Guest, Sign inJoin

Post to Garden Valley

We’ll email a one-tap link to publish your post. No password, and nothing is public until you click it.
Already a member? Sign in
–Not graded
History · Garden Valley

Garden Valley’s post office opened in 1858, and 41% of its homes were built before 1940

Below: maps from 1924 on.

1858first post office
0on the National Register
41%homes built before 1940
Add an old photoShare a memory
Quick answers

How Garden Valley began

When was Garden Valley founded?

1858

The Garden Valley post office opened in 1858, the earliest record of the town by name. Another post office, North Branch (1869), opened inside today’s town and later closed.

2020 census: 395168 years
Founding year: the first Garden Valley post office (Blevins & Helbock, CC0).

What stands out about Garden Valley’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 Garden Valley are in the public archives yet. The rest are in attics and albums.On the map since 19243 editions of the USGS map, 1924 to 1984. Watch Garden Valley change.
★ What stands out · Help out

Start Garden Valley’s collection

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

Garden Valley on the map, 1924 to 1984

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

Garden Valley on the 1924 USGS mapGarden Valley on the 1968 USGS mapGarden Valley on the 1984 USGS map1924Black River Falls 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 Garden Valley.

The story so far

Garden Valley, in brief

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

Garden Valley is a town in Jackson County, Wisconsin, United States. The population was 395 at the 2020 census. The unincorporated community of North Branch is located in the town.

Its first post office opened in 1858. Between the 2010 and 2020 censuses its population fell from 422 to 395 (-6%).

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

Timeline

Garden Valley, 1858 to 1924

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

  1. 19th century
  2. 1858Post officeThe Garden Valley post office opens
  3. 1869Post officeThe Garden Valley post office closes
  4. 1869Post officeThe North Branch post office opens
  5. 20th century
  6. 1901Post officeThe North Branch post office closes
  7. 1924On 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.
Add from your album
Famous people

Famous people close to Garden Valley

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

See all →
Carole LandisAmerican actress · b. 1919
Herman EkernLawyer, politician; Lieutenant Governor of Wisc… · b. 1872
Dan DevineAmerican college football coach, professional f… · b. 1924
Edward E. LyonUnited States Army Medal of Honor recipient · b. 1871
Hugh H. PriceAmerican politician · b. 1859
E
Ernie RudolphAmerican baseball player · b. 1909
Places that used to be

Lost post offices, old corners, places now gone and burying grounds

Garden Valley had its own post office from 1858 to 1869. Another post office, North Branch, opened and closed inside today’s town.

Garden Valley
1858–1869
North Branch
1869–1901
18501940today
Hamlets and corners on the map
North Branch
Gone or out of use
Hillside SchoolschoolJudkins SchoolschoolLeverett SchoolschoolNapstad SchoolschoolVan Horn Schoolschool
5cemeteries and burying grounds inside Garden Valley
CurtisDiphtheriaSmallpoxStanfordWest Garden Valley

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.

AlmaIts storyC+NorthfieldIts storynot graded: under 1,000 residents or part of its townHixtonIts storynot graded: under 1,000 residents or part of its townClevelandIts storynot graded: under 1,000 residents or part of its townAlma CenterIts storynot graded: under 1,000 residents or part of its townMentorIts storynot graded: under 1,000 residents or part of its town

Questions about Garden Valley’s history

What year was Garden Valley founded?

The Garden Valley post office opened in 1858, 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.