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–Not graded
History · Peru

Peru’s post office opened in 1865, and 44% of its homes were built before 1940

Below: maps from 1929 on and the census since 1990.

1865first post office
0on the National Register
44%homes built before 1940
Add an old photoShare a memory
Quick answers

How Peru began

When was Peru founded?

1865

The Peru post office opened in 1865, the earliest record of the town by name. Two smaller post offices, Meridean (1874) and Red Cedar (1887), opened inside today’s town and later closed.

First census: 203 in 19902020 census: 233161 years
Founding year: the first Peru post office (Blevins & Helbock, CC0).

What stands out about Peru’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 Peru are in the public archives yet. The rest are in attics and albums.Lost villages2 post offices opened and closed inside today’s Peru, and 3 old place names are still on the map.
★ What stands out · Help out

Start Peru’s collection

The first neighbors to add old photos shape how Peru’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
Places that used to be

Lost post offices, old corners, places now gone and burying grounds

Peru had its own post office from 1865 to 1873. Two other post offices opened and closed inside today’s town.

Peru
1865–1873
Meridean
1874–1936
Red Cedar
1887–1924
18601940today
Hamlets and corners on the map
MerideanOld TyroneRed Cedar
Gone or out of use
Lock SchoolschoolMeridean FerrycrossingRed Cedar Schoolschool
1cemetery inside Peru
Peru

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

The story so far

Peru, in brief

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

Its first post office opened in 1865. Between the 2010 and 2020 censuses its population fell from 242 to 233 (-4%).

Timeline

Peru, 1865 to 1936

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

  1. 19th century
  2. 1865Post officeThe Peru post office opens
  3. 1873Post officeThe Peru post office closes
  4. 1874Post officeThe Meridean post office opens
  5. 1887Post officeThe Red Cedar post office opens
  6. 20th century
  7. 1924Post officeThe Red Cedar post office closes
  8. 1929On the mapFirst mapped by the U.S. Geological Survey
  9. 1936Post officeThe Meridean post office closes
By decade

Peru, decade by decade

Today4 recent
Peru Town Hall 022024Peru Town Hall 02Peru Town Hall 012024Peru Town Hall 01Meridean, Wisconsin2024Meridean, WisconsinWIMap-doton-Peru2004WIMap-doton-Peru
On the map

Peru on the map, 1929 to 1972

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

Peru on the 1929 USGS mapPeru on the 1932 USGS mapPeru on the 1972 USGS map1929Durand 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 Peru.

People over time

Peru, census by census

010020020002020Peak: 247

Between 203 and 247 people in every census since 1990.

4 censuses, 1990–2020.

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

Stories next door

History across the town line

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

Spring BrookIts storyC+Dunn1 historic placeB+Rock CreekIts storyC+LimaIts storynot graded: under 1,000 residents or part of its town

Questions about Peru’s history

What year was Peru founded?

The Peru post office opened in 1865, 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 (4), 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.