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History · Forest

Forest’s post office opened in 1855, and 23% of its homes were built before 1940

Below: maps from 1926 on.

1855first post office
0on the National Register
23%homes built before 1940
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Quick answers

How Forest began

When was Forest founded?

1855

The Forest post office opened in 1855, the earliest record of the town by name. Another post office, Ash Ridge (1871), opened inside today’s town and later closed.

2020 census: 333171 years
Founding year: the first Forest post office (Blevins & Helbock, CC0).

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

Start Forest’s collection

The first neighbors to add old photos shape how Forest’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 so far

Forest, in brief

Wikipedia doesn’t have a history of Forest yet. The photos, dates and memories neighbors add here are how it gets written.

Forest is a town in Richland County, Wisconsin, United States. The population was 333 at the 2020 census. The unincorporated communities of Ash Ridge and Tunnelville are located partially in the town.

Its first post office opened in 1855. Between the 2010 and 2020 censuses its population fell from 352 to 333 (-5%).

Intro from Wikipedia. Population: U.S. Census Bureau.

Timeline

Forest, 1855 to 1926

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

  1. 19th century
  2. 1855Post officeThe Forest post office opens
  3. 1871Post officeThe Ash Ridge post office opens
  4. 1878Post officeThe Forest post office closes
  5. 20th century
  6. 1902Post officeThe Ash Ridge post office closes
  7. 1926On the mapFirst mapped by the U.S. Geological Survey
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.

Be the first to add onePhotograph a print flat, in daylight, no flash.
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On the map

Forest on the map, 1926 to 1983

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

Forest on the 1926 USGS mapForest on the 1965 USGS mapForest on the 1983 USGS map1926La Farge 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 Forest.

Famous people

Famous people close to Forest

Nobody well known was born in Forest itself, so here are the best known from just nearby.

See all →
Butch VigAmerican musician and record producer · b. 1955
C
Chris MulkeyAmerican actor · b. 1948
Mark C. LeeAmerican astronaut · b. 1952
James GillettAmerican politician · b. 1860
B
Bob WoodAmerican basketball player · b. 1921
Charles R. SavageAmerican politician · b. 1906
Places that used to be

Lost post offices, places now gone and burying grounds

Forest had its own post office from 1855 to 1878. Another post office, Ash Ridge, opened and closed inside today’s town.

Forest
1855–1878
Ash Ridge
1871–1902
18501940today
Gone or out of use
Camp Creek SchoolschoolGoose Creek SchoolschoolHopewell ChurchchurchMueller SchoolschoolPleasant Valley SchoolschoolSummit United Brethren ChurchchurchTunnelville Schoolschool
4cemeteries and burying grounds inside Forest
BenderBooherHopewellLawton

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

Stories next door

History across the town line

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

ViolaIts storynot graded: under 1,000 residents or part of its townBloomIts storynot graded: under 1,000 residents or part of its townSylvanIts storynot graded: under 1,000 residents or part of its townStarkIts storynot graded: under 1,000 residents or part of its townLibertyIts storynot graded: under 1,000 residents or part of its town

Questions about Forest’s history

What year was Forest founded?

The Forest post office opened in 1855, 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 U.S. Geological Survey historical maps, 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.