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History · Holden

Holden dates to 1855, and 43% of its homes were built before 1940

Below: maps from 1962 on and the census since 1870.

1855founded
0on the National Register
43%homes built before 1940
1famous people
Add an old photoShare a memory
Photo: Keagan · CC BY-SA 4.0
Quick answers

How Holden began

When was Holden founded?

1855

Holden dates its founding to 1855 (Wikidata and Wikipedia’s history agree). The census first counted it in 1870.

First census: 266 in 18702020 census: 438171 years
Founding year: Wikidata; Wikipedia’s history section gives the same year. First post office: 1864.The full story ↓

What stands out about Holden’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 Holden are in the public archives yet. The rest are in attics and albums.Boom and bustPeaked at 642 in 1920; 438 people lived here in 2020.Old housesHalf of Holden’s homes were built before 1944.
★ What stands out · Help out

Start Holden’s collection

The first neighbors to add old photos shape how Holden’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
People over time

Holden, census by census

010020030040050060070018801900192019401960198020002020Peak: 642

Peaked at 642 in 1920; 438 people lived here in 2020.

16 censuses, 1870–2020.

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

The story

How Holden came to be

From Wikipedia’s history of Holden.

Read it all →

Holden was settled in 1855 by a group of ten families sent out by the bishop of the local congregation of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints in Fillmore. Named Cedar Springs for the springs in the junipers that the community was built around. The town then assumed the name Buttermilk Fort because travelers passing through were encouraged to stop for a glass of cold buttermilk while resting. The town got its post office in 1864, and the town was renamed for Elijah E. Holden, a member of the Mormon Battalion who was one of the first settlers of Holden and died while caught in a snowstorm in 1858.

Text from Wikipedia, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0.

Timeline

Holden, 1855 to 1962

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

  1. 19th century
  2. 1855
    FoundingHolden is established
  3. 1864Post officeThe Holden post office opens
  4. 1876Born hereGeorge Stringam is born here
  5. 20th century
  6. 1920CensusPopulation peaks at 642
  7. 1962On the mapFirst mapped by the U.S. Geological Survey
By decade

Holden, decade by decade

Today9 recent
From a Plane2016From a PlaneUT-64 South, to I-152014UT-64 South, to I-15US-50 Use I-15 NB2014US-50 Use I-15 NBUS-50 Shield off of I-15 in2014US-50 Shield off of I-15 inOlder US-50 BGS Shield2014Older US-50 BGS ShieldInterstates and US 50 directional sign in2014Interstates and US 50 directional sign inI-70 Mention all the way out in Holden...also, US-502014I-70 Mention all the way out in Holden...also, US-50Holden Gantry2014Holden Gantry"TO I-15, West US-50"2014"TO I-15, West US-50"
On the map

Holden on the map in 1962

The U.S. Geological Survey’s map of Holden.

Holden on the 1962 USGS map1962Holden sheet · 1:24,000

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

Questions about Holden’s history

What year was Holden founded?

In 1855, according to Wikidata and Wikipedia’s history of the town. Holden’s post office opened in 1864, and the census of 1870 counted 266 people here.

Memory lane

What the archives can’t tell you, neighbors can.

Town Square →
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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 (9), Wikipedia, Wikidata and Wikipedia for famous people, 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.