The dells of the Big Rib River in Goodrich are probably the rapids where Father René Menard disappeared in 1661, while attempting to reach a band of Huron Indians near the headwaters of the Black River. He left his partner at the rapids to carry some supplies and was never seen again.
The south and east edges of the six by six mile square that would become Goodrich were first surveyed in 1851 by crews working for the U.S. government. In December 1861 a different crew of surveyors marked all the section corners in the township, walking through the woods and swamps, measuring with chain and compass. When done, the deputy surveyor filed this general description:
Passages that mention Goodrich, cut from the printed page as they were published.
The Goodrich family in America. A genealogy of the descendants of John and William Goodrich of Wethersfield, Conn., Richard Goodrich of Guilford, Conn., and William Goodridge of Watertown, Mass., together with a short historical account of the family in E1889 · page 10Read the page →
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dier and statesman, and is thought to have expended a considerable part of the ransoms obtained from prisoners, taken by him in the French wars, on the reparation and improvement of Goodrich Castle. His descendant, John Talbot, the great Earl of Shrewsbury, who was killed at the battle of Castillon, in 1453, * * is styled Lord of Goodrich Castle and Orchenfield. His descendants were equally distinguished for bravery, and were frequently
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Scans and text from the Internet Archive. Books published in 1930 or earlier, which are in the public domain.
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 (4), Wikipedia, 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.
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