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History · Magnolia

Magnolia’s post office opened in 1848, and 42% of its homes were built before 1940

Below: maps from 1893 on.

1848first post office
0on the National Register
42%homes built before 1940
1famous people
Add an old photoShare a memory
Quick answers

How Magnolia began

When was Magnolia founded?

1848

The Magnolia post office opened in 1848, the earliest record of the town by name. Two smaller post offices, Gainville (1863) and West Magnolia (1869), opened inside today’s town and later closed.

2020 census: 742178 years
Founding year: the first Magnolia post office (Blevins & Helbock, CC0).

What stands out about Magnolia’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 Magnolia are in the public archives yet. The rest are in attics and albums.On the map since 18933 editions of the USGS map, 1893 to 1971. Watch Magnolia change.Lost villages2 post offices opened and closed inside today’s Magnolia, and 1 old place names are still on the map.Deep rootsA post office since 1848: 178 years of Magnolia.
★ What stands out · Help out

Start Magnolia’s collection

The first neighbors to add old photos shape how Magnolia’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
On the map

Magnolia on the map, 1893 to 1971

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

Magnolia on the 1893 USGS mapMagnolia on the 1962 USGS mapMagnolia on the 1971 USGS map1893Brodhead 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 Magnolia.

Places that used to be

Lost post offices, old corners and burying grounds

Magnolia had its own post office from 1848 to 1901. Two other post offices opened and closed inside today’s town.

Magnolia
1848–1901
Gainville
1863–1908
West Magnolia
1869–1884
18401930today
Hamlets and corners on the map
Cainville
2cemeteries and burying grounds inside Magnolia
CalvaryWest Magnolia

US Post Offices dataset (Blevins & Helbock, CC0). Places and cemeteries from the USGS Geographic Names Information System (2021).

The story so far

Magnolia, in brief

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

The Town of Magnolia is located in Rock County, Wisconsin, United States. The population was 742 at the 2020 census. The unincorporated communities of Cainville and Magnolia are located in the town.

Its first post office opened in 1848. Between the 2010 and 2020 censuses its population fell from 767 to 742 (-3%).

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

Timeline

Magnolia, 1848 to 1908

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

  1. 19th century
  2. 1848Post officeThe Magnolia post office opens
  3. 1860Born hereCal Broughton is born here
  4. 1863Post officeThe Gainville post office opens
  5. 1869Post officeThe West Magnolia post office opens
  6. 1884Post officeThe West Magnolia post office closes
  7. 1893On the mapFirst mapped by the U.S. Geological Survey
  8. 20th century
  9. 1901Post officeThe Magnolia post office closes
  10. 1908Post officeThe Gainville post office closes
By decade

No old photos in the archives yet

Weddings on Main Street, storms, parades, school pictures, the old store. If it’s in your family album, it belongs here.

Be the first to add onePhotograph a print flat, in daylight, no flash.
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Stories next door

History across the town line

Each neighbor’s History grade, on the same three inputs.

Union2 historic placesASpring Valley3 historic placesnot graded: under 1,000 residents or part of its townCenterIts storyB−AlbanyIts storynot graded: under 1,000 residents or part of its town

Questions about Magnolia’s history

What year was Magnolia founded?

The Magnolia post office opened in 1848, 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 Wikidata and Wikipedia for famous people, 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.