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History · Freeport

Freeport’s post office opened in 1878, and 61% of its homes were built before 1940

Below: maps from 1918 on and the census since 1880.

1878first post office
0on the National Register
61%homes built before 1940
1famous people
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Quick answers

How Freeport began

When was Freeport founded?

1878

The Freeport post office opened in 1878, the earliest record of the town by name.

First census: 166 in 18802020 census: 542148 years
Founding year: the first Freeport post office (Blevins & Helbock, CC0).

What stands out about Freeport’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 Freeport are in the public archives yet. The rest are in attics and albums.Old housesHalf of Freeport’s homes were built before 1938.On the map since 19183 editions of the USGS map, 1918 to 1978. Watch Freeport change.
★ What stands out · Help out

Start Freeport’s collection

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

Decades since 1900 with photos
00s10s20s30s40s50s60s70s80s90s
0 of 10 decades. The empty ones are waiting for someone’s album.
Share a family photoSign in to add one+10
The story so far

Freeport, in brief

Wikipedia doesn’t have a history of Freeport yet. The photos, dates and memories neighbors add here are how it gets written.

Freeport is a village in Barry County in the U.S. state of Michigan. The population was 542 at the 2020 census. The village is mostly within Irving Township, though a small portion lies in Carlton Township.

Its first post office opened in 1878. Between the 2010 and 2020 censuses its population grew from 483 to 542 (+12%).

Intro from Wikipedia. Population: U.S. Census Bureau.

On the map

Freeport on the map, 1918 to 1978

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

Freeport on the 1918 USGS mapFreeport on the 1943 USGS mapFreeport on the 1978 USGS map1918Lowell 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 Freeport.

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.

Be the first to add onePhotograph a print flat, in daylight, no flash.
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People over time

Freeport, census by census

010020030040050060018801900192019401960198020002020542

Grew from 166 people in 1880 to 542 in 2020, 3 times over.

13 censuses, 1880–2020.

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

Questions about Freeport’s history

What year was Freeport founded?

The Freeport post office opened in 1878, the earliest record of the town by name (U.S. post office records).

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 Wikidata and Wikipedia for famous people, U.S. Geological Survey historical maps and U.S. Census counts (via Wikipedia). Archive images are copied here with their credits and licenses, shown on each photo’s page. Refreshed monthly.