Kenosha dates to 1835, and 21% of its homes were built before 1940
More historic than 90% of U.S. towns · #42 of 362 in Wisconsin. What drives it
22 places in town are on the National Register, among them three historic districts with 86 buildings between them. Below: 1 old photo or paper, maps from 1886 on, and the census since 1850.
Founding year: Wikidata. First post office: 1837.The full story ↓
History grade
What drives Kenosha’s History grade
On its age, its old homes and the National Register, Kenosha is more historic than 90% of U.S. towns, #42 of 362 in Wisconsin. All 3 inputs are above most U.S. towns; its National Register listings ranks highest and its share of homes from before 1940 lowest.
A
HistoryA character grade: shown, never part of Kenosha’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 Kenosha’s 10.7 sits above most of its state (77% of Wisconsin towns have fewer) while its 106 historic buildings outnumber those of 90% of U.S. towns.
How sure. Graded on any two of the three inputs instead, the letter would range from A− to A. The pre-1940 share (±1.5 points) is firm at this size. Two sources give 1835.
Founding year: Wikidata (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 Kenosha’s past
Read from the archive, the National Register and the record. The page puts what stands out first.
The Potawatomi originally named the area Kenozia (also transcribed ginoozhe, kinoje) "place of the pike", while the Menominee referred to the place as Kenūsīw, meaning "Northern Pike". The early Ojibwa name is reported as Masu-kinoja "trout (pike) come all at once". These refer to the annual spawning of trout, in which thousands of fish entered the rivers from Lake Michigan, providing food for the coming months.
Sites of early human habitation have been discovered in the Kenosha vicinity. It remains unclear if any sites pre-date the Clovis culture but, if so, those sites would be contemporaneous with the Wisconsin glaciation. Paleo-Indians settled in the area at least 13,500 years ago.
Passages that mention Kenosha, cut from the printed page as they were published.
Commemorative biographical record of prominent1906 · page 324Read the page →
Read the text
After marriage Jacob Bishop removed to Cle\-eland, Ohio, and went into the grocery business for himself. In 1838 he came West and pre-empted land, and bought altogether about 1600 acres of land in the township of Mount Pleasant, Racine county, and Somers, Kenosha county, the former covering the site of the present town of Corliss. He was accompanied West by Seth Doan, who subsequentlv became the leading dealer in dry goods in Kenosha.
Text read by machine from the scan; it may contain errors.
Commemorative biographical record of prominent1906Read the page →
Read the text
When he first settled at what is now the city of Kenosha, Mr. Allen took charge of a small store for William Bullen, besides turning his industrious and ingenious hand to such various occupations as wood-chopping, lathing and building. As stated he erected the first frame structure of the settlement and afterward superintended the building of many others. For a number of years he was the owner of the largest building in the city, in which were installed all of the municipal offices. Upon the organization of Kenosha countv he was elected its sheriff and after serving out his term engaged for a time in the
Text read by machine from the scan; it may contain errors.
Scans and text from the Internet Archive. Books published in 1930 or earlier, which are in the public domain.
Timeline
Kenosha, 1835 to 1967
Woven from the archive, old maps, post office records, the National Register and the people born here.
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.
Lost post offices, old corners, places now gone and burying grounds
Kenosha’s post office has been open since 1850. Another post office, Southport, opened and closed inside today’s town.
Southport
1837–1850
Kenosha
1850–today
18301930today
Hamlets and corners on the map
Alpine Village Mobile Home ParkMaple Lane Mobile Home ParkOakwood Mobile Home CommunityPrairie Lake EstatesShorecrest PointeSouth Kenosha
Gone or out of use
Calvary Baptist ChurchchurchChurch of ProphecychurchChurch of the NazarenechurchFirst Baptist ChurchchurchGilead TempleschoolImmanuel Baptist ChurchchurchSaint Pauls Lutheran ChurchchurchThompson Strawberry Farm AirportairportWest Side Station Kenosha Post Officepost office
5cemeteries and burying grounds inside Kenosha
Green RidgeSaint GeorgeSaint JamesSaint JamesVale
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.
In 1835, according to Wikidata. Kenosha’s post office opened in 1837, and the census of 1850 counted 3,455 people here.
How does Kenosha rank for history?
Kenosha is more historic than 90% of U.S. towns, #42 of 362 in Wisconsin. 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 Kenosha?
22 listings: 17 buildings, among them the Justin Weed House (listed 1974, the first), 3 historic districts, the Third Avenue Historic District, the Library Park Historic District and the Civic Center Historic District, with 86 contributing buildings, 1 site, and 1 structure. 106 historic buildings in all.
How old are the homes in Kenosha?
21% of Kenosha’s homes were built before 1940 (Census estimate, ±1.5 points), against a typical 12% for a Wisconsin town; the median home was built in 1970.
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 (1), Wikidata (5), the National Register of Historic Places (22), Wikipedia, 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, Sanborn fire insurance maps (Library of Congress) 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.
