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History · Hurley

Hurley’s post office opened in 1883, and 45% of its homes were built before 1940

Its Register listings are the Dr. Harry S. Graves House, the Farrar House and the Brough-Martinson House. Its Register listings are the Dr. Harry S. Graves House, the Farrar House and the Brough-Martinson House. Below: maps from 1898 on and the census since 1890.

1883first post office
3on the National Register
45%homes built before 1940
Add an old photoShare a memory
Quick answers

How Hurley began, and where its name came from

When was Hurley founded?

1883

The Hurley post office opened in 1883, the earliest record of the town by name.

First census: 344 in 18902020 census: 379143 years

How did Hurley get its name?

Hurley was named for R. E. Hurley, a railroad engineer.

Founding year: the first Hurley post office (Blevins & Helbock, CC0). Name: Wikipedia, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0.The full story ↓

What stands out about Hurley’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 Hurley are in the public archives yet. The rest are in attics and albums.On the map since 18983 editions of the USGS map, 1898 to 1985. Watch Hurley change.Boom and bustPeaked at 586 in 1920; 379 people lived here in 2020.Old housesHalf of Hurley’s homes were built before 1951.
★ What stands out · Help out

Start Hurley’s collection

The first neighbors to add old photos shape how Hurley’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
On the map

Hurley on the map, 1898 to 1985

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

Hurley on the 1898 USGS mapHurley on the 1968 USGS mapHurley on the 1985 USGS map1898Parker sheet · 1:125,000

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

People over time

Hurley, census by census

01002003004005006001900192019401960198020002020Peak: 586

Peaked at 586 in 1920; 379 people lived here in 2020.

14 censuses, 1890–2020.

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

The story

How Hurley came to be

From Wikipedia’s history of Hurley.

Read it all →

Hurley was platted in 1883. It was named for R. E. Hurley, a railroad engineer. A post office has been in operation in Hurley since 1883.

Text from Wikipedia, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0.

Timeline

Hurley, 1883 to 1920

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

  1. 19th century
  2. 1883Post officeThe Hurley post office opens
  3. 1892BuiltDr. Harry S. Graves House is built
  4. 1898On the mapFirst mapped by the U.S. Geological Survey
  5. 20th century
  6. 1905BuiltBrough-Martinson House is built
  7. 1906BuiltFarrar House is built
  8. 1920CensusPopulation peaks at 586
By decade

Hurley, decade by decade

Today3 recent
HurleySD FarrarHouse2017HurleySD FarrarHouseHurleySD BroughMartinsonHouse2017HurleySD BroughMartinsonHouseHurleySD AmericanLegionHall2017HurleySD AmericanLegionHall
On the National Register

3 historic places in Hurley

The country’s official list of buildings and places worth saving.

places listed
3
National Historic Landmarks
0
none yet
historic buildings protected
3
each building in a district counts
first listed
1978
Dr. Harry S. Graves House
Dr. Harry S. Graves House, built 1892Farrar House, built 1906Brough-Martinson House, built 1905
Buildings

Architectural styles listings

Queen Anne2
Victorian1
Neo-Classical1
Dr. Harry S. Graves HouseVictorian · Built 1892
Farrar HouseQueen Anne · Built 1906
Brough-Martinson HouseQueen Anne · Built 1905

National Park Service, National Register of Historic Places. Photos from Wikimedia Commons, credited on each place’s page.

Questions about Hurley’s history

What year was Hurley founded?

The Hurley post office opened in 1883, the earliest record of the town by name (U.S. post office records).

What is on the National Register in Hurley?

Three places: the Dr. Harry S. Graves House (listed 1978), the Farrar House (1978) and the Brough-Martinson House (1978).

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 Wikimedia Commons (3), the National Register of Historic Places (3), 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.