Every edition of the U.S. Geological Survey’s map of Delavan Lake. Tap a year, or press play to watch the town change.
1893Delavan 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 Delavan Lake.
The story so far
Delavan Lake, in brief
Wikipedia doesn’t have a history of Delavan Lake yet. The photos, dates and memories neighbors add here are how it gets written.
Delavan Lake is a census-designated place (CDP) in the towns of Delavan and Walworth, Walworth County, Wisconsin, United States. The population was 2,803 at the 2020 census. It is located near the shore of Delavan Lake.
Between the 2010 and 2020 censuses its population grew from 2,649 to 2,803 (+6%).
Intro from Wikipedia. Population: U.S. Census Bureau.
From the old history books
What they wrote about Delavan Lake in 1882
Passages that mention Delavan Lake, cut from the printed page as they were published.
History of Walworth County, Wisconsin, containing an account of its settlement, growth, development and resources...its war record, biographical sketches, portraits of prominent men and early settlers1882 · page 709Read the page →
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Samuel made his first claim in Delavan by blazing trees, etc., and christened it Temperance Colony Claim. This claim was near Swan, now Delevau Lake. Early in the spring of 1837, Mr. Phoenix returned to Perry, N. Y., for his family, arriving with them at Delavan in July, 1837. In Februaiy, 1838, the brothers built a saw-mill on the outlet of Delavan Lake, and, in 1839, a large grist-mill. Becoming convinced in a short time that Tm-tle Creek would be a more favorable location for the future village of Delavan, they determined on the present site, and, secm-ing a tract of about 4,000 acres, located many claims for their friends, who soon followed them from the far East, and thus laid the foundation for the present beautiful and floui--
Text read by machine from the scan; it may contain errors.
History of Walworth County, Wisconsin, containing an account of its settlement, growth, development and resources...its war record, biographical sketches, portraits of prominent men and early settlers1882 · page 651Read the page →
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The sm-face of the town is generally quite rolling, but a very small portion being flat and level. There is considerable marsh land, the greater portion of it lying in the vicinity of Delavan Lake. These marshes now constitute great natural hay meadows. Around Delavan Lake was originally a large amount of timber, mainly oak, with some hickory and a little red cedar and poplar. Extending nearly across the town, from the village of Delavan to Elkhorn, is a level tract of land known as Delavan Prairie, while in the western part is Blooming Prairie, which is smaller and of less importance.
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.
By decade
No old photos in the archives yet
Weddings on Main Street, storms, parades, school pictures, the old store. If it’s in your family album, it belongs here.
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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 U.S. Geological Survey historical maps, U.S. Census counts (via Wikipedia) 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.
