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History · Advance

Advance dates to 1865

Most of Advance was built recently: 6% of its homes predate 1940 and the median home dates from 2001. Below: maps from 1961 on.

1865founded
0on the National Register
6%homes built before 1940
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Quick answers

How Advance began

When was Advance founded?

1865

Advance dates its founding to 1865 (Wikipedia’s history). Its post office opened in 1870.

2020 census: 340161 years
Founding year: Wikipedia. First post office: 1870.The full story ↓

What stands out about Advance’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 Advance are in the public archives yet. The rest are in attics and albums.
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Start Advance’s collection

The first neighbors to add old photos shape how Advance’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

How Advance came to be

From Wikipedia’s history of Advance.

Read it all →

Advance was settled in Eveline Township as early as 1865 along the shores of Pine Lake (now known as Lake Charlevoix) about 12.0 miles (19.3 km) from Charlevoix. A post office in Advance began operating on October 20, 1870. In 1877, the Grand Rapids and Indiana Railroad opened a depot in Advance, and the community recorded a population of 10 at the time. By 1905, the community recorded a population of 105. The post office was disestablished on October 15, 1906. When the depot closed, the community soon dwindled and recorded 62 residents in 1910.

The community of Advance was listed as a newly defined census designated place for the 2010 census, meaning it now has officially defined boundaries and population statistics for the first time.

Text from Wikipedia, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0.

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.

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On the map

Advance on the map, 1961 to 1983

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

Advance on the 1961 USGS mapAdvance on the 1975 USGS mapAdvance on the 1983 USGS map1961Boyne City 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 Advance.

Famous people

Famous people close to Advance

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

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Claude ShannonAmerican mathematician and information theorist · b. 1916
Megan BooneAmerican actress · b. 1983
David MalpassAmerican economist · b. 1956
H
Hal SmithAmerican actor · b. 1916
K
Kaila KuhnAmerican freestyle skier · b. 2003
Britta PhillipsAmerican musician · b. 1963
Stories next door

History across the town line

Each neighbor’s History grade, on the same three inputs.

Eveline TownshipIts storyCWilson TownshipIts storyC−Boyne City3 historic placesB+

Questions about Advance’s history

What year was Advance founded?

In 1865, according to Wikipedia’s history of the town. Advance’s post office opened in 1870.

Memory lane

What the archives can’t tell you, neighbors can.

Town Square →
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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 Wikipedia and U.S. Geological Survey historical maps. Archive images are copied here with their credits and licenses, shown on each photo’s page. Refreshed monthly.