Ithaca’s post office opened in 1857, and 33% of its homes were built before 1940
More historic than 82% of U.S. towns · #122 of 701 in Michigan. What drives it
2 places in town are on the National Register, among them a historic district with 15 buildings. Below: 2 old photos and papers, maps from 1884 on, and the census since 1880.
The Ithaca post office opened in 1857, the earliest record of the town by name. Another post office, Gratiot Centre (1855), opened inside today’s city and later closed.
First census: 600 in 18802020 census: 2,853169 years
How historic is Ithaca?
A−
More historic than 82% of U.S. towns, on its age, its old homes and the National Register.
Founding year: the first Ithaca post office (Blevins & Helbock, CC0).The full story ↓
History grade
What drives Ithaca’s History grade
On its age, its old homes and the National Register, Ithaca is more historic than 82% of U.S. towns, #122 of 701 in Michigan. Its share of homes from before 1940 holds the grade up; its age pulls it down.
A−
HistoryA character grade: shown, never part of Ithaca’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 Ithaca’s 56.8 sits above most of its state (91% of Michigan towns have fewer) while its 16 historic buildings outnumber those of 78% of U.S. towns.
How sure. Graded on any two of the three inputs instead, the letter would range from B to A. The pre-1940 share is a Census survey estimate (±7.7 points). The founding year is the first post office, not a stated founding date.
Founding year: the first post office (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 Ithaca’s past
Read from the archive, the National Register and the record. The page puts what stands out first.
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.
Along with the Native Americans, the first recorded settler in Ithaca was James J. Bush from Howell, Michigan in 1850. John Jeffery, from New York State, bought land in 1853, and permanently relocated on the land in 1855. He platted the area in 1856, assisted by Sidney S. Hastings, calling it Gratiot Center and laying out streets, lots, blocks, and even alleys. Gratiot Center was the name of its first post office, granted on November 16, 1855 with John Knight as the first postmaster. In 1856 the site was named as the county seat of Gratiot County. The settlement's name was changed on April 13, 1857 to Ithaca, after Ithaca, New York. Ithaca was incorporated as a village in 1869 and became a city in 1961.
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.
The Ithaca post office opened in 1857, the earliest record of the town by name (U.S. post office records).
How does Ithaca rank for history?
Ithaca is more historic than 82% of U.S. towns, #122 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 Ithaca?
Two places: the Gratiot County Courthouse (listed 1976) and the Ithaca Downtown Historic District (2005).
How old are the homes in Ithaca?
33% of Ithaca’s homes were built before 1940 (Census estimate, ±7.7 points), against a typical 12% for a Michigan town; the median home was built in 1958.
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 (4), the Library of Congress (1), Wikidata (2), the National Register of Historic Places (2), 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 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.
Date?
2021
2021
2015
