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History · Coolidge

Coolidge’s post office opened in 1881, and 35% of its homes were built before 1940

Below: maps from 1953 on and the census since 1890.

1881first post office
0on the National Register
35%homes built before 1940
Add an old photoShare a memory
Photo: Billy Hathorn · CC BY-SA 3.0
Quick answers

How Coolidge began

When was Coolidge founded?

1881

The Coolidge post office opened in 1881, the earliest record of the town by name. Another post office, Sargent (1873), opened inside today’s city and later closed.

First census: 472 in 18902020 census: 80145 years
Founding year: the first Coolidge post office (Blevins & Helbock, CC0).The full story ↓

What stands out about Coolidge’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 Coolidge are in the public archives yet. The rest are in attics and albums.Old housesHalf of Coolidge’s homes were built before 1949.
★ What stands out · Help out

Start Coolidge’s collection

The first neighbors to add old photos shape how Coolidge’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 Coolidge came to be

From Wikipedia’s history of Coolidge.

Read it all →

The city of Coolidge was named after Thomas Jefferson Coolidge, the former president of the Atchison, Topeka and Santa Fe Railway.

The first post office in Coolidge was established in July 1881.

Text from Wikipedia, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0.

Timeline

Coolidge, 1873 to 1953

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

  1. 19th century
  2. 1873Post officeThe Sargent post office opens
  3. 1881Post officeThe Sargent post office closes
  4. 1881Post officeThe Coolidge post office opens
  5. 20th century
  6. 1953On the mapFirst mapped by the U.S. Geological Survey
By decade

Coolidge, decade by decade

Today6 recent
Santa Fe Trail marker in Coolidge, KS IMG 58202010Santa Fe Trail marker in Coolidge, KS IMG 5820Grain elevator, Coolidge, KS IMG 58152010Grain elevator, Coolidge, KS IMG 5815Coolidge, KS, welcome sign IMG 58222010Coolidge, KS, welcome sign IMG 5822Cactus Cafe in Coolidge, KS IMG 58162010Cactus Cafe in Coolidge, KS IMG 5816Coolidge, Kansas 20072007Coolidge, Kansas 2007KSMap-doton-Coolidge2004KSMap-doton-Coolidge
On the map

Coolidge on the map, 1953 to 1978

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

Coolidge on the 1953 USGS mapCoolidge on the 1978 USGS map1953Holly East 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 Coolidge.

People over time

Coolidge, census by census

01002003004005001900192019401960198020002020Peak: 472

Between 80 and 472 people in every census since 1890.

14 censuses, 1890–2020.

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

Famous people

Famous people close to Coolidge

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

See all →
Ken CurtisAmerican actor and singer · b. 1916
G
Gene MilfordAmerican film editor · b. 1902
Wayne R. GrishamRecipient of the Purple Heart medal · b. 1923
Raymond O. BartonUnited States general · b. 1889
Kenneth KesterAmerican politician · b. 1936
Andy RushAmerican baseball player · b. 1889
Places that used to be

Lost post offices

Coolidge’s post office has been open since 1881. Another post office, Sargent, opened and closed inside today’s town.

Sargent
1873–1881
Coolidge
1881–today
18701950today

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

Questions about Coolidge’s history

What year was Coolidge founded?

The Coolidge post office opened in 1881, 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 (6), Wikipedia, 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.