The Herman post office opened in 1850, the earliest record of the town by name. Two smaller post offices, Huilburg (1873) and Hochheim (1900), opened inside today’s town and later closed.
2020 census: 1,135176 years
How historic is Herman?
A
More historic than 86% of U.S. towns, on its age, its old homes and the National Register.
Founding year: the first Herman post office (Blevins & Helbock, CC0).
History grade
What drives Herman’s History grade
On its age, its old homes and the National Register, Herman is more historic than 86% of U.S. towns. Its share of homes from before 1940 holds the grade up; its age pulls it down.
A
HistoryA character grade: shown, never part of Herman’s overall grade.
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 Herman’s 87.0 sits above most of its state (94% of Wisconsin towns have fewer) while its 9 historic buildings outnumber those of 75% of U.S. towns.
How sure. Graded on any two of the three inputs instead, the letter would range from B to A+. The pre-1940 share is a Census survey estimate (±9.6 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 Herman’s past
Read from the archive, the National Register and the record. The page puts what stands out first.
Lost post offices, old corners, places now gone and burying grounds
Herman had its own post office from 1850 to 1906. Two other post offices opened and closed inside today’s town.
Herman
1850–1906
Huilburg
1873–1906
Hochheim
1900–1906
18501940today
Hamlets and corners on the map
Herman CenterHochheimHuilsburg
Gone or out of use
Lentz SchoolschoolMaple Lawn Schoolschool
2cemeteries and burying grounds inside Herman
ReformSaint Johns
US Post Offices dataset (Blevins & Helbock, CC0). Places and cemeteries from the USGS Geographic Names Information System (2021).
On the map
Herman on the map, 1904 to 1971
Every edition of the U.S. Geological Survey’s map of Herman. Tap a year, or press play to watch the town change.
1904Hartford 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 Herman.
The story so far
Herman, in brief
Wikipedia doesn’t have a history of Herman yet. The photos, dates and memories neighbors add here are how it gets written.
Herman is a town in Dodge County, Wisconsin, United States. The population was 1,135 at the 2020 census. The unincorporated communities of Herman Center and Huilsburg are located in the town. The unincorporated communities of Hochheim and Woodland are also located partially in the town.
Its first post office opened in 1850. Between the 2010 and 2020 censuses its population grew from 1,108 to 1,135 (+2%).
Intro from Wikipedia. Population: U.S. Census Bureau.
Timeline
Herman, 1850 to 1906
Woven from the archive, old maps, post office records, the National Register and the people born here.
The Herman post office opened in 1850, the earliest record of the town by name (U.S. post office records).
How does Herman rank for history?
Herman is more historic than 86% 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 Herman?
One place: the Zirbel-Hildebrandt Farmstead (listed 2007).
How old are the homes in Herman?
50% of Herman’s homes were built before 1940 (Census estimate, ±9.6 points), against a typical 12% for a Wisconsin town; the median home was built in 1942.
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 the National Register of Historic Places (1), 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.
