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History · Manitou

Manitou’s post office opened in 1882

Most of Manitou was built recently: 0.0% of its homes predate 1940 and the median home dates from 1948. Below: maps from 1909 on.

1882first post office
0on the National Register
0.0%homes built before 1940
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Quick answers

How Manitou began

When was Manitou founded?

1882

The Manitou post office opened in 1882, the earliest record of the town by name.

2020 census: 173144 years
Founding year: the first Manitou post office (Blevins & Helbock, CC0).

What stands out about Manitou’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 Manitou are in the public archives yet. The rest are in attics and albums.Old housesHalf of Manitou’s homes were built before 1948.
★ What stands out · Help out

Start Manitou’s collection

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

Decades since 1900 with photos
00s10s20s30s40s50s60s70s80s90s
0 of 10 decades. The empty ones are waiting for someone’s album.
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The story so far

Manitou, in brief

Wikipedia doesn’t have a history of Manitou yet. The photos, dates and memories neighbors add here are how it gets written.

Manitou () is an unincorporated community and census-designated place (CDP) in Hopkins County, Kentucky, United States. As of the 2020 census, Manitou had a population of 173. It is a small community that lies a few miles northwest of Madisonville on US 41, at its intersection with KY 630 and KY 262.

Its first post office opened in 1882. Between the 2010 and 2020 censuses its population fell from 181 to 173 (-4%).

Intro from Wikipedia. Population: U.S. Census Bureau.

By decade

No old photos in the archives yet

Weddings on Main Street, storms, parades, school pictures, the old store. If it’s in your family album, it belongs here.

Be the first to add onePhotograph a print flat, in daylight, no flash.
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On the map

Manitou on the map, 1909 to 1954

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

Manitou on the 1909 USGS mapManitou on the 1954 USGS map1909Earlington sheet · 1:62,500

U.S. Geological Survey historical topographic maps (public domain), via Esri’s collection of the scans. The red ring marks the center of Manitou.

Famous people

Famous people close to Manitou

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

See all →
Miles HeizerAmerican actor · b. 1994
Steve Beshear61st governor of Kentucky · b. 1944
Demetrious JohnsonAmerican mixed martial artist · b. 1986
Terry BissonAmerican science fiction and fantasy author · b. 1942
Ruby LaffoonAmerican politician · b. 1869
Addie McPhailAmerican actress · b. 1905

Questions about Manitou’s history

What year was Manitou founded?

The Manitou post office opened in 1882, 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 U.S. Geological Survey historical maps, 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.