The story
Read it all →How Godwin came to be
From Wikipedia’s history of Godwin.
Godwin was named after Isaac William Godwin, a pioneer settler.
Text from Wikipedia, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0.
–Not graded
History · Godwin
Godwin’s post office opened in 1887, and 21% of its homes were built before 1940
Below: maps from 1974 on and the census since 1910.
1887first post office
0on the National Register
21%homes built before 1940
Quick answers
How Godwin began
When was Godwin founded?
1887
The Godwin post office opened in 1887, the earliest record of the town by name.
First census: 102 in 19102020 census: 128139 years
Founding year: the first Godwin post office (Blevins & Helbock, CC0).The full story ↓
What stands out about Godwin’s past
Read from the archive, the National Register and the record. The page puts what stands out first.
★ What stands out · Help out
Start Godwin’s collection
The first neighbors to add old photos shape how Godwin’s history is told.
Decades since 1900 with photos
00s10s20s30s40s50s60s70s80s90s
0 of 10 decades. The empty ones are waiting for someone’s album.People over time
Godwin, census by census
Peaked at 233 in 1980; 128 people lived here in 2020.
12 censuses, 1910–2020.
U.S. Census Bureau decennial counts, from the census table on Godwin’s Wikipedia page.
Timeline
Godwin, 1887 to 1980
Woven from the archive, old maps, post office records, the National Register and the people born here.
- 19th century
- 1887Post officeThe Godwin post office opens
- 20th century
- 1974
On the mapFirst mapped by the U.S. Geological Survey - 1980CensusPopulation peaks at 233
By decade
Godwin, decade by decade
Today1 recent
2009On the map
Godwin on the map, 1974 to 1986
Every edition of the U.S. Geological Survey’s map of Godwin. Tap a year, or press play to watch the town change.
1974Wade sheet · 1:24,000U.S. Geological Survey historical topographic maps (public domain), via Esri’s collection of the scans. The red ring marks the center of Godwin.
Famous people
See all →Famous people close to Godwin
Nobody well known was born in Godwin itself, so here are the best known from just nearby.
Questions about Godwin’s history
What year was Godwin founded?
The Godwin post office opened in 1887, the earliest record of the town by name (U.S. post office records).
Memory lane
What the archives can’t tell you, neighbors can.
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 (1), 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.