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C+History
History · Carleton

Carleton dates to 1872, and 16% of its homes were built before 1940

More historic than 37% of U.S. towns. What drives it

Below: 1 old photo or paper, maps from 1906 on, and the census since 1880.

1872founded
0on the National Register
16%homes built before 1940
1old photo or paper
2famous people
Add an old photoShare a memory
From Carleton’s archive · credits on each photo
Quick answers

How Carleton began

When was Carleton founded?

1872

Carleton dates its founding to 1872 (Wikidata and Wikipedia’s history agree). The census first counted it in 1880.

First census: 434 in 18802020 census: 2,326154 years

How historic is Carleton?

C+

More historic than 37% of U.S. towns, on its age, its old homes and the National Register.

What drives the grade ↓
Founding year: Wikidata; Wikipedia’s history section gives the same year.The full story ↓
History grade

What drives Carleton’s History grade

On its age, its old homes and the National Register, Carleton is more historic than 37% of U.S. towns. Its share of homes from before 1940 holds the grade up; its National Register listings pull it down.

C+
HistoryA character grade: shown, never part of Carleton’s overall grade.
Founding era1872, from Wikidata: founded 1850–1899, an older era than 37% of U.S. townsC+Homes built before 194016.2% of homes (±8.9) · typical MI town 11.9% · U.S. 8.4%BNational RegisterNo listings counted · typical MI town 0.0 per 10,000 · U.S. 2.4C
All U.S. towns we grade (21,289)Ahead of 37%
NewerOlder

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 Carleton’s 0.0 sits below most of its state (32% of Michigan towns have fewer) while its 0 listings outnumber those of 23% of U.S. towns.

How sure. Graded on any two of the three inputs instead, the letter would range from C to C+. The pre-1940 share is a Census survey estimate (±8.9 points). Two sources give 1872.

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 →

What stands out about Carleton’s past

Read from the archive, the National Register and the record. The page puts what stands out first.

A history waiting to be writtenOnly 1 old photo is in the public archives. The rest are in attics and albums.On the map since 19066 editions of the USGS map, 1906 to 1967. Watch Carleton change.
★ What stands out · Help out

Start Carleton’s collection

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

Decades since 1900 with photos
00s10s20s30s40s50s60s70s80s90s
1 of 10 decades. The empty ones are waiting for someone’s album.
Retake an old viewCarleton: stand where they stood+15Share a family photoSign in to add one+10
On the map

Carleton on the map, 1906 to 1967

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

Carleton on the 1906 USGS mapCarleton on the 1928 USGS mapCarleton on the 1936 USGS mapCarleton on the 1942 USGS mapCarleton on the 1952 USGS mapCarleton on the 1967 USGS map1906Romulus 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 Carleton.

The story

How Carleton came to be

From Wikipedia’s history of Carleton.

Read it all →

The community was first platted in 1872 by Daniel Matthews, who had worked previously to select Lansing as the state capital. He became the first postmaster when the Carleton post office was established on February 24, 1874. The community was named after Will Carleton, a local poet. The community centered along a railway line first built by the Pere Marquette Railway and a junction with the Chicago and Canada Southern Railway, as well as the nearby Pennsylvania Railroad. The village incorporated in 1911.

Text from Wikipedia, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0.

From the old history books

What they wrote about Carleton in 1890

Passages that mention Carleton, cut from the printed page as they were published.

hold out better inducements for settlers and which is now equipped with all the best business enterprises, enlivened as it is b}' keen, machinery and doing an immense business, wide-awake business men. A fine brick building on Monroe avenue The village of Carleton was laid out in April, comf)rising…
History of Monroe County, Michigan ..1890 · page 578Read the page →
Read the text

hold out better inducements for settlers and which is now equipped with all the best business enterprises, enlivened as it is b}' keen, machinery and doing an immense business, wide-awake business men. A fine brick building on Monroe avenue The village of Carleton was laid out in April, comf)rising three stores, was built by Edwards 1872, by Daniel A. Matthews and Cluirles A. & Adams in 1886. Kent, its plat comprising eight}- acres. Eighty Several fine residences now adorn the streets, acres more were soon after added by D. A. including those of D. A. Matthews, H. C. Tal- Matthews and William A. Hickok. The Lake bot, and the just finished elegant brick dwell-

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.

Timeline

Carleton, 1872 to 1957

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

  1. 19th century
  2. 1872
    FoundingCarleton is established
  3. 1889Born hereElmina R. Lucke is born here
  4. 20th century
  5. 1906On the mapFirst mapped by the U.S. Geological Survey
  6. 1910In the archiveCarleton
  7. 1957Born hereKathy Angerer is born here
By decade

Carleton, decade by decade

One decade in the archive so far: the 1910s. Scroll each row; tap a photo for its story.

1910s1 item
Carleton1910Carleton
1920s–1990snothing yet
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.
Add from your album
Today17 recent
Ripcord Construction Roofing Photo MI2025Ripcord Construction Roofing Photo MICarleton, MI village office (2021)2021Carleton, MI village office (2021)Carleton, MI police department2021Carleton, MI police departmentCareleton, MI (2021)2021Careleton, MI (2021)Carleton, Michigan 20202020Carleton, Michigan 2020Carleton, MI village hall2020Carleton, MI village hallCarleton, MI Post Office2020Carleton, MI Post OfficeCarleton, MI location2019Carleton, MI locationPaul Laduke Store Steiner MI2018Paul Laduke Store Steiner MICarleton (Monroe County)2018Carleton (Monroe County)Saint Patrick Cemetery2013Saint Patrick CemeterySaint Patrick Catholic Church2013Saint Patrick Catholic ChurchRiver Raisin from Bridge on Finzel Road2012River Raisin from Bridge on Finzel RoadFAA VHF Omnidirectional Radio Range Site2012FAA VHF Omnidirectional Radio Range SiteDura-Blue PVC Pipe for Underground Water Mains2012Dura-Blue PVC Pipe for Underground Water MainsAirport Senior High School2011Airport Senior High SchoolCarletonMichigan2010CarletonMichigan
Then & now

Stand where they stood

No then-and-now pairs yet. Take a photo from the same spot as an old one and they appear here side by side.

Carleton
Retake this viewCarleton, 1910

Find the spot, match the angle, and add your photo. It becomes the first then-and-now pair on Carleton’s page.

Retake this view · +15
People over time

Carleton, census by census

05001,0001,5002,0002,5003,00018801900192019401960198020002020Peak: 2,786

Between 386 and 2,786 people in every census since 1880.

13 censuses, 1880–2020.

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

Famous people

2 famous people were born in Carleton

Writers, athletes, leaders and more, ranked by how widely they’re known.

See all →
Kathy AngererAmerican politician · b. 1957
E
Elmina R. LuckeAmerican social worker and academic · b. 1889

Questions about Carleton’s history

What year was Carleton founded?

In 1872, according to Wikidata and Wikipedia’s history of the town. the census of 1880 counted 434 people here.

How does Carleton rank for history?

Carleton is more historic than 37% of U.S. towns. 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.

How old are the homes in Carleton?

16% of Carleton’s homes were built before 1940 (Census estimate, ±8.9 points), against a typical 12% for a Michigan town; the median home was built in 1978.

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).

From Wikimedia Commons (18), Wikipedia, Wikidata and Wikipedia for famous people, U.S. Geological Survey historical maps, U.S. Census counts (via Wikipedia) 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.