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–Not graded
History · Bowler

Bowler’s post office opened in 1906, and 26% of its homes were built before 1940

Below: maps from 1964 on and the census since 1930.

1906first post office
0on the National Register
26%homes built before 1940
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Photo: Royalbroil · CC BY-SA 4.0
Quick answers

How Bowler began

When was Bowler founded?

1906

The Bowler post office opened in 1906, the earliest record of the town by name.

First census: 318 in 19302020 census: 320120 years
Founding year: the first Bowler post office (Blevins & Helbock, CC0).The full story ↓

What stands out about Bowler’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 Bowler are in the public archives yet. The rest are in attics and albums.
★ What stands out · Help out

Start Bowler’s collection

The first neighbors to add old photos shape how Bowler’s history is told.

Decades since 1900 with photos
00s10s20s30s40s50s60s70s80s90s
0 of 10 decades. The empty ones are waiting for someone’s album.
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The story

How Bowler came to be

From Wikipedia’s history of Bowler.

Read it all →

Bowler was named for Col. J. C. Bowler, who owned a tract of land near the town site.

Text from Wikipedia, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0.

By decade

Bowler, decade by decade

Today2 recent
Bowler Wisconsin Sign2015Bowler Wisconsin SignBowler Wisconsin Downtown2015Bowler Wisconsin Downtown
On the map

Bowler on the map, 1964 to 1982

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

Bowler on the 1964 USGS mapBowler on the 1982 USGS map1964Gresham 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 Bowler.

People over time

Bowler, census by census

010020030019401960198020002020Peak: 344

Between 272 and 344 people in every census since 1930.

10 censuses, 1930–2020.

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

Stories next door

History across the town line

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

AlmonIts storynot graded: under 1,000 residents or part of its townSenecaIts storynot graded: under 1,000 residents or part of its townMorrisIts storynot graded: under 1,000 residents or part of its townBartelmeIts storynot graded: under 1,000 residents or part of its town

Questions about Bowler’s history

What year was Bowler founded?

The Bowler post office opened in 1906, 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 (2), 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.