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History · Marengo

Marengo’s post office opened in 1852, and 13% of its homes were built before 1940

Below: maps from 1948 on and the census since 1890.

1852first post office
0on the National Register
13%homes built before 1940
2famous people
Add an old photoShare a memory
Photo: Chris Flook · CC BY-SA 4.0
Quick answers

How Marengo began

When was Marengo founded?

1852

The Marengo post office opened in 1852, the earliest record of the town by name.

First census: 669 in 18902020 census: 829174 years
Founding year: the first Marengo post office (Blevins & Helbock, CC0).The full story ↓

What stands out about Marengo’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 Marengo are in the public archives yet. The rest are in attics and albums.
★ What stands out · Help out

Start Marengo’s collection

The first neighbors to add old photos shape how Marengo’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
The story

How Marengo came to be

From Wikipedia’s history of Marengo.

Read it all →

Marengo was originally called Big Springs, and under the latter name was platted in 1839.

Marengo was devastated by an F3 tornado in 2004, resulting in damage to nearly 75 percent of the town and the death of one resident.

Marengo High School was located in Marengo until the consolidation of the schools into Crawford County High School.

Text from Wikipedia, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0.

Timeline

Marengo, 1852 to 1948

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

  1. 19th century
  2. 1852Post officeThe Marengo post office opens
  3. 20th century
  4. 1908Born hereWilliam E. Jenner is born here
  5. 1924Born hereFrank Whitman is born here
  6. 1948On the mapFirst mapped by the U.S. Geological Survey
By decade

Marengo, decade by decade

Today2 recent
Marengo, Indiana2016Marengo, IndianaMarengo Academy site2013Marengo Academy site
On the map

Marengo on the map, 1948 to 1980

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

Marengo on the 1948 USGS mapMarengo on the 1962 USGS mapMarengo on the 1980 USGS map1948Milltown 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 Marengo.

People over time

Marengo, census by census

02004006008001900192019401960198020002020Peak: 892

Between 669 and 892 people in every census since 1890.

14 censuses, 1890–2020.

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

Famous people

2 famous people were born in Marengo

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

See all →
William E. JennerAmerican politician · b. 1908
F
Frank WhitmanAmerican baseball player · b. 1924
Places that used to be

Old burying grounds

Marengo’s post office has been open since 1852.

3cemeteries and burying grounds inside Marengo
MarengoMarengoMarengo Cemetery Old Section

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

Questions about Marengo’s history

What year was Marengo founded?

The Marengo post office opened in 1852, 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 (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) 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.