The Iola post office opened in 1859, the earliest record of the town by name. Another post office, Cofachiqui (1856), opened inside today’s city and later closed.
First census: 1,096 in 18802020 census: 5,396167 years
How historic is Iola?
A−
More historic than 76% of U.S. towns, on its age, its old homes and the National Register.
Founding year: the first Iola post office (Blevins & Helbock, CC0).The full story ↓
History grade
What drives Iola’s History grade
On its age, its old homes and the National Register, Iola is more historic than 76% of U.S. towns, #31 of 151 in Kansas. Its share of homes from before 1940 holds the grade up; its age pulls it down.
A−
HistoryA character grade: shown, never part of Iola’s overall grade.
Kansas towns list more on the Register than most of the country (a typical Kansas town has 5.1 per 10,000 residents, the U.S. 2.4), so Iola’s 9.3 sits near the middle of its state (63% of Kansas towns have fewer) while its 5 historic buildings outnumber those of 70% of U.S. towns.
How sure. Graded on any two of the three inputs instead, the letter would range from B− to A. The pre-1940 share is a Census survey estimate (±6.8 points). The founding year is the first post office, not a stated founding date.
Founding year: the first post office (other dates in Quick answers). Homes: Census ACS 2020–24. National Register: National Park Service, May 2026 list; each listing counted once (boundary changes and added documentation belong to their listing), and a historic district counts its contributing buildings. How TownRatings grades history →
What stands out about Iola’s past
Read from the archive, the National Register and the record. The page puts what stands out first.
Every edition of the U.S. Geological Survey’s map of Iola. Tap a year, or press play to watch the town change.
1886Iola 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 Iola.
Every building
Iola, building by building, 1884–1917
Fire insurance maps drew every building, what it was made of and what it was used for, so insurers could price the risk of fire. Pick a year, then a sheet.
The history of Iola began in 1859. After the location of the county seat at Humboldt, by the legislature of 1858, there was a great deal of dissatisfaction among the residents of the central and northern parts of the county, and a number of citizens selected the present site of Iola, with the intention of ultimately securing the county seat. On January 1, 1859, a large meeting was held at the Deer Creek schoolhouse. The meeting decided to organize a town company, which was immediately done. A constitution was then adopted, and officers were elected. The officers of the company after due consideration of different points selected a site for the proposed town, about two miles (3 km) north of Cofachique, at the confluence of Elm Creek and the Neosho River. The site was owned in part by J.F. Colborn and W.H. Cochrane. The claims on two quarter-sections were bought, and were soon after surve…
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.
The Iola post office opened in 1859, the earliest record of the town by name (U.S. post office records).
How does Iola rank for history?
Iola is more historic than 76% of U.S. towns, #31 of 151 in Kansas. The History grade combines the town’s founding era, the share of homes built before 1940 and its National Register listings. It’s a character grade, so it isn’t part of the overall grade. How it works.
What is on the National Register in Iola?
4 listings: 4 buildings, among them the Allen County Jail (listed 1971, the first). 5 historic buildings in all.
How old are the homes in Iola?
37% of Iola’s homes were built before 1940 (Census estimate, ±6.8 points), against a typical 10% for a Kansas town; the median home was built in 1960.
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).
From Wikimedia Commons (2), the Library of Congress (1), Wikidata (2), the National Register of Historic Places (4), 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), the USGS Geographic Names Information System and Sanborn fire insurance maps (Library of Congress). Archive images are copied here with their credits and licenses, shown on each photo’s page. Refreshed monthly.
1909