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–Not graded
History · Birnamwood

Birnamwood’s post office opened in 1881, and 33% of its homes were built before 1940

Below: maps from 1964 on and the census since 1900.

1881first post office
0on the National Register
33%homes built before 1940
2famous people
Add an old photoShare a memory
Photo: Royalbroil · CC BY-SA 3.0
Quick answers

How Birnamwood began

When was Birnamwood founded?

1881

The Birnamwood post office opened in 1881, the earliest record of the town by name.

First census: 475 in 19002020 census: 730145 years
Founding year: the first Birnamwood post office (Blevins & Helbock, CC0).The full story ↓

What stands out about Birnamwood’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 Birnamwood are in the public archives yet. The rest are in attics and albums.Old housesHalf of Birnamwood’s homes were built before 1963.
★ What stands out · Help out

Start Birnamwood’s collection

The first neighbors to add old photos shape how Birnamwood’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
The story

How Birnamwood came to be

From Wikipedia’s history of Birnamwood.

Read it all →

The village was named for Birnam Wood, a town in Scotland mentioned in Shakespeare's Macbeth.

Text from Wikipedia, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0.

Timeline

Birnamwood, 1881 to 1964

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

  1. 19th century
  2. 1881Post officeThe Birnamwood post office opens
  3. 1889Born hereChester J. Roberts is born here
  4. 20th century
  5. 1936Born hereEarl W. Schmidt is born here
  6. 1964On the mapFirst mapped by the U.S. Geological Survey
By decade

Birnamwood, decade by decade

Today5 recent
Maple Syrup Grades2017Maple Syrup GradesBirnamwood Wisconsin Sign July 2011 US 452011Birnamwood Wisconsin Sign July 2011 US 45Birnamwood Wisconsin Downtown North July 2011 US 452011Birnamwood Wisconsin Downtown North July 2011 US 45BirnamwoodWisconsinDowntownUS452010BirnamwoodWisconsinDowntownUS45BirnamwoodWisconsin22006BirnamwoodWisconsin2
On the map

Birnamwood on the map, 1964 to 1982

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

Birnamwood on the 1964 USGS mapBirnamwood on the 1982 USGS map1964Wittenberg 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 Birnamwood.

People over time

Birnamwood, census by census

02004006008001900192019401960198020002020Peak: 818

Between 475 and 818 people in every census since 1900.

13 censuses, 1900–2020.

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

Famous people

2 famous people were born in Birnamwood

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

See all →
C
Chester J. RobertsAmerican football player and coach · b. 1889
E
Earl W. SchmidtAmerican judge · b. 1936
Stories next door

History across the town line

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

NorrieIts storyC+AniwaIts storynot graded: under 1,000 residents or part of its town

Questions about Birnamwood’s history

What year was Birnamwood founded?

The Birnamwood post office opened in 1881, the earliest record of the town by name (U.S. post office records).

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 (5), 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.