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History · Copeland

Copeland’s post office opened in 1912, and 22% of its homes were built before 1940

Below: 1 old photo or paper, maps from 1896 on, and the census since 1930.

1912first post office
0on the National Register
22%homes built before 1940
1old photo or paper
Add an old photoShare a memory
Quick answers

How Copeland began, and where its name came from

When was Copeland founded?

1912

The Copeland post office opened in 1912, the earliest record of the town by name.

First census: 423 in 19302020 census: 251114 years

How did Copeland get its name?

Copeland was named for E. L. Copeland, an official of the Santa Fe Railroad.

Founding year: the first Copeland post office (Blevins & Helbock, CC0). Name: Wikipedia, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0.The full story ↓

What stands out about Copeland’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 1 old photo is in the public archives. The rest are in attics and albums.On the map since 18963 editions of the USGS map, 1896 to 1985. Watch Copeland change.
★ What stands out · Help out

Start Copeland’s collection

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

Decades since 1900 with photos
00s10s20s30s40s50s60s70s80s90s
1 of 10 decades. The empty ones are waiting for someone’s album.
Retake an old viewHaskell County, Kansas (Copeland). The …: stand where they stood+15Share a family photoSign in to add one+10
On the map

Copeland on the map, 1896 to 1985

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

Copeland on the 1896 USGS mapCopeland on the 1969 USGS mapCopeland on the 1985 USGS map1896Garden City 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 Copeland.

The story

How Copeland came to be

From Wikipedia’s history of Copeland.

Read it all →

Copeland was founded in 1912. It was named for E. L. Copeland, an official of the Santa Fe Railroad.

The first post office in Copeland was established in October 1912.

Text from Wikipedia, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0.

Timeline

Copeland, 1896 to 1941

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

  1. 19th century
  2. 1896On the mapFirst mapped by the U.S. Geological Survey
  3. 20th century
  4. 1912Post officeThe Copeland post office opens
  5. 1941In the archiveHaskell County, Kansas (Copeland). The "world's largest farmers' elevator" at Copeland, a…
By decade

Copeland, decade by decade

One decade in the archive so far: the 1940s. Scroll each row; tap a photo for its story.

1940s1 item
Haskell County, Kansas (Copeland). The "world's largest farmers' elevator" at Copeland, a few miles1941Haskell County, Kansas (Copeland). The "world's large…
1950s–1990snothing yet
Nothing in the archives for these yearsWeddings on Main Street, storms, parades, school pictures, the old store. If it’s in your family album, it belongs here.
Add from your album
Today1 recent
KSMap-doton-Copeland2004KSMap-doton-Copeland
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.

Haskell County, Kansas (Copeland). The "world's largest farmers' elevator" at Copeland, a few miles
Retake this viewHaskell County, Kansas (Copeland). The "world's largest farmers' elevator" at Copeland, a few miles, 1941

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

Retake this view · +15
People over time

Copeland, census by census

010020030040019401960198020002020Peak: 423

Between 242 and 423 people in every census since 1930.

10 censuses, 1930–2020.

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

Famous people

Famous people close to Copeland

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

See all →
Tim HuelskampAmerican politician · b. 1968
Otto SchnellbacherAmerican football and basketball player · b. 1923
Gary SpaniAmerican football player · b. 1956
J
John CrutcherAmerican politician · b. 1916
E
Edward R. BrandtAmerican politician · b. 1931
G
Garrett LoveAmerican politician · b. 1988

Questions about Copeland’s history

What year was Copeland founded?

The Copeland post office opened in 1912, 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, 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.