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–Not graded
History · Utica

Utica’s post office opened in 1837, and 16% of its homes were built before 1940

Below: maps from 1924 on and the census since 1880.

1837first post office
0on the National Register
16%homes built before 1940
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Quick answers

How Utica began

When was Utica founded?

1837

The Utica post office opened in 1837, the earliest record of the town by name.

First census: 722 in 18802020 census: 222189 years
Founding year: the first Utica post office (Blevins & Helbock, CC0).The full story ↓

What stands out about Utica’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 Utica are in the public archives yet. The rest are in attics and albums.Deep rootsA post office since 1837: 189 years of Utica.Old housesHalf of Utica’s homes were built before 1963.
★ What stands out · Help out

Start Utica’s collection

The first neighbors to add old photos shape how Utica’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 Utica came to be

From Wikipedia’s history of Utica.

Read it all →

Utica was platted in 1837, and named after Utica, New York, the native home of an early settler.

Text from Wikipedia, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0.

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.
Add from your album
On the map

Utica on the map, 1924 to 1984

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

Utica on the 1924 USGS mapUtica on the 1984 USGS map1924Dawn 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 Utica.

People over time

Utica, census by census

020040060080018801900192019401960198020002020Peak: 722

Between 222 and 722 people in every census since 1880.

5 censuses, 1880–2020.

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

Famous people

Famous people close to Utica

Nobody well known was born in Utica itself, so here are the best known from just nearby.

See all →
P
Paul Carpenter StandleyAmerican botanist · b. 1884
Courtney W. CampbellAmerican politician · b. 1895
Jerry LittonAmerican politician · b. 1937
S
Shirley Collie NelsonAmerican singer/songwriter · b. 1931
C
Claude B. HutchisonAmerican politician · b. 1885
C
Colin BrownAmerican football player · b. 1985
Stories next door

History across the town line

Each neighbor’s History grade, on the same three inputs.

Green TownshipIts storynot graded: under 1,000 residents or part of its townJackson TownshipIts storynot graded: under 1,000 residents or part of its town

Questions about Utica’s history

What year was Utica founded?

The Utica post office opened in 1837, 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 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.