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History · Garden

Garden’s post office opened in 1865, and 23% of its homes were built before 1940

Below: maps from 1913 on and the census since 1890.

1865first post office
0on the National Register
23%homes built before 1940
1famous people
Add an old photoShare a memory
Photo: Rklawton · CC BY-SA 4.0
Quick answers

How Garden began

When was Garden founded?

1865

The Garden post office opened in 1865, the earliest record of the town by name.

First census: 458 in 18902020 census: 174161 years
Founding year: the first Garden post office (Blevins & Helbock, CC0).The full story ↓

What stands out about Garden’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 Garden are in the public archives yet. The rest are in attics and albums.Old housesHalf of Garden’s homes were built before 1954.
★ What stands out · Help out

Start Garden’s collection

The first neighbors to add old photos shape how Garden’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

How Garden came to be

From Wikipedia’s history of Garden.

Read it all →

This settlement along Big Bay de Noc lies in the historic land of the Noquet. When it was first settled around 1850 by Metis it was known as Garden Bay or Haley's Bay. It was incorporated as a village in 1886.

Text from Wikipedia, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0.

By decade

Garden, decade by decade

Today2 recent
Garden, Michigan2019Garden, MichiganMIMap-doton-Garden2005MIMap-doton-Garden
On the map

Garden on the map, 1932 to 1985

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

Garden on the 1932 USGS mapGarden on the 1958 USGS mapGarden on the 1985 USGS map1932Garden SE sheet · 1:31,680

U.S. Geological Survey historical topographic maps (public domain), via Esri’s collection of the scans. The red ring marks the center of Garden.

Every building

Garden, building by building, 1913

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 sheet.

Garden fire insurance map, 1913, sheet 11913Sheet 1 of 1
Sheets
BrickWoodStone

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

People over time

Garden, census by census

01002003004005001900192019401960198020002020Peak: 497

Between 174 and 497 people in every census since 1890.

14 censuses, 1890–2020.

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

Questions about Garden’s history

What year was Garden founded?

The Garden post office opened in 1865, 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 →
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). How TownRatings grades history →

From Wikimedia Commons (2), Wikipedia, Wikidata and Wikipedia for famous people, U.S. Geological Survey historical maps, U.S. Census counts (via Wikipedia) and Sanborn fire insurance maps (Library of Congress). Archive images are copied here with their credits and licenses, shown on each photo’s page. Refreshed monthly.