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History · Ashland

Ashland dates to 1884, and 43% of its homes were built before 1940

5 places in town are on the National Register. Below: maps from 1896 on and the census since 1890.

1884founded
5on the National Register
43%homes built before 1940
2famous people
Add an old photoShare a memory
Quick answers

How Ashland began

When was Ashland founded?

1884

Ashland dates its founding to 1884 (Wikidata). The census first counted it in 1890.

First census: 459 in 18902020 census: 783142 years
Founding year: Wikidata. First post office: 1884.The full story ↓

What stands out about Ashland’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 Ashland are in the public archives yet. The rest are in attics and albums.On the map since 18963 editions of the USGS map, 1896 to 1985. Watch Ashland change.Boom and bustPeaked at 1,493 in 1950; 783 people lived here in 2020.Old housesHalf of Ashland’s homes were built before 1946.
★ What stands out · Help out

Start Ashland’s collection

The first neighbors to add old photos shape how Ashland’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
On the map

Ashland on the map, 1896 to 1985

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

Ashland on the 1896 USGS mapAshland on the 1972 USGS mapAshland on the 1985 USGS map1896Ashland 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 Ashland.

People over time

Ashland, census by census

02004006008001,0001,2001,4001,6001900192019401960198020002020Peak: 1,493

Peaked at 1,493 in 1950; 783 people lived here in 2020.

14 censuses, 1890–2020.

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

The story

How Ashland came to be

From Wikipedia’s history of Ashland.

Read it all →

Ashland lies along what was once a military road from Fort Dodge (now Dodge City, Kansas) to the north and Fort Supply in the Indian Territory to the south. In 1870, during the Comanche Campaign against the Native Americans, the Army built two redoubts along the Dodge/Supply trail near the current site of Ashland: the Bear Creek Redoubt, five miles to the north, and the Cimarron Redoubt, nine miles to the south.

Founded in 1884, it was named after the city of Ashland, Kentucky. The first post office in Ashland was established in 1885.

Text from Wikipedia, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0.

Timeline

Ashland, 1884 to 1950

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

  1. 19th century
  2. 1884
    FoundingAshland is established
  3. 1884Post officeThe Clark post office opens
  4. 1885Post officeThe Clark post office closes
  5. 1885Post officeThe Ashland post office opens
  6. 1887BuiltStockgrowers State Bank is built
  7. 1891Born hereEarle Taylor is born here
  8. 1896On the mapFirst mapped by the U.S. Geological Survey
  9. 20th century
  10. 1932Born hereWes Santee is born here
  11. 1937BuiltAshland Grade School is built
  12. 1937BuiltGirl Scout Little House is built
  13. 1950BuiltStein House is built
  14. 1950CensusPopulation peaks at 1,493
By decade

Ashland, decade by decade

Today3 recent
Ashland Intersection2006Ashland IntersectionKSMap-doton-Ashland2004KSMap-doton-AshlandMaintenance at Radionuclide Station RN742003Maintenance at Radionuclide Station RN74
On the National Register

5 historic places in Ashland

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

places listed
5
National Historic Landmarks
0
none yet
historic buildings protected
6
each building in a district counts
first listed
1972
Stockgrowers State Bank
Stockgrowers State Bank, built 1887Stein House, built 1950Ashland Grade School, built 1937Girl Scout Little House, built 1937Hodson Hotel
Buildings
Stockgrowers State BankBuilt 1887
Stein HouseBuilt 1950
Ashland Grade SchoolBuilt 1937
Girl Scout Little HouseBuilt 1937
All 5 listings
Hodson HotelBuilding · listed 2019

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

Famous people

2 famous people were born in Ashland

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

See all →
Wes SanteeAmerican distance runner · b. 1932
Earle TaylorAmerican football player · b. 1891
Places that used to be

Lost post offices

Ashland’s post office has been open since 1885. Another post office, Clark, opened and closed inside today’s town.

Clark
1884–1885
Ashland
1885–today
18801950today

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

Questions about Ashland’s history

What year was Ashland founded?

In 1884, according to Wikidata. Ashland’s post office opened in 1884, and the census of 1890 counted 459 people here.

What is on the National Register in Ashland?

5 listings: 5 buildings, among them the Stockgrowers State Bank (listed 1972, the first). 6 historic buildings in all.

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 (3), Wikidata (4), the National Register of Historic Places (5), 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.