 1921, drew every building in Kentland.Lost villages2 post offices opened and closed inside today’s Kentland.Old housesHalf of Kentland’s homes were built before 1947.
★ What stands out · Every building

Kentland, building by building, 1886–1921

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.

Kentland fire insurance map, 1886, sheet 11886Sheet 1 of 1
Edition
Sheets
BrickWoodStone

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

Places that used to be

Lost post offices

Kentland’s post office has been open since 1868. Two other post offices opened and closed inside today’s town.

Kent
1860–1860
Kent Station
1860–1864
Kentland
1868–today
18601940today

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

The story

How Kentland came to be

From Wikipedia’s history of Kentland.

Read it all →

The town was founded in 1860 as "Kent", though this name was soon lengthened to Kentland. The name honors Alexander J. Kent, who acquired the then marshy plat and prepared it for development. The town is the county seat of Newton County.

Kentland is the birthplace of famous turn-of-the-century humorist George Ade, author of such plays as The College Widow, Artie, and The Sultan of Sulu. Purdue University's Ross–Ade Stadium, home of the Boilermakers football team, is named for him and fellow Purdue benefactor David Ross. Disgraced Indiana governor Warren McCray, convicted of mail fraud and forced to resign in 1924, also hailed from Kentland.

The Newton County Courthouse was listed on the National Register of Historic Places in 2008.

Text from Wikipedia, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0.

Timeline

Kentland, 1860 to 1966

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

  1. 19th century
  2. 1860
    FoundingKentland is established
  3. 1860Post officeThe Kent post office opens
  4. 1860Post officeThe Kent post office closes
  5. 1860Post officeThe Kent Station post office opens
  6. 1864Post officeThe Kent Station post office closes
  7. 1866Born hereGeorge Ade is born here
  8. 1868Post officeThe Kentland post office opens
  9. 20th century
  10. 1912Born hereAlice Chancellor is born here
  11. 1937In the archiveSign
  12. 1961On the mapFirst mapped by the U.S. Geological Survey
  13. 1966Born hereTracy Smith is born here
By decade

Kentland, decade by decade

One decade in the archive so far: the 1930s. Scroll each row; tap a photo for its story.

1930s5 items
Sign1937SignSigns1937SignsUntitled photo, possibly related to: Sign1937Untitled photo, possibly related to: SignUntitled photo, possibly related to: Signs1937Untitled photo, possibly related to: SignsUntitled photo, possibly related to: Signs1937Untitled photo, possibly related to: Signs
1940s–1990snothing yet
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.
Add from your album
Today7 recent
Lustron house in2012Lustron house inKentland post office 479512012Kentland post office 47951Kentland Bank2012Kentland BankDntwn P51601202011Dntwn P5160120Wm Todd2009Wm ToddWestside of courthouse square2009Westside of courthouse squareKentland Indiana Tracks through town2007Kentland Indiana Tracks through town
On the map

Kentland on the map, 1961 to 1990

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

Kentland on the 1961 USGS mapKentland on the 1980 USGS mapKentland on the 1990 USGS map1961Kentland 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 Kentland.

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.

Sign
Retake this viewSign, 1937

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

Retake this view · +15
On the National Register

1 historic place in Kentland

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

place listed
1
National Historic Landmarks
0
none yet
historic buildings protected
1
each building in a district counts
first listed
2008
Newton County Courthouse
Newton County Courthouse
Buildings

Architectural styles listings

Italian Renaissance1
Newton County CourthouseItalian Renaissance

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

People over time

Kentland, census by census

05001,0001,5002,00018801900192019401960198020002020Peak: 1,936

Between 802 and 1,936 people in every census since 1870.

16 censuses, 1870–2020.

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

Famous people

3 famous people were born in Kentland

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

See all →
George AdeAmerican writer, newspaper columnist and playwr… · b. 1866
Alice ChancellorAmerican engineer · b. 1912
Tracy SmithBaseball coach · b. 1966
Help out

Finish Kentland’s story

Most archives stop around 1920. The photos from after that are in family albums, not libraries.

Decades since 1900 with photos
00s10s20s30s40s50s60s70s80s90s
1 of 10 decades. The empty ones are waiting for someone’s album.
Retake an old viewSign: stand where they stood+15Share a family photoSign in to add one+10

Questions about Kentland’s history

What year was Kentland founded?

In 1860, according to Wikidata and Wikipedia’s history of the town. Kentland’s post office opened in 1860, and the census of 1870 counted 802 people here.

How does Kentland rank for history?

Kentland is more historic than 68% of U.S. towns. 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 Kentland?

One place: the Newton County Courthouse (listed 2008).

How old are the homes in Kentland?

36% of Kentland’s homes were built before 1940 (Census estimate, ±8.2 points), against a typical 14% for an Indiana town; the median home was built in 1947.

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 (7), the Library of Congress (5), 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 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.