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BHistory
History · Grantsburg

Grantsburg’s post office opened in 1867, and 25% of its homes were built before 1940

More historic than 64% of U.S. towns. What drives it

Its Register listing is the Burnett County Abstract Company. Below: maps from 1894 on and the census since 1880.

1867first post office
1on the National Register
25%homes built before 1940
5famous people
Add an old photoShare a memory
Quick answers

How Grantsburg began

When was Grantsburg founded?

1867

The Grantsburg post office opened in 1867, the earliest record of the town by name.

First census: 101 in 18802020 census: 1,330159 years

How historic is Grantsburg?

B

More historic than 64% of U.S. towns, on its age, its old homes and the National Register.

What drives the grade ↓
Founding year: the first Grantsburg post office (Blevins & Helbock, CC0).
History grade

What drives Grantsburg’s History grade

On its age, its old homes and the National Register, Grantsburg is more historic than 64% of U.S. towns. Its share of homes from before 1940 holds the grade up; its age pulls it down.

B
HistoryA character grade: shown, never part of Grantsburg’s overall grade.
Founding era1867, from the first post office: founded 1850–1899, an older era than 37% of U.S. townsC+Homes built before 194024.5% of homes (±6.2) · typical WI town 12.1% · U.S. 8.4%A−National Register1 listing, 7.5 per 10,000 residents · typical WI town 3.0 · U.S. 2.4B
All U.S. towns we grade (21,289)Ahead of 64%
NewerOlder

Wisconsin towns list more on the Register than most of the country (a typical Wisconsin town has 3.0 per 10,000 residents, the U.S. 2.4), so Grantsburg’s 7.5 sits above most of its state (71% of Wisconsin towns have fewer) while its 1 listings outnumber those of 51% of U.S. towns.

How sure. Graded on any two of the three inputs instead, the letter would range from C+ to A−. The pre-1940 share is a Census survey estimate (±6.2 points). The founding year is the first post office, not a stated founding date.

Founding year: the first post office (other dates in Quick answers). Homes: Census ACS 2020–24. National Register: National Park Service, May 2026 list; each listing counted once (boundary changes and added documentation belong to their listing), and a historic district counts its contributing buildings. How TownRatings grades history →

What stands out about Grantsburg’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 Grantsburg are in the public archives yet. The rest are in attics and albums.Mapped building by building3 fire insurance maps, 1894 to 1916, drew every building in Grantsburg.
★ What stands out · Help out

Start Grantsburg’s collection

The first neighbors to add old photos shape how Grantsburg’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
Every building

Grantsburg, building by building, 1894–1916

Fire insurance maps drew every building, what it was made of and what it was used for, so insurers could price the risk of fire. Pick a year, then a sheet.

Grantsburg fire insurance map, 1894, sheet 11894Sheet 1 of 2
Edition
BrickWoodStone

Sanborn Map Company, via the Library of Congress. Editions published in 1930 or earlier, which are in the public domain.

The story so far

Grantsburg, in brief

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

Grantsburg is a village in Burnett County, Wisconsin, United States. The population was 1,330 at the 2020 census. The village is located within the Town of Grantsburg. It was established by Canute Anderson.

Its first post office opened in 1867. Its population held steady between the last two censuses: 1,341 in 2010, 1,330 in 2020.

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

Timeline

Grantsburg, 1867 to 2000

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

  1. 19th century
  2. 1867Post officeThe Grantsburg post office opens
  3. 20th century
  4. 1908BuiltBurnett County Abstract Company is built
  5. 1962On the mapFirst mapped by the U.S. Geological Survey
  6. 1968Born hereJessie Chandler is born here
  7. 1977Born hereJon Rydberg is born here
  8. 1995Born hereGus Johnson is born here
  9. 21st century
  10. 2000Born hereLeo Chenal is born here
By decade

Grantsburg, decade by decade

Today6 recent
Grantsburg Municipal Airport (GTG), Wisconsin2018Grantsburg Municipal Airport (GTG), WisconsinSandrock Cliff Campground on the Saint Croix River, Wisconsin2017Sandrock Cliff Campground on the Saint Croix River, W…NPS saint-croix-river-map-7-highway-70-landing2016NPS saint-croix-river-map-7-highway-70-landingMapNPS saint-croix-river-map-6-sand-creek-landing2016NPS saint-croix-river-map-6-sand-creek-landingMapDowntown Grantsburg over Memory Lake2010Downtown Grantsburg over Memory LakeGrantsburgHS2008GrantsburgHS
On the map

Grantsburg on the map, 1962 to 1982

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

Grantsburg on the 1962 USGS mapGrantsburg on the 1982 USGS map1962Grantsburg 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 Grantsburg.

On the National Register

1 historic place in Grantsburg

The country’s official list of buildings and places worth saving.

place listed
1
National Historic Landmarks
0
none yet
historic buildings protected
1
each building in a district counts
first listed
1980
Burnett County Abstract Company
Burnett County Abstract Company, built 1908
Buildings

Architectural styles listings

Vernacular Commercial1
Burnett County Abstract CompanyVernacular Commercial · Built 1908

National Park Service, National Register of Historic Places. Photos from Wikimedia Commons, credited on each place’s page.

People over time

Grantsburg, census by census

02004006008001,0001,2001,40018801900192019401960198020002020Peak: 1,369

Between 101 and 1,369 people in every census since 1880.

15 censuses, 1880–2020.

U.S. Census Bureau decennial counts, from the census table on Grantsburg’s Wikipedia page.

Famous people

5 famous people were born in Grantsburg

Writers, athletes, leaders and more, ranked by how widely they’re known.

See all →
Leo ChenalAmerican football player · b. 2000
Gus JohnsonAmerican YouTube comedian and podcast host · b. 1995
Jon RydbergAmerican wheelchair tennis and basketball player · b. 1977
J
Jessie ChandlerAmerican writer · b. 1968
A
Alice E. SmithAmerican historian · b. 1896

Questions about Grantsburg’s history

What year was Grantsburg founded?

The Grantsburg post office opened in 1867, the earliest record of the town by name (U.S. post office records).

How does Grantsburg rank for history?

Grantsburg is more historic than 64% of U.S. towns. The History grade combines the town’s founding era, the share of homes built before 1940 and its National Register listings. It’s a character grade, so it isn’t part of the overall grade. How it works.

What is on the National Register in Grantsburg?

One place: the Burnett County Abstract Company (listed 1980).

How old are the homes in Grantsburg?

25% of Grantsburg’s homes were built before 1940 (Census estimate, ±6.2 points), against a typical 12% for a Wisconsin town; the median home was built in 1967.

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).

From Wikimedia Commons (6), Wikidata (1), the National Register of Historic Places (1), Wikidata and Wikipedia for famous people, U.S. Geological Survey historical maps, U.S. Census counts (via Wikipedia), the US Post Offices dataset (Blevins & Helbock), the USGS Geographic Names Information System and Sanborn fire insurance maps (Library of Congress). Archive images are copied here with their credits and licenses, shown on each photo’s page. Refreshed monthly.