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History · Junction City

Junction City’s post office opened in 1925, and 26% of its homes were built before 1940

Below: maps from 1970 on and the census since 1880.

1925first post office
0on the National Register
26%homes built before 1940
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Quick answers

How Junction City began

When was Junction City founded?

1925

The Junction City post office opened in 1925, the earliest record of the town by name. Another post office, Junction (1874), opened inside today’s town and later closed.

First census: 39 in 18802020 census: 420101 years
Founding year: the first Junction City post office (Blevins & Helbock, CC0).The full story ↓

What stands out about Junction City’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 Junction City are in the public archives yet. The rest are in attics and albums.Old housesHalf of Junction City’s homes were built before 1963.
★ What stands out · Help out

Start Junction City’s collection

The first neighbors to add old photos shape how Junction City’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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The story

How Junction City came to be

From Wikipedia’s history of Junction City.

Read it all →

In 1872 the Wisconsin Central Railroad laid rail west from Stevens Point through forests and swamps, heading toward what would become Marshfield, aiming to eventually reach Lake Superior. In 1874 the Wisconsin Valley Railroad built a rail line north from Centralia (Wisconsin Rapids) to Wausau, crossing the Wisconsin Central. At the intersection of the two lines, cars could be switched and a community began to grow. In 1874 a post office was established there, with the name Junction.

Text from Wikipedia, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0.

Timeline

Junction City, 1874 to 1970

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

  1. 19th century
  2. 1874Post officeThe Junction post office opens
  3. 20th century
  4. 1925Post officeThe Junction post office closes
  5. 1925Post officeThe Junction City post office opens
  6. 1970On the mapFirst mapped by the U.S. Geological Survey
By decade

Junction City, decade by decade

Today2 recent
Junction City Wisconsin2024Junction City WisconsinJunctionCityWisconsinWatertower2009JunctionCityWisconsinWatertower
On the map

Junction City on the map, 1970 to 1984

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

Junction City on the 1970 USGS mapJunction City on the 1984 USGS map1970Junction City sheet · 1:24,000

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

People over time

Junction City, census by census

010020030040050018801900192019401960198020002020Peak: 523

Between 39 and 523 people in every census since 1880.

12 censuses, 1880–2020.

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

Famous people

Famous people close to Junction City

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

See all →
Peter WellerAmerican actor · b. 1947
Bonnie BartlettAmerican actress · b. 1929
James DalyAmerican actor · b. 1918
Garrett Weber-GaleAmerican swimmer · b. 1985
Joe PavelskiAmerican ice hockey player · b. 1984
Cole CaufieldAmerican ice hockey player · b. 2001
Places that used to be

Lost post offices and burying grounds

Junction City’s post office has been open since 1925. Another post office, Junction, opened and closed inside today’s town.

Junction
1874–1925
Junction City
1925–today
18701950today
1cemetery inside Junction City
Saint Michael's

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.

CarsonIts storyC+Eau PleineIts storyC+

Questions about Junction City’s history

What year was Junction City founded?

The Junction City post office opened in 1925, 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 Wikimedia Commons (2), Wikipedia, U.S. Geological Survey historical maps, U.S. Census counts (via Wikipedia), 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.