9 places in town are on the National Register, among them two historic districts with 68 buildings between them. Below: 2 old photos and papers from 1860 on and old-book passages.
Founding year: Wikidata; Wikipedia’s history section gives the same year. First post office: 1850.The full story ↓
History grade
What drives New Glarus’ History grade
On its age, its old homes and the National Register, New Glarus is more historic than 96% of U.S. towns. All 3 inputs are above most U.S. towns; its National Register listings ranks highest and its age lowest.
A+
HistoryA character grade: shown, never part of New Glarus’ 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 New Glarus’ 345 sits above most of its state (99% of Wisconsin towns have fewer) while its 75 historic buildings outnumber those of 88% 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 is a Census survey estimate (±7.6 points). Two sources give 1845.
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 New Glarus’ past
Read from the archive, the National Register and the record. The page puts what stands out first.
In the early 1840s, after several years of failed crops and as food became scarce, much of the canton of Glarus in Switzerland found itself deep in poverty. With more workers than available jobs, the government of the canton saw emigration to America as a solution. Authorities established the Glarus Emigration Society in 1844, which offered loans to help residents purchase land in the New World. All other expenses associated with the voyage to America were to be paid by the emigrants themselves. Men were offered 20 acres (81,000 m2) free of rent for ten years, after which they could own the land for a mere ten shillings per acre. Given the desperate economic conditions in Switzerland, 193 volunteers decided to leave their homeland to start anew in America.
Passages that mention New Glarus, cut from the printed page as they were published.
History of Green County, Wisconsin1884 · page 1023Read the page →
Read the text
The town of New Glarus is the second in the northern tier of Green county, beginning from the west. It is bounded on the north by tlie town of Primrose, Dane county; on the east by the town of Exeter; on the south by the town of Washington; and on the west by the town of York. The country is hilly and broken. A bird's eye view of the town might suggest the
Text read by machine from the scan; it may contain errors.
History of Green County, Wisconsin1884 · page 1144Read the page →
Read the text
congressional township 4 north, range 6 east, of the fourth principal meridian. It is bounded on the north by the town of Perry, Dane county; on the east by the town of New Glarus; on the south by the town of Adams; and on the west by the town of Moscow, Iowa county, and town of Blanchard, Lafayette county.
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
New Glarus, 1845 to 1952
Woven from the archive, old maps, post office records, the National Register and the people born here.
Nothing in the archives for these yearsWeddings on Main Street, storms, parades, school pictures, the old store. If it’s in your family album, it belongs here.
New Glarus’s post office has been open since 1850.
Hamlets and corners on the map
Southside Mobile Home Park
Gone or out of use
Pisgah Evangelical United Brethren Churchchurch
2cemeteries and burying grounds inside New Glarus
Evangelical United BrethrenSwiss Reformed
US Post Offices dataset (Blevins & Helbock, CC0). Places and cemeteries from the USGS Geographic Names Information System (2021).
Questions about New Glarus’ history
What year was New Glarus founded?
In 1845, according to Wikidata and Wikipedia’s history of the town. New Glarus’ post office opened in 1850.
How does New Glarus rank for history?
New Glarus is more historic than 96% 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 New Glarus?
9 listings: 7 buildings, among them the Dr. Samuel Blumer House (listed 1992, the first), and 2 historic districts, the 1st and 2nd Street Historic District and the 2nd Street Commercial Historic District, with 68 contributing buildings. 75 historic buildings in all.
How old are the homes in New Glarus?
31% of New Glarus’ homes were built before 1940 (Census estimate, ±7.6 points), against a typical 12% for a Wisconsin town; the median home was built in 1958.
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 (2), Wikidata (4), the National Register of Historic Places (9), Wikipedia, Wikidata and Wikipedia for famous people, the US Post Offices dataset (Blevins & Helbock), the USGS Geographic Names Information System 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.
