Each edition grades its towns against each other only.
Below: maps from 1967 on and the census since 1900.
The Allen post office opened in 1890, the earliest record of the town by name.
Allen was named for Henry Allen, the original owner of the town site.
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 Allen’s history is told.
Peaked at 489 in 1930; 355 people lived here in 2020.
13 censuses, 1900–2020.
U.S. Census Bureau decennial counts, from the census table on Allen’s Wikipedia page.
From Wikipedia’s history of Allen.
Allen was established in 1890 when the railroad was extended to that point. It was named for Henry Allen, the original owner of the town site. Allen was incorporated as a village in 1893.
Text from Wikipedia, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0.
Passages that mention Allen, cut from the printed page as they were published.
Henry Allen. A part of his large farm became the townsite of Allen, which place was named after him. Sol. Koser, J. Kellogg, Charles Kellogg, John Green and John Allen also came in 1870.
Text read by machine from the scan; it may contain errors.
Allen is situated on a slight elevation from which a view is had of a fine farming country, beautiful valleys and rolling prairie. It is on the Short Line railroad, and hence is a good market town, being in the centre of a very rich country in id one which is thickly settled by well to do citizens. Allen naturally has a large business and a continued growth.
Text read by machine from the scan; it may contain errors.Scans and text from the Internet Archive. Books published in 1930 or earlier, which are in the public domain.
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 Allen. 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 Allen.
Nobody well known was born in Allen itself, so here are the best known from just nearby.
The Allen post office opened in 1890, the earliest record of the town by name (U.S. post office records).
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), the USGS Geographic Names Information System and old county and town histories (Internet Archive). Archive images are copied here with their credits and licenses, shown on each photo’s page. Refreshed monthly.
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