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History · Medora

Medora dates to 1853, and 48% of its homes were built before 1940

Below: 2 old photos and papers, maps from 1895 on, and the census since 1920.

1853founded
0on the National Register
48%homes built before 1940
2old photos & papers
1famous people
Add an old photoShare a memory
From Medora’s archive · credits on each photo
Quick answers

How Medora began

When was Medora founded?

1853

Medora dates its founding to 1853 (Wikipedia’s history). The census first counted it in 1920.

First census: 659 in 19202020 census: 635173 years
Founding year: Wikipedia. First post office: 1856.The full story ↓

What stands out about Medora’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 2 old photos are in the public archives. The rest are in attics and albums.Boom and bustPeaked at 853 in 1980; 635 people lived here in 2020.Mapped building by building3 fire insurance maps, 1895 to 1910, drew every building in Medora.Old housesHalf of Medora’s homes were built before 1951.
★ What stands out · Help out

Start Medora’s collection

The first neighbors to add old photos shape how Medora’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 photo2 archive items have no date. Guess the decade.+2Retake an old viewMedora Bridge, Spanning East Fork of Wh…: stand where they stood+15Share a family photoSign in to add one+10
People over time

Medora, census by census

0200400600800192019401960198020002020Peak: 853

Peaked at 853 in 1980; 635 people lived here in 2020.

11 censuses, 1920–2020.

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

Every building

Medora, building by building, 1895–1910

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.

Medora fire insurance map, 1895, sheet 11895Sheet 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.

The story

How Medora came to be

From Wikipedia’s history of Medora.

Read it all →

Medora was laid out in 1853 by West Lee Wright in the southeast corner of a square mile of land which he owned. Wright named the town Medora (pronounced Me Doe Rae) for the musical notes & dubbed it "The Town of Harmony", though it is commonly mispronounced in the most unharmonious way today. It consisted of 10 blocks and 209 lots.

Medora is the setting of John Mellencamp's "Hurts So Good" music video.

Text from Wikipedia, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0.

Timeline

Medora, 1853 to 1980

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

  1. 19th century
  2. 1853
    FoundingMedora is established
  3. 1856Post officeThe Medora post office opens
  4. 20th century
  5. 1933Born hereCal Collins is born here
  6. 1959On the mapFirst mapped by the U.S. Geological Survey
  7. 1980CensusPopulation peaks at 853
By decade

Medora, decade by decade

Date unknown2 to date
Medora Bridge, Spanning East Fork of White River at State Route 235Date?Medora Bridge, Spanning East Fork of White River at S…George Hall Barn, Rural Route 1Date?George Hall Barn, Rural Route 1
Today1 recent
Medora, Indiana2016Medora, Indiana
On the map

Medora on the map, 1959 to 1988

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

Medora on the 1959 USGS mapMedora on the 1988 USGS map1959Medora 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 Medora.

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.

Medora Bridge, Spanning East Fork of White River at State Route 235
Retake this viewMedora Bridge, Spanning East Fork of White River at State Route 235

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

Retake this view · +15

Questions about Medora’s history

What year was Medora founded?

In 1853, according to Wikipedia’s history of the town. Medora’s post office opened in 1856, and the census of 1920 counted 659 people here.

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 (1), the Library of Congress (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 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.