Little Chute’s post office opened in 1849, and 2 of its places are on the National Register
More historic than 72% of U.S. towns · #119 of 362 in Wisconsin. What drives it
Most of Little Chute was built recently: 9% of its homes predate 1940 and the median home dates from 1986. 2 places in town are on the National Register, among them two historic districts with 6 buildings between them. Below: 14 old photos and papers, maps from 1925 on, and the census since 1890.
Founding year: the first Little Chute post office (Blevins & Helbock, CC0). Wikidata: 1899.The full story ↓
History grade
What drives Little Chute’s History grade
On its age, its old homes and the National Register, Little Chute is more historic than 72% of U.S. towns, #119 of 362 in Wisconsin. Its age holds the grade up; its share of homes from before 1940 pulls it down.
B+
HistoryA character grade: shown, never part of Little Chute’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 Little Chute’s 5.1 sits above most of its state (66% of Wisconsin towns have fewer) while its 6 historic buildings outnumber those of 72% 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 (±2.9 points) is firm at this size. The founding year is the first post office, not a stated founding date; Wikidata gives 1899.
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 Little Chute’s past
Read from the archive, the National Register and the record. The page puts what stands out first.
While sharing in the history of northeast Wisconsin, Little Chute has been influenced by two unique factors: the rapids and portages along the Fox River and the coming of Dutch-Catholic settlers in 1848. Prior to and during the early European settlement, the Fox-Wisconsin Waterway to the Mississippi River system was one of the most heavily traveled routes between the Great Lakes and the Mississippi River. Afterward canals and locks were built to circumvent these rapids. The actual construction of these features provided employment to settlers, the Dutch among them, although the canal system never proved to be a great success. In 1836, the Treaty of the Cedars was signed near Little Chute by the Menominee Indians, which ceded to The United States "Four million acres between the Fox, Wolf and Menominee Rivers".
The Little Chute post office opened in 1849, the earliest record of the town by name (U.S. post office records). Wikidata gives 1899.
How does Little Chute rank for history?
Little Chute is more historic than 72% of U.S. towns, #119 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 Little Chute?
Two places: the Cedars Lock and Dam Historic District (listed 1993) and the Little Chute Locks and Canal Historic District (1993).
How old are the homes in Little Chute?
9% of Little Chute’s homes were built before 1940 (Census estimate, ±2.9 points), against a typical 12% for a Wisconsin town; the median home was built in 1986.
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 Library of Congress (14), Wikidata (1), the National Register of Historic Places (2), 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 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.
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