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History · Frankfort

Frankfort’s post office opened in 1892, and 26% of its homes were built before 1940

Below: maps from 1902 on and old-book passages.

1892first post office
0on the National Register
26%homes built before 1940
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Quick answers

How Frankfort began

When was Frankfort founded?

1892

The Frankfort post office opened in 1892, the earliest record of the town by name. Another post office, Swan (1894), opened inside today’s town and later closed.

2020 census: 635134 years
Founding year: the first Frankfort post office (Blevins & Helbock, CC0).

What stands out about Frankfort’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 Frankfort are in the public archives yet. The rest are in attics and albums.On the map since 19023 editions of the USGS map, 1902 to 1981. Watch Frankfort change.
★ What stands out · Help out

Start Frankfort’s collection

The first neighbors to add old photos shape how Frankfort’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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On the map

Frankfort on the map, 1902 to 1981

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

Frankfort on the 1902 USGS mapFrankfort on the 1963 USGS mapFrankfort on the 1981 USGS map1902Marathon sheet · 1:125,000

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

The story so far

Frankfort, in brief

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

Frankfort is a town in Marathon County, Wisconsin, United States. It is part of the Wausau, Wisconsin Metropolitan Statistical Area. It is part of the Wausau, Wisconsin Metropolitan Statistical Area. The population was 635 at the 2020 census. The unincorporated community of Swan is located in the town.

Its first post office opened in 1892. Between the 2010 and 2020 censuses its population fell from 670 to 635 (-5%).

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

From the old history books

What they wrote about Frankfort in 1913

Passages that mention Frankfort, cut from the printed page as they were published.

and wholesome life of the lumber regions not only bringing him good health but also proving satisfactory in a financial way. From being an ordinary carpenter he became a carpenter contractor in the town of Frankfort, from which he moved, in 1897, to Haider, in the town of Emmet, where he embarked i…
History of Marathon County, Wisconsin1913 · page 641Read the page →
Read the text

and wholesome life of the lumber regions not only bringing him good health but also proving satisfactory in a financial way. From being an ordinary carpenter he became a carpenter contractor in the town of Frankfort, from which he moved, in 1897, to Haider, in the town of Emmet, where he embarked in a general mercantile business and so continued until his first election to the responsible office he yet fills.

Text read by machine from the scan; it may contain errors.
There are two German Evangelical Lutheran churches in the town, both on the extreme west, which give the people of the town of Frankfort a chance to attend and become members of the congregation, the eastern portion attending divine service in the village of Edgar.
History of Marathon County, Wisconsin1913 · page 553Read the page →
Read the text

There are two German Evangelical Lutheran churches in the town, both on the extreme west, which give the people of the town of Frankfort a chance to attend and become members of the congregation, the eastern portion attending divine service in the village of Edgar.

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.

Timeline

Frankfort, 1892 to 1902

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

  1. 19th century
  2. 1892Post officeThe Frankfort post office opens
  3. 1894Post officeThe Swan post office opens
  4. 1895Post officeThe Frankfort post office closes
  5. 20th century
  6. 1902Post officeThe Swan post office closes
  7. 1902On 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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Famous people

Famous people close to Frankfort

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

See all →
Charles WinningerActor · b. 1884
Dave DudleyAmerican musician · b. 1928
George Washington BlanchardAmerican politician · b. 1884
M
Macey KiltyAmerican freestyle wrestler · b. 2001
Russ DeckerAmerican politician · b. 1953
T
Tyler DennettAmerican historian · b. 1883
Places that used to be

Lost post offices, old corners and places now gone

Frankfort had its own post office from 1892 to 1895. Another post office, Swan, opened and closed inside today’s town.

Frankfort
1892–1895
Swan
1894–1902
18901960today
Hamlets and corners on the map
Swan
Gone or out of use
Fairchild SchoolschoolFranklin SchoolschoolHillcrest SchoolschoolHoard SchoolschoolRusk SchoolschoolSmith SchoolschoolUpham Schoolschool

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.

HullIts storynot graded: under 1,000 residents or part of its townJohnsonIts storynot graded: under 1,000 residents or part of its townWienIts storynot graded: under 1,000 residents or part of its townEau PleineIts storynot graded: under 1,000 residents or part of its town

Questions about Frankfort’s history

What year was Frankfort founded?

The Frankfort post office opened in 1892, 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 →
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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), the USGS Geographic Names Information System 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.