The story
Read it all →How Madison came to be
From Wikipedia’s history of Madison.
Madison was founded in 1867, named from Madison County. It was designated the county seat in 1875.
Text from Wikipedia, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0.
A−History
History · Madison
Madison dates to 1867, and 46% of its homes were built before 1940
More historic than 78% of U.S. towns. What drives it
Its Register listings are the St. Leonard's Catholic Church and the First United Presbyterian Church. Below: maps from 1963 on and the census since 1880.
1867founded
2on the National Register
46%homes built before 1940
Quick answers
How Madison began
When was Madison founded?
1867
Madison dates its founding to 1867 (Wikipedia’s history). The census first counted it in 1880.
First census: 417 in 18802020 census: 2,283159 years
How historic is Madison?
A−
What drives the grade ↓More historic than 78% of U.S. towns, on its age, its old homes and the National Register.
Founding year: Wikipedia. First post office: 1869.The full story ↓
History grade
What drives Madison’s History grade
On its age, its old homes and the National Register, Madison is more historic than 78% of U.S. towns. Its share of homes from before 1940 holds the grade up; its age pulls it down.
A−
HistoryA character grade: shown, never part of Madison’s overall grade.
Founding era1867, from Wikipedia: founded 1850–1899, an older era than 37% of U.S. townsC+Homes built before 194045.5% of homes (±10.3) · typical NE town 17.8% · U.S. 8.4%A+National Register2 listings, 4 historic buildings, 19.2 per 10,000 residents · typical NE town 16.3 · U.S. 2.4B+
All U.S. towns we grade (21,289)Ahead of 78%
NewerOlder
Nebraska towns list more on the Register than most of the country (a typical Nebraska town has 16.3 per 10,000 residents, the U.S. 2.4), so Madison’s 19.2 sits near the middle of its state (64% of Nebraska towns have fewer) while its 4 historic buildings outnumber those of 68% of U.S. towns.
How sure. Graded on any two of the three inputs instead, the letter would range from B− to A. The pre-1940 share is a Census survey estimate (±10.3 points). Two sources give 1867.
Founding year: Wikipedia (other dates in Quick answers). Homes: Census ACS 2020–24. National Register: National Park Service, May 2026 list; each listing counted once (boundary changes and added documentation belong to their listing), and a historic district counts its contributing buildings. How TownRatings grades history →
What stands out about Madison’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 Madison’s collection
The first neighbors to add old photos shape how Madison’s history is told.
Decades since 1900 with photos
00s10s20s30s40s50s60s70s80s90s
0 of 10 decades. The empty ones are waiting for someone’s album.Timeline
Madison, 1867 to 1963
Woven from the archive, old maps, post office records, the National Register and the people born here.
- 19th century
- 1867FoundingMadison is established
- 1869Post officeThe Madison post office opens
- 20th century
- 1963
On the mapFirst mapped by the U.S. Geological Survey
By decade
Madison, decade by decade
2014
2010
2005On the map
Madison on the map, 1963 to 1985
Every edition of the U.S. Geological Survey’s map of Madison. Tap a year, or press play to watch the town change.
1963Madison 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 Madison.
On the National Register
2 historic places in Madison
The country’s official list of buildings and places worth saving.
places listed
2
National Historic Landmarks
0
none yet
historic buildings protected
4
each building in a district counts
first listed
1989
St. Leonard's Catholic Church
Buildings
Architectural styles listings
Romanesque Revival2
Neo-Classical Revival1
Late Victorian1
National Park Service, National Register of Historic Places. Photos from Wikimedia Commons, credited on each place’s page.
People over time
Madison, census by census
Between 417 and 2,438 people in every census since 1880.
15 censuses, 1880–2020.
U.S. Census Bureau decennial counts, from the census table on Madison’s Wikipedia page.
Places that used to be
Old corners and burying grounds
Madison’s post office has been open since 1869.
Hamlets and corners on the map
Hillside Vista Trailer Court
1cemetery inside Madison
Saint Leonards
US Post Offices dataset (Blevins & Helbock, CC0). Places and cemeteries from the USGS Geographic Names Information System (2021).
Questions about Madison’s history
What year was Madison founded?
In 1867, according to Wikipedia’s history of the town. Madison’s post office opened in 1869, and the census of 1880 counted 417 people here.
How does Madison rank for history?
Madison is more historic than 78% of U.S. towns. The History grade combines the town’s founding era, the share of homes built before 1940 and its National Register listings. It’s a character grade, so it isn’t part of the overall grade. How it works.
What is on the National Register in Madison?
Two places: the St. Leonard's Catholic Church (listed 1989) and the First United Presbyterian Church (2008).
How old are the homes in Madison?
46% of Madison’s homes were built before 1940 (Census estimate, ±10.3 points), against a typical 18% for a Nebraska town; the median home was built in 1945.
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).
From Wikimedia Commons (3), the National Register of Historic Places (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.