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History · Ada

Ada’s post office opened in 1872, and 73% of its homes were built before 1940

Below: maps from 1892 on.

1872first post office

0on the National Register

73%homes built before 1940

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Quick answers

How Ada began

When was Ada founded?

1872

The Ada post office opened in 1872, the earliest record of the town by name.

2020 census: 86154 years

Founding year: the first Ada post office (Blevins & Helbock, CC0).The full story ↓

What stands out about Ada’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 Ada are in the public archives yet. The rest are in attics and albums.On the map since 18923 editions of the USGS map, 1892 to 1985. Watch Ada change.Old housesHalf of Ada’s homes were built before 1938.

★ What stands out · Help out

Start Ada’s collection

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

Decades since 1900 with photos

00s10s20s30s40s50s60s70s80s90s

0 of 10 decades. The empty ones are waiting for someone’s album.

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On the map

Ada on the map, 1892 to 1985

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

1892Minneapolis sheet · 1:125,000

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

The story

How Ada came to be

From Wikipedia’s history of Ada.

Read it all →

Ottawa County was formed in 1860 and organized in 1866. A post office was opened in Ada in 1872, and remained in operation until it was discontinued in 1998.

In 1888, a rail line of the Chicago, Kansas and Western Railroad opened from Manchester, Kansas in the east to Barnard in the west, a 43 mi (69 km) line, with a depot in Ada. The Atchison, Topeka and Santa Fe Railway acquired this railroad in 1901. An application was filed in 1983 to abandon this "Minneapolis District" line.

Text from Wikipedia, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0.

By decade

No old photos in the archives yet

Weddings on Main Street, storms, parades, school pictures, the old store. If it’s in your family album, it belongs here.

Be the first to add onePhotograph a print flat, in daylight, no flash.

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Famous people

Famous people close to Ada

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

See all →

Jessa CrispinAmerican literary critic, editor of Bookslut · b. 1978

Donald K. RossUnited States Navy Medal of Honor recipient · b. 1910

Frank RichardsAmerican entertainer · b. 1887

Archie McKainAmerican baseball player · b. 1911

Elmer StricklettAmerican baseball player · b. 1876

Don G. AbelAmerican judge · b. 1894

Questions about Ada’s history

What year was Ada founded?

The Ada post office opened in 1872, 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 →

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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 Wikipedia and U.S. Geological Survey historical maps. Archive images are copied here with their credits and licenses, shown on each photo’s page. Refreshed monthly.

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