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B−History
History · Random Lake

Random Lake’s post office opened in 1872, and 26% of its homes were built before 1940

More historic than 46% of U.S. towns. What drives it

Below: maps from 1954 on and the census since 1880.

1872first post office
0on the National Register
26%homes built before 1940
1famous people
Add an old photoShare a memory
Photo: Radon360 · CC BY-SA 4.0
Quick answers

How Random Lake began

When was Random Lake founded?

1872

The Random Lake post office opened in 1872, the earliest record of the town by name.

First census: 158 in 18802020 census: 1,561154 years

How historic is Random Lake?

B−

More historic than 46% of U.S. towns, on its age, its old homes and the National Register.

What drives the grade ↓
Founding year: the first Random Lake post office (Blevins & Helbock, CC0).
History grade

What drives Random Lake’s History grade

On its age, its old homes and the National Register, Random Lake is more historic than 46% of U.S. towns. Its share of homes from before 1940 holds the grade up; its National Register listings pull it down.

B−
HistoryA character grade: shown, never part of Random Lake’s overall grade.
Founding era1872, from the first post office: founded 1850–1899, an older era than 37% of U.S. townsC+Homes built before 194025.5% of homes (±6.6) · typical WI town 12.1% · U.S. 8.4%A−National RegisterNo listings counted · typical WI town 3.0 per 10,000 · U.S. 2.4C
All U.S. towns we grade (21,289)Ahead of 46%
NewerOlder

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 Random Lake’s 0.0 sits below most of its state (28% of Wisconsin towns have fewer) while its 0 listings outnumber those of 23% of U.S. towns.

How sure. Graded on any two of the three inputs instead, the letter would range from C− to B. The pre-1940 share is a Census survey estimate (±6.6 points). The founding year is the first post office, not a stated founding date.

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 Random Lake’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 Random Lake are in the public archives yet. The rest are in attics and albums.
★ What stands out · Help out

Start Random Lake’s collection

The first neighbors to add old photos shape how Random Lake’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
The story so far

Random Lake, in brief

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

Random Lake is a village in Sheboygan County, Wisconsin, United States. The population was 1,561 at the 2020 census. It is part of the Sheboygan, Wisconsin Metropolitan Statistical Area.

Its first post office opened in 1872. Between the 2010 and 2020 censuses its population fell from 1,594 to 1,561 (-2%).

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

From the old history books

What they wrote about Random Lake in 1912

Passages that mention Random Lake, cut from the printed page as they were published.

Father Fessler's successors have been Revs. Haberstock, Welbes, