More historic than 27% of U.S. towns · #589 of 701 in Michigan. What drives it
Most of Ferrysburg was built recently: 9% of its homes predate 1940 and the median home dates from 1981. Below: maps from 1930 on and the census since 1880.
Founding year: Wikipedia. First post office: 1859.The full story ↓
History grade
What drives Ferrysburg’s History grade
On its age, its old homes and the National Register, Ferrysburg is more historic than 27% of U.S. towns, #589 of 701 in Michigan. 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 Ferrysburg’s overall grade.
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 Ferrysburg’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 two of the three inputs, so a change in either one moves the letter more than it would with three. The pre-1940 share is a Census survey estimate (±4.2 points). Two sources give 1857.
Founding year: Wikipedia (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 Ferrysburg’s past
Read from the archive, the National Register and the record. The page puts what stands out first.
Before colonization and European settlement, the region had been inhabited by Ottawa and Potawotami peoples. Settlement in the area of Ferrysburg began in the 1830s by William Montague Ferry and his family. It was platted in 1857. Originally a village within Spring Lake Township, it incorporated as a city in 1963. Per Michigan law, it separated from Spring Lake Township. However, the two share a police department.
In 1857, according to Wikipedia’s history of the town. Ferrysburg’s post office opened in 1859, and the census of 1880 counted 411 people here.
How does Ferrysburg rank for history?
Ferrysburg is more historic than 27% of U.S. towns, #589 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.
How old are the homes in Ferrysburg?
9% of Ferrysburg’s homes were built before 1940 (Census estimate, ±4.2 points), against a typical 12% for a Michigan town; the median home was built in 1981.
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 Wikipedia, 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.
