Guest, Sign inJoin

Post to McHenry

We’ll email a one-tap link to publish your post. No password, and nothing is public until you click it.
Already a member? Sign in
–Not graded
History · McHenry

McHenry’s post office opened in 1874, and 12% of its homes were built before 1940

Below: maps from 1909 on and the census since 1880.

1874first post office
0on the National Register
12%homes built before 1940
1famous people
Add an old photoShare a memory
Photo: Brian Stansberry · CC BY 4.0
Quick answers

How McHenry began

When was McHenry founded?

1874

The McHenry post office opened in 1874, the earliest record of the town by name. Wikidata gives 1880.

First census: 124 in 18802020 census: 369152 years
Founding year: the first McHenry post office (Blevins & Helbock, CC0). Wikidata: 1880.The full story ↓

What stands out about McHenry’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 McHenry are in the public archives yet. The rest are in attics and albums.Boom and bustPeaked at 722 in 1940; 369 people lived here in 2020.On the map since 19093 editions of the USGS map, 1909 to 1973. Watch McHenry change.
★ What stands out · Help out

Start McHenry’s collection

The first neighbors to add old photos shape how McHenry’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
People over time

McHenry, census by census

020040060080018801900192019401960198020002020Peak: 722

Peaked at 722 in 1940; 369 people lived here in 2020.

15 censuses, 1880–2020.

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

On the map

McHenry on the map, 1909 to 1973

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

McHenry on the 1909 USGS mapMcHenry on the 1954 USGS mapMcHenry on the 1973 USGS map1909Hartford 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 McHenry.

The story

How McHenry came to be

From Wikipedia’s history of McHenry.

Read it all →

Originally called Hamelton, the village was renamed in 1874 to honor Congressman Henry D. McHenry.

Text from Wikipedia, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0.

Timeline

McHenry, 1874 to 1940

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

  1. 19th century
  2. 1874Post officeThe McHenry post office opens
  3. 1899Born hereHalley G. Maddox is born here
  4. 20th century
  5. 1909On the mapFirst mapped by the U.S. Geological Survey
  6. 1940CensusPopulation peaks at 722
By decade

McHenry, decade by decade

Today6 recent
McHenry-post-office-ky2018McHenry-post-office-kyMcHenry-from-Church-Rd-ky2018McHenry-from-Church-Rd-kyMcHenry-RR-tracks-ky2018McHenry-RR-tracks-kyMcHenry-Fire-Department-ky2018McHenry-Fire-Department-kyMcHenry-City-Park-ky2018McHenry-City-Park-kyMcHenry-Church-ky2018McHenry-Church-ky

Questions about McHenry’s history

What year was McHenry founded?

The McHenry post office opened in 1874, the earliest record of the town by name (U.S. post office records). Wikidata gives 1880.

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, 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.