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AHistory
History · Dearborn

Dearborn dates to 1786, and 24% of its homes were built before 1940

More historic than 94% of U.S. towns · #41 of 701 in Michigan. What drives it

9 places in town are on the National Register, among them 3 National Historic Landmarks and five historic districts with 435 buildings between them. Below: 21 old photos and papers, maps from 1899 on, and the census since 1860.

1786founded
9on the National Register
24%homes built before 1940
21old photos & papers
63famous people
Add an old photoShare a memory
From Dearborn’s archive · credits on each photo
Quick answers

How Dearborn began

When was Dearborn founded?

1786

Dearborn dates its founding to 1786 (Wikidata). The census first counted it in 1860.

First census: 355 in 18602020 census: 109,976240 years

How historic is Dearborn?

A

More historic than 94% of U.S. towns, on its age, its old homes and the National Register.

What drives the grade ↓
Founding year: Wikidata. First post office: 1833.The full story ↓
History grade

What drives Dearborn’s History grade

On its age, its old homes and the National Register, Dearborn is more historic than 94% of U.S. towns, #41 of 701 in Michigan. All 3 inputs are above most U.S. towns; its National Register listings ranks highest and its age lowest.

A
HistoryA character grade: shown, never part of Dearborn’s overall grade.
Founding era1786, from Wikidata: founded 1776–1849, an older era than 75% of U.S. townsA−Homes built before 194024.0% of homes (±1.7) · typical MI town 11.9% · U.S. 8.4%A−National Register9 listings, 446 historic buildings, 41.5 per 10,000 residents · typical MI town 0.0 · U.S. 2.4A
All U.S. towns we grade (21,289)Ahead of 94%
NewerOlder
Michigan towns of 2,500+ (701)Ahead of 94%

Among the 400 U.S. cities of 100,000 or more, Dearborn ranks #52 on History.

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 Dearborn’s 41.5 sits above most of its state (90% of Michigan towns have fewer) while its 446 historic buildings outnumber those of 97% of U.S. towns.

NoteThe founding year comes from Wikidata alone; no second source gives 1786.
How sure. Graded on any two of the three inputs instead, the letter would range from A− to A. The pre-1940 share (±1.7 points) is firm at this size.

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 Dearborn’s past

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

A historic districtThe Springwells Park Historic District takes in 321 historic buildings.A National Historic Landmark9 places on the National Register, 3 of them National Historic Landmarks.A town in old photos21 old photos, postcards and papers, 1912–1941.Famous sons and daughtersDavid Burtka, Garrett Clayton and 61 more were born here.
★ What stands out · On the National Register

9 listings protect 446 historic buildings

The country’s official list of buildings and places worth saving. 3 are National Historic Landmarks, the highest tier.

places listed
9
National Historic Landmarks
3
Fair Lane
historic buildings protected
446
each building in a district counts
first listed
1966
Fair Lane
Commandant's QuartersDearborn Inn and Colonial HomesUS 12 BridgesDearborn City Hall Complex, built 1921Springwells Park Historic DistrictDearborn Country ClubFair Lane, built 1915★Greenfield Village and Henry Ford Museum, built 1929★Ford River Rouge Complex★
BuildingsDistrictsStructures★ landmark

Architectural styles listings

Federal1
Georgian1
Steel Stringer Bridge1
Steel Deck Plate-Girder Bridge1
★ Landmark
Fair LaneBuilt 1915
★ Landmark
Greenfield Village and Henry Ford MuseumBuilt 1929
★ Landmark
Ford River Rouge ComplexDistrict
Commandant's QuartersFederal
Dearborn Inn and Colonial HomesGeorgian
US 12 BridgesSteel Stringer Bridge
Dearborn City Hall ComplexBuilt 1921
Springwells Park Historic DistrictDistrict
All 9 listings
Dearborn Country ClubBuilding · listed 2025

National Park Service, National Register of Historic Places. Photos from Wikimedia Commons, credited on each place’s page.

By decade

Dearborn, decade by decade

4 decades in the archive, from the 1910s to the 1940s. Scroll each row; tap a photo for its story.

