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History · Gypsum

Gypsum’s post office opened in 1886, and 64% of its homes were built before 1940

Below: maps from 1955 on and the census since 1890.

1886first post office
0on the National Register
64%homes built before 1940
1famous people
Add an old photoShare a memory
Quick answers

How Gypsum began

When was Gypsum founded?

1886

The Gypsum post office opened in 1886, the earliest record of the town by name. Two smaller post offices, Pliny (1869) and Prescott (1871), opened inside today’s city and later closed.

First census: 530 in 18902020 census: 400140 years
Founding year: the first Gypsum post office (Blevins & Helbock, CC0).The full story ↓

What stands out about Gypsum’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 Gypsum are in the public archives yet. The rest are in attics and albums.Old housesHalf of Gypsum’s homes were built before 1938.Boom and bustPeaked at 732 in 1920; 400 people lived here in 2020.Lost villages2 post offices opened and closed inside today’s Gypsum.
★ What stands out · Help out

Start Gypsum’s collection

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

From Wikipedia’s history of Gypsum.

Read it all →

The community was founded as a Templer community called Tempelfeld. Gypsum was named after Gypsum Creek. The Gypsum post office has operated under that name since 1886.

ChaptersEarly history19th century

Text from Wikipedia, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0.

People over time

Gypsum, census by census

02004006008001900192019401960198020002020Peak: 732

Peaked at 732 in 1920; 400 people lived here in 2020.

14 censuses, 1890–2020.

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

Timeline

Gypsum, 1869 to 1955

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

  1. 19th century
  2. 1869Post officeThe Pliny post office opens
  3. 1871Post officeThe Prescott post office opens
  4. 1871Post officeThe Prescott post office closes
  5. 1886Post officeThe Pliny post office closes
  6. 1886Post officeThe Gypsum post office opens
  7. 20th century
  8. 1909Born hereBill Wheatley is born here
  9. 1920CensusPopulation peaks at 732
  10. 1955On the mapFirst mapped by the U.S. Geological Survey
By decade

Gypsum, decade by decade

Today2 recent
Detailed map of2010Detailed map ofMapKSMap-doton-Gypsum2005KSMap-doton-Gypsum
On the map

Gypsum on the map, 1955 to 1985

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

Gypsum on the 1955 USGS mapGypsum on the 1978 USGS mapGypsum on the 1985 USGS map1955Gypsum 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 Gypsum.

Places that used to be

Lost post offices

Gypsum’s post office has been open since 1886. Two other post offices opened and closed inside today’s town.

Pliny
1869–1886
Prescott
1871–1871
Gypsum
1886–today
18601940today

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

Questions about Gypsum’s history

What year was Gypsum founded?

The Gypsum post office opened in 1886, 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, 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.