Each edition grades its towns against each other only.
More historic than 51% of U.S. towns. What drives it
Below: maps from 1955 on and old-book passages.
The Ashford post office opened in 1852, the earliest record of the town by name. Another post office, Elmore (1868), opened inside today’s town and later closed.
More historic than 51% of U.S. towns, on its age, its old homes and the National Register.
On its age, its old homes and the National Register, Ashford is more historic than 51% of U.S. towns. Its share of homes from before 1940 holds the grade up; its National Register listings pull it down.
Wisconsin towns list more on the Register than most of the country (a typical Wisconsin town has 3.0 per 10,000 residents, the U.S. 2.4), so Ashford’s 0.0 sits below most of its state (28% of Wisconsin towns have fewer) while its 0 listings outnumber those of 23% of U.S. towns.
Founding year: the first post office (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 →
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 Ashford’s history is told.
From Wikipedia’s history of Ashford.
Ashford was originally named Chili until the Wisconsin State Legislature changed the name to Ashford on January 26, 1854, on account of area ash trees.
Text from Wikipedia, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0.
Passages that mention Ashford, cut from the printed page as they were published.
pike and rock, black, green and strawberry bass, which are caught liberally by the pleasure seekers. Pickerel weigliing thirty pounds have been caught in this lake. As a ducking and excellent fishing place. Long Lake, in Sections 13, 24 and 25, of the town of Osceola, is of the most importance, although Duck Lake, in the town of Ashford, Mullet Lake, in the town of Forest, and Lake Fifteen, in the town of Auburn, are famous. Rivers. — Fond du Lac County might well and properly be called the birthplace of rivers, for it has the honor of being the source of more rivers and creeks than any other in Wisconsin-^ perhaps in the Union. And what may be considered still more remarkable, these streams actually
Text read by machine from the scan; it may contain errors.
pike and rock, black, green and strawberry bass, which are caught liberally by the pleasure seekers. Pickerel weighing thirty pounds have been caught in this lake. As a ducking and •excellent fishing place. Long Lake, in Sections 13, 24 and 25, of the town of Osceola, is of the most importance, although Duck Lake, in the town of Ashford, Muliet Lake, in the town of Forest, and Lake Fifteen, in the town of Auburn, are famous. Rivers. — Fond du Lac County might well and properly be called the birthplace of rivers, for it has the honor of being the source of more rivers and creeks than any other in Wisconsin — perhaps in the Union. And what may be considered still more remarkable, these streams actually
Text read by machine from the scan; it may contain errors.
Ashford. — This village (Ellmore Post Office) was formerly called Leglerville, after its founder, Ulrich Legler, who platted it and built a saw-mill in 1857. He also built a grist-mill here in 1861, on the West Branch of the Milwaukee River. In 1867, the Evangelical Reformed Church erected a building here for worship, having one, also, at New Cassel. The first Postmaster was C. F. Brokmeyer ; the present Postmaster is William Reinhartt. The village contains a store, saloon, vfagon-shop, meat market, shoe store, tailor-shop and blacksmith-shop.
Text read by machine from the scan; it may contain errors.
Ashford was originally organized as the town of Chili ; but for some reason this name was not satisfactory, and by act of the Legislature, approved January 26, 1854, it was changed to Ashford, which, it is said, was suggested on account of the great quantity of ash timber growing in the town. This name was given by Dr. S. G. Pickett.
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.
Weddings on Main Street, storms, parades, school pictures, the old store. If it’s in your family album, it belongs here.
Every edition of the U.S. Geological Survey’s map of Ashford. 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 Ashford.
Nobody well known was born in Ashford itself, so here are the best known from just nearby.
Ashford had its own post office from 1852 to 1901. Another post office, Elmore, opened and closed inside today’s town.
US Post Offices dataset (Blevins & Helbock, CC0). Places and cemeteries from the USGS Geographic Names Information System (2021).
Each neighbor’s History grade, on the same three inputs.
The Ashford post office opened in 1852, the earliest record of the town by name (U.S. post office records).
Ashford is more historic than 51% 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.
33% of Ashford’s homes were built before 1940 (Census estimate, ±11.8 points), against a typical 12% for a Wisconsin town; the median home was built in 1977.
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).
From Wikipedia, U.S. Geological Survey historical maps, 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.
