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A+History
History · Berlin

Berlin’s post office opened in 1848, and 28% of its homes were built before 1940

More historic than 96% of U.S. towns · #7 of 362 in Wisconsin. What drives it

8 places in town are on the National Register, among them a historic district with 46 buildings. Below: 16 old photos and papers, maps from 1884 on, and the census since 1860.

1848first post office
8on the National Register
28%homes built before 1940
16old photos & papers
12famous people
Add an old photoShare a memory
From Berlin’s archive · credits on each photo
Quick answers

How Berlin began, and where its name came from

When was Berlin founded?

1848

The Berlin post office opened in 1848, the earliest record of the town by name.

First census: 1,449 in 18602020 census: 5,571178 years

How did Berlin get its name?

Berlin was named Berlin after the capital of Prussia, now the capital of Germany.

How historic is Berlin?

A+

More historic than 96% of U.S. towns, on its age, its old homes and the National Register.

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

What drives Berlin’s History grade

On its age, its old homes and the National Register, Berlin is more historic than 96% of U.S. towns, #7 of 362 in Wisconsin. All 3 inputs are above most U.S. towns; its National Register listings ranks highest and its age lowest.

A+
HistoryA character grade: shown, never part of Berlin’s overall grade.
Founding era1848, from the first post office: founded 1776–1849, an older era than 75% of U.S. townsA−Homes built before 194028.0% of homes (±4.6) · typical WI town 12.1% · U.S. 8.4%A−National Register8 listings, 210 historic buildings, 378 per 10,000 residents · typical WI town 3.0 · U.S. 2.4A+
All U.S. towns we grade (21,289)Ahead of 96%
NewerOlder
Wisconsin towns of 2,500+ (362)Ahead of 98%

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 Berlin’s 378 sits above most of its state (99% of Wisconsin towns have fewer) while its 210 historic buildings outnumber those of 94% of U.S. towns.

How sure. Graded on any two of the three inputs instead, the letter would range from A to A+. The pre-1940 share is a Census survey estimate (±4.6 points). The founding year is the first post office, not a stated founding date.

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 →

What stands out about Berlin’s past

Read from the archive, the National Register and the record. The page puts what stands out first.

A historic districtThe Huron Street Historic District takes in 46 historic buildings.Mapped building by building5 fire insurance maps, 1884 to 1911, drew every building in Berlin.A town in old photos16 old photos, postcards and papers, 1867–1917.Landmarks on the Register8 places on the National Register.
★ What stands out · On the National Register

8 listings protect 210 historic buildings

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

places listed
8
National Historic Landmarks
0
none yet
historic buildings protected
210
each building in a district counts
first listed
1990
Nelson F. Beckwith House
Nelson F. Beckwith House, built 1858Beckwith House Hotel, built 1863Wisconsin Power and Light Berlin Power PlantHuron Street Historic DistrictBerlin Post OfficeNathan Strong Park Historic DistrictBerlin High School, built 1918Luther, J. P., Company Glove Factory
BuildingsDistricts

Architectural styles listings

Greek Revival2
Late 19th and Early 20th Century American Movements2
Italianate2
Commercial Vernacular1
Classical Revival1
Modern Movement1
Nelson F. Beckwith HouseGreek Revival · Built 1858
Beckwith House HotelCommercial Vernacular · Built 1863
Wisconsin Power and Light Berlin Power PlantLate 19th and Early 20th Century American Movements
Huron Street Historic DistrictClassical Revival
Berlin Post OfficeModern Movement
Nathan Strong Park Historic DistrictGreek Revival
Berlin High SchoolBuilt 1918
All 8 listings
Luther, J. P., Company Glove FactoryBuilding · listed 1997

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

Every building

Berlin, building by building, 1884–1911

Fire insurance maps drew every building, what it was made of and what it was used for, so insurers could price the risk of fire. Pick a year, then a sheet.

Berlin fire insurance map, 1884, sheet 11884Sheet 1 of 2
Edition
BrickWoodStone

Sanborn Map Company, via the Library of Congress. Editions published in 1930 or earlier, which are in the public domain.

By decade

Berlin, decade by decade

3 decades in the archive, from the 1860s to the 1910s. Scroll each row; tap a photo for its story.

1860s1 item
Bird's eye view of the city of Berlin, Green Lake Co., Wisconsin 18671867Bird's eye view of the city of Berlin, Green Lake Co.…
1900s–1910s15 items
J. P. Luther Glove Co. ("American medical directory", 1906 advert)1906J. P. Luther Glove Co. ("American medical directory",…Training School1911Training SchoolTraining School & High School1911Training School & High SchoolBerlin schools1912Berlin schoolsFactories. Berlin, Wis1912Factories. Berlin, WisChurches1912ChurchesGranite quarries1912Granite quarriesFox River1912Fox RiverGreetings from Berlin, Wis1912Greetings from Berlin, WisPacific Coast Milk Condensory1912Pacific Coast Milk CondensoryPacific Coast Milk Condensory1912Pacific Coast Milk CondensoryCatholic churches and schools1912Catholic churches and schoolsBusiness section1915Business sectionIndustries of War - Gloves and Mittens - MANUFACTURING GLOVES FOR GOVERNMENT AT FRANK RUSSELL GLOVE CO., BERLIN, Wiscon…1917Industries of War - Gloves and Mittens - MANUFACTURIN…Industries of War - Gloves and Mittens - MANUFACTURING GLOVES FOR GOVERNMENT AT FRANK RUSSELL GLOVE CO., BERLIN, Wiscon…1917Industries of War - Gloves and Mittens - MANUFACTURIN…
1920s–1990snothing yet
Nothing in the archives for these yearsWeddings on Main Street, storms, parades, school pictures, the old store. If it’s in your family album, it belongs here.
Add from your album
The story

How Berlin came to be

From Wikipedia’s history of Berlin.

