Each edition grades its towns against each other only.
Among the most historic 1% of U.S. towns · #5 of 701 in Michigan. What drives it
14 places in town are on the National Register, among them four historic districts with 1,211 buildings between them. Below: 15 old photos and papers, maps from 1895 on, and the census since 1860.
Bay City dates its founding to 1837 (Wikidata and Wikipedia’s history agree). The census first counted it in 1860.
Among the most historic 1% of U.S. towns, on its age, its old homes and the National Register.
On its age, its old homes and the National Register, Bay City is among the most historic 1% of U.S. towns, #5 of 701 in Michigan. All 3 inputs are above most U.S. towns; its National Register listings ranks highest and its age lowest.
Few Michigan towns list much on the Register (a typical Michigan town has 0.0 per 10,000 residents, the U.S. 2.4), so Bay City’s 382 sits above most of its state (98% of Michigan towns have fewer) while its 1,236 historic buildings outnumber those of 99% of U.S. towns.
Founding year: Wikidata (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 →
Read from the archive, the National Register and the record. The page puts what stands out first.
The country’s official list of buildings and places worth saving. Boundary changes and added documentation are counted with their listing.
National Park Service, National Register of Historic Places. Photos from Wikimedia Commons, credited on each place’s page.
Bay City’s post office has been open since 1858. Four other post offices opened and closed inside today’s town.
US Post Offices dataset (Blevins & Helbock, CC0). Places and cemeteries from the USGS Geographic Names Information System (2021).
Drag across each photo to compare.
1910TodayFrom Wikipedia’s history of Bay City.
Leon Tromblé is regarded as the first settler within the limits of Bay County, in an area which would become Bay City. In 1831, he built a log cabin on the east bank of the Saginaw river.
Text from Wikipedia, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0.
Passages that mention Bay City, cut from the printed page as they were published.
On the first Monday in April, 1865, the city of Bay City perfected its organization, by electing a full set of city officials, including aldermen for the three wards into which the ambitious settlement had been divided. The pioneers of that city of a little more than three thousand souls, hardly foresaw that in the course of events, just 40 years later, at the
Text read by machine from the scan; it may contain errors.
the township of Portsmouth, and Appleton Stevens was its first supervisor. Being the oldest settlement, and lying somewhat higher than the village of Bay City, there was for some years a keen rivalry as to which of the two settlements should be the county seat. The trend of business, however, was to the north, to get nearer to Saginaw Bay, where many of
Text read by machine from the scan; it may contain errors.Scans and text from the Internet Archive. Books published in 1930 or earlier, which are in the public domain.
Woven from the archive, old maps, post office records, the National Register and the people born here.
BuiltMercy Hospital and Elizabeth McDowell Bialy Memorial House is built
In the archiveSteam powered fireboat Geyser, of Bay City, Michigan, 1890BuiltCity Hall is builtBuiltPere Marquette Railroad Depot, Bay City Station is built
In the archiveDaniel J. Morrell launch
In the archiveMichigan Central Station, Bay City, Michigan
On the mapFirst mapped by the U.S. Geological Survey
In the archiveBertrand's, famous for fine foods, 912 Euclid on U. S. 23 (85158)BuiltBay County Building is built
Born hereMadonna is born here
Born hereRick Steiner is born here4 decades in the archive, from the 1890s to the 1930s. Scroll each row; tap a photo for its story.
c. 1930Bertrand's, famous for fine foods, 912 Euclid on U. S…Postcard
c. 1930Carey's Motel, where the wonders of the North Trail b…Postcard
c. 1930El Pancho Court, Michigan's most modern court, Bay Ci…Postcard
c. 1930El Pancho Court, open year round on U. S. 23 -- one m…Postcard
c. 1930Glenn Motor Sales, 600 Saginaw St., Bay City, Mich (8…Postcard
c. 1930Harold Alexander, 200 N. Euclid Ave. -- U. S. 23, Bay…Postcard
c. 1930Indian Trail Motel, Bay City, Michigan, 1004 N. Eucli…Postcard
c. 1930Northland Motel, Where the North Really Begins on U. …Postcard
c. 1930Rileys Motel, eight miles north of Bay City, Mich. On…PostcardEvery edition of the U.S. Geological Survey’s map of Bay City. Tap a year, or press play to watch the town change.
U.S. Geological Survey historical topographic maps (public domain), via Esri’s collection of the scans. The red ring marks the center of Bay City.
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.
1895Sheet 1 of 7Sanborn Map Company, via the Library of Congress. Editions published in 1930 or earlier, which are in the public domain.
Peaked at 53,604 in 1960; 32,661 people lived here in 2020.
17 censuses, 1860–2020.
U.S. Census Bureau decennial counts, from the census table on Bay City’s Wikipedia page.
Writers, athletes, leaders and more, ranked by how widely they’re known.
Most archives stop around 1920. The photos from after that are in family albums, not libraries.
Each neighbor’s History grade, on the same three inputs.
In 1837, according to Wikidata and Wikipedia’s history of the town. Bay City’s post office opened in 1857, and the census of 1860 counted 1,583 people here.
Bay City is among the most historic 1% of U.S. towns, #5 of 701 in Michigan. 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.
14 listings: 9 buildings, among them the Tromble House (listed 1973, the first), 4 historic districts with 1,211 contributing buildings, and 1 site. 1,236 historic buildings in all.
49% of Bay City’s homes were built before 1940 (Census estimate, ±2.5 points), against a typical 12% for a Michigan town; the median home was built in 1941.
What the archives can’t tell you, neighbors can.
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 (15), Wikidata (3), the National Register of Historic Places (14), 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, Sanborn fire insurance maps (Library of Congress) and old county and town histories (Internet Archive). Archive images are copied here with their credits and licenses, shown on each photo’s page. Refreshed monthly.
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