1910s–1920s17 items
Dearborn MI1912Dearborn MIPostcardDearborn Country Club c 19201920Dearborn Country Club c 1920PostcardFord Engineering Laboratories, part of Henry Ford Museum1925Ford Engineering Laboratories, part of Henry Ford Mus…Ford Engineering Laboratories, part of Henry Ford Museum1925Ford Engineering Laboratories, part of Henry Ford Mus…Ford Engineering Laboratories, part of Henry Ford Museum1925Ford Engineering Laboratories, part of Henry Ford Mus…Stout 2AT-21925Stout 2AT-2Henry Ford, President Herbert Hoover, and Thomas Edison arriving with their spouses in Dearborn, Michigan for Light's G…1929Henry Ford, President Herbert Hoover, and Thomas Edis…Presidential train approaching Smiths Creek station from Detroit1929Presidential train approaching Smiths Creek station f…Presidential train approaching Smiths Creek station from Detroit1929Presidential train approaching Smiths Creek station f…Presidential train approaching Smiths Creek station from Detroit1929Presidential train approaching Smiths Creek station f…Presidential train arriving at Smiths Creek station from Detroit1929Presidential train arriving at Smiths Creek station f…Presidential train at Smiths Creek station from Detroit. Blimp can be seen in the sky1929Presidential train at Smiths Creek station from Detro…Smiths Creek station, before the arrival of the Presidential train from Detroit1929Smiths Creek station, before the arrival of the Presi…Smiths Creek station, before the arrival of the Presidential train from Detroit1929Smiths Creek station, before the arrival of the Presi…Smiths Creek station, before the arrival of the Presidential train from Detroit1929Smiths Creek station, before the arrival of the Presi…The engine "Sam Hill," which Thomas Edison rode as a boy, pulling the Presidential train1929The engine "Sam Hill," which Thomas Edison rode as a …The engine "Sam Hill," which Thomas Edison rode as a boy, pulling the Presidential train1929The engine "Sam Hill," which Thomas Edison rode as a …
1930s–1940s4 items
Martha-Mary Chapel, Greenfield Village, Dearborn, Michigan (73118)c. 1930Martha-Mary Chapel, Greenfield Village, Dearborn, Mic…PostcardDearborn Country Club1930Dearborn Country ClubFord Plant, Dearborn, Michigan (73115)c. 1930Ford Plant, Dearborn, Michigan (73115)River Rouge Plant of Henry Ford. Dearborn, Michigan1941River Rouge Plant of Henry Ford. Dearborn, Michigan
1950s–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
The story

How Dearborn came to be

From Wikipedia’s history of Dearborn.

Read it all →

Before European encounter, the area had been inhabited for thousands of years by successive First Nations peoples. Historical tribes belonged mostly to the Algonquian-language family, especially the Council of Three Fires, the Potawatomi and related peoples. In contrast, the Huron (Wyandot) were Iroquoian speaking. French colonists had a trading post at Fort Detroit and a settlement developed there in the colonial period. Another developed on the south side of the Detroit River in what is now southwestern Ontario, near a Huron mission village. French and French-Canadian colonists also established farms at Dearborn in this period. France ceded all of its territory east of the Mississippi River in North America to Great Britain in 1763 after losing to Britain in the Seven Years' War.

Text from Wikipedia, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0.

From the old history books

What they wrote about Dearborn in 1884

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

Dearborn Road, 1828, leads to village of Dearborn, named after General Henry Dearborn, U.S. A. Dequindre, 1850, Major Antoine Dequindre, land-owner and prominent in War of 1812, Dickinson, 1857, Moses F. Dickinson, landowner.
The history of Detroit and Michigan, or, The metropolis illustrated [microform]1884 · page 939Read the page →
Read the text

Dearborn Road, 1828, leads to village of Dearborn, named after General Henry Dearborn, U.S. A. Dequindre, 1850, Major Antoine Dequindre, land-owner and prominent in War of 1812, Dickinson, 1857, Moses F. Dickinson, landowner.

Text read by machine from the scan; it may contain errors.
hundred and twenty rods from the river, and twenty rods west of the town line which forms the eastern boundary line of Private Claim 52, in the town of Dearborn. The church vas twenty-four by thirty feet in size, and of course a rough affair, remarkable only as being (except the one built by the Mo…
The history of Detroit and Michigan, or, The metropolis illustrated [microform]1884 · page 561Read the page →
Read the text

hundred and twenty rods from the river, and twenty rods west of the town line which forms the eastern boundary line of Private Claim 52, in the town of Dearborn. The church vas twenty-four by thirty feet in size, and of course a rough affair, remarkable only as being (except the one built by the Moravians in 1782) the first Protestant church built in Michigan. It was

Text read by machine from the scan; it may contain errors.
hundred and twenty rods from the river, and twenty rods west of the town line which forms the eastern boundary line of Private Claim 52, in the town of Dearborn. The church was twenty-four by thirty feet in size, and of course a rough affair, remarkable only as being (e.xcept the one built by the M…
The history of Detroit and Michigan1884 · page 555Read the page →
Read the text

hundred and twenty rods from the river, and twenty rods west of the town line which forms the eastern boundary line of Private Claim 52, in the town of Dearborn. The church was twenty-four by thirty feet in size, and of course a rough affair, remarkable only as being (e.xcept the one built by the Moravians in 1782) the first Protestant church built in Michigan. It was