Read it all →

In 1845, Nathan H. Strong (1813–1852) became the first resident of what is today Berlin. He was joined by Hugh G. Martin, Hiram Barnes, and William Dickey. Their settlement was known as Strong's Landing. In 1848, a post office was established. It was named Berlin after the capital of Prussia, now the capital of Germany. The first school house was built in 1850 and the first church in 1851. Berlin was incorporated as a city in 1857.

ChaptersPronunciation

Text from Wikipedia, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0.

Timeline

Berlin, 1848 to 1967

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

  1. 19th century
  2. 1848Post officeThe Berlin post office opens
  3. 1858BuiltNelson F. Beckwith House is built
  4. 1863BuiltBeckwith House Hotel is built
  5. 1867In the archiveBird's eye view of the city of Berlin, Green Lake Co., Wisconsin 1867
  6. 1881Born hereWilliam Nigh is born here
  7. 1888Born hereLuther Reed is born here
  8. 20th century
  9. 1906In the archiveJ. P. Luther Glove Co. ("American medical directory", 1906 advert)
  10. 1911In the archiveTraining School
  11. 1918BuiltBerlin High School is built
  12. 1918On the mapFirst mapped by the U.S. Geological Survey
  13. 1937Born hereBill Butler is born here
  14. 1967Born hereAndy Jorgensen is born here
On the map

Berlin on the map, 1918 to 1980

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

Berlin on the 1918 USGS mapBerlin on the 1956 USGS mapBerlin on the 1980 USGS map1918Ripon sheet · 1:62,500

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

Then & now

Stand where they stood

No then-and-now pairs yet. Take a photo from the same spot as an old one and they appear here side by side.

Bird's eye view of the city of Berlin, Green Lake Co., Wisconsin 1867
Retake this viewBird's eye view of the city of Berlin, Green Lake Co., Wisconsin 1867, 1867

Find the spot, match the angle, and add your photo. It becomes the first then-and-now pair on Berlin’s page.

Retake this view · +15
People over time

Berlin, census by census

05001,0001,5002,0002,5003,0003,5004,0004,5005,0005,5006,0001900195020005,571

Grew from 1,449 people in 1860 to 5,571 in 2020, 3 times over.

17 censuses, 1860–2020.

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

Famous people

12 famous people were born in Berlin

Writers, athletes, leaders and more, ranked by how widely they’re known.

See all →
William NighAmerican film director, writer and actor · b. 1881
Luther ReedAmerican film director and screenwrigter · b. 1888
Andy JorgensenAmerican politician · b. 1967
B
Bill ButlerAmerican football player born 1937 · b. 1937
Luther OlsenAmerican politician · b. 1951
Solon J. BuckUnited States archivist and historian · b. 1884
Places that used to be

Places now gone and burying grounds

Berlin’s post office has been open since 1848.

Gone or out of use
Berlin Grade SchoolschoolFirst Baptist ChurchchurchFirst Methodist Episcopal Churchchurch
3cemeteries and burying grounds inside Berlin
OakwoodSaint Michael'sSaint Stanislaus

US Post Offices dataset (Blevins & Helbock, CC0). Places and cemeteries from the USGS Geographic Names Information System (2021).

Help out

Finish Berlin’s story

Most archives stop around 1920. The photos from after that are in family albums, not libraries.

Decades since 1900 with photos
00s10s20s30s40s50s60s70s80s90s
2 of 10 decades. The empty ones are waiting for someone’s album.
Retake an old viewBird's eye view of the city of Berlin, …: stand where they stood+15Share a family photoSign in to add one+10
Stories next door

History across the town line

Each neighbor’s History grade, on the same three inputs.

AuroraIts storyB−

Questions about Berlin’s history

What year was Berlin founded?

The Berlin post office opened in 1848, the earliest record of the town by name (U.S. post office records).

How does Berlin rank for history?

Berlin is more historic than 96% of U.S. towns, #7 of 362 in Wisconsin. 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 Berlin?

8 listings: 7 buildings, among them the Nelson F. Beckwith House (listed 1990, the first), and 1 historic district, the Huron Street Historic District, with 46 contributing buildings. 210 historic buildings in all.

How old are the homes in Berlin?

28% of Berlin’s homes were built before 1940 (Census estimate, ±4.6 points), against a typical 12% for a Wisconsin town; the median home was built in 1968.

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).

From Wikimedia Commons (4), the Library of Congress (12), Wikidata (2), the National Register of Historic Places (8), 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), the USGS Geographic Names Information System and Sanborn fire insurance maps (Library of Congress). Archive images are copied here with their credits and licenses, shown on each photo’s page. Refreshed monthly.