Each edition grades its towns against each other only.
Below: maps from 1943 on and the census since 1910.
Allendale dates its founding to 1855 (Wikipedia’s history). The census first counted it in 1910.
Read from the archive, the National Register and the record. The page puts what stands out first.
The first neighbors to add old photos shape how Allendale’s history is told.
From Wikipedia’s history of Allendale.
Allendale was platted in 1855 by Joel and William Allen, and named for them. It was initially named Allenville but was later changed to avoid mailing confusion with another town named Allenville. A post office called Allendale has been in operation since 1861. The population in the 1870s was about 300.
Text from Wikipedia, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0.
Woven from the archive, old maps, post office records, the National Register and the people born here.
On the mapFirst mapped by the U.S. Geological SurveyEvery edition of the U.S. Geological Survey’s map of Allendale. Tap a year, or press play to watch the town change.
U.S. Geological Survey historical topographic maps (public domain), via Esri’s collection of the scans. The red ring marks the center of Allendale.
Between 48 and 243 people in every census since 1910.
12 censuses, 1910–2020.
U.S. Census Bureau decennial counts, from the census table on Allendale’s Wikipedia page.
Nobody well known was born in Allendale itself, so here are the best known from just nearby.
In 1855, according to Wikipedia’s history of the town. Allendale’s post office opened in 1856, and the census of 1910 counted 243 people here.
What the archives can’t tell you, neighbors can.
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, 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.
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