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

Dearborn, 1786 to 1981

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

  1. 18th century
  2. 1786
    FoundingDearborn is established
  3. 19th century
  4. 1833Post officeThe Dearbornville post office opens
  5. 1875Post officeThe Dearbornville post office closes
  6. 1875Post officeThe Dearborn post office opens
  7. 20th century
  8. 1905On the mapFirst mapped by the U.S. Geological Survey
  9. 1912In the archiveDearborn MI
  10. 1915BuiltFair Lane is built
  11. 1920In the archiveDearborn Country Club c 1920
  12. 1921BuiltDearborn City Hall Complex is built
  13. 1929BuiltGreenfield Village and Henry Ford Museum is built
  14. 1930In the archiveMartha-Mary Chapel, Greenfield Village, Dearborn, Michigan (73118)
  15. 1941In the archiveRiver Rouge Plant of Henry Ford. Dearborn, Michigan
  16. 1966LandmarkFair Lane named a National Historic Landmark
  17. 1973Born hereBrian Rafalski is born here
  18. 1975Born hereDavid Burtka is born here
  19. 1978LandmarkGreenfield Village and Henry Ford Museum named a National Historic Landmark
  20. 1978LandmarkFord River Rouge Complex named a National Historic Landmark
  21. 1981Born hereJohnny Pacar is born here
On the map

Dearborn on the map, 1905 to 1983

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

Dearborn on the 1905 USGS mapDearborn on the 1918 USGS mapDearborn on the 1924 USGS mapDearborn on the 1936 USGS mapDearborn on the 1952 USGS mapDearborn on the 1968 USGS mapDearborn on the 1973 USGS mapDearborn on the 1983 USGS map1905Detroit 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 Dearborn.

Every building

Dearborn, building by building, 1899–1924

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.

Dearborn fire insurance map, 1899, sheet 11899Sheet 1 of 1
Edition
Sheets
BrickWoodStone

Sanborn Map Company, via the Library of Congress. Editions published in 1930 or earlier, which are in the public domain.

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.

Dearborn MI
Retake this viewDearborn MI, 1912

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

Retake this view · +15
People over time

Dearborn, census by census

020,00040,00060,00080,000100,000120,000190019502000Peak: 112,007

Between 355 and 112,007 people in every census since 1860.

16 censuses, 1860–2020.

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

Famous people

63 famous people were born in Dearborn

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

See all →
D
David BurtkaAmerican actor and professional chef · b. 1975
Garrett ClaytonAmerican actor, singer and dancer · b. 1991
J
Johnny PacarAmerican actor · b. 1981
Brian RafalskiAmerican ice hockey player · b. 1973
Lawrence WarbasseAmerican road cyclist · b. 1990
Ashley FiolekAmerican motorcycle racer · b. 1990
Places that used to be

Lost post offices, old corners and burying grounds

Dearborn’s post office has been open since 1875. Another post office, Dearbornville, opened and closed inside today’s town.

Dearbornville
1833–1875
Dearborn
1875–today
18301930today
Hamlets and corners on the map
Greenfield Village
3cemeteries and burying grounds inside Dearborn
Mount KellyNorthviewSaint Alphonsus' Catholic Church

US Post Offices dataset (Blevins & Helbock, CC0). Places and cemeteries from the USGS Geographic Names Information System (2021).

Help out

Finish Dearborn’s story

Most archives stop around 1920. The photos from after that are in family albums, not libraries.

Decades since 1900 with photos
00s10s20s30s40s50s60s70s80s90s
4 of 10 decades. The empty ones are waiting for someone’s album.
Retake an old viewDearborn MI: stand where they stood+15Share a family photoSign in to add one+10
Stories next door

History across the town line

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

Detroit282 historic placesA+MelvindaleIts storyC−Dearborn HeightsIts storyDAllen ParkIts storyD

Questions about Dearborn’s history

What year was Dearborn founded?

In 1786, according to Wikidata. Dearborn’s post office opened in 1833, and the census of 1860 counted 355 people here.

How does Dearborn rank for history?

Dearborn is more historic than 94% of U.S. towns, #41 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.

What is on the National Register in Dearborn?

9 listings, 3 of them National Historic Landmarks: 3 buildings, 5 historic districts with 435 contributing buildings, and 1 structure. 446 historic buildings in all.

How old are the homes in Dearborn?

24% of Dearborn’s homes were built before 1940 (Census estimate, ±1.7 points), against a typical 12% for a Michigan town; the median home was built in 1952.

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 (20), the Library of Congress (1), Wikidata (3), the National Register of Historic Places (9), 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.