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History · Birmingham

Birmingham dates to 1887, and 28% of its homes were built before 1940

Below: maps from 1935 on and the census since 1890.

1887founded
0on the National Register
28%homes built before 1940
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Quick answers

How Birmingham began

When was Birmingham founded?

1887

Birmingham dates its founding to 1887 (Wikipedia’s history). The census first counted it in 1890.

First census: 401 in 18902020 census: 189139 years
Founding year: Wikipedia. First post office: 1888.The full story ↓

What stands out about Birmingham’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 Birmingham are in the public archives yet. The rest are in attics and albums.Old housesHalf of Birmingham’s homes were built before 1955.
★ What stands out · Help out

Start Birmingham’s collection

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

Decades since 1900 with photos
00s10s20s30s40s50s60s70s80s90s
0 of 10 decades. The empty ones are waiting for someone’s album.
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The story

How Birmingham came to be

From Wikipedia’s history of Birmingham.

Read it all →

Birmingham was founded in 1887. The village was named after Birmingham, England. A post office was established at Birmingham in 1888, and remained in operation until 1956.

Text from Wikipedia, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0.

Timeline

Birmingham, 1887 to 1956

Woven from the archive, old maps, post office records, the National Register and the people born here.

  1. 19th century
  2. 1887
    FoundingBirmingham is established
  3. 1888Post officeThe Birmingham post office opens
  4. 20th century
  5. 1935On the mapFirst mapped by the U.S. Geological Survey
  6. 1956Post officeThe Birmingham post office closes
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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On the map

Birmingham on the map, 1935 to 1990

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

Birmingham on the 1935 USGS mapBirmingham on the 1940 USGS mapBirmingham on the 1965 USGS mapBirmingham on the 1970 USGS mapBirmingham on the 1990 USGS map1935Liberty sheet · 1:24,000

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

People over time

Birmingham, census by census

01002003004001900192019401960198020002020Peak: 401

Between 136 and 401 people in every census since 1890.

14 censuses, 1890–2020.

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

Places that used to be

Lost post offices

Birmingham had its own post office from 1888 to 1956.

Birmingham
1888–1956
18801950today

US Post Offices dataset (Blevins & Helbock, CC0). Places and cemeteries from the USGS Geographic Names Information System (2021).

Questions about Birmingham’s history

What year was Birmingham founded?

In 1887, according to Wikipedia’s history of the town. Birmingham’s post office opened in 1888, and the census of 1890 counted 401 people here.

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 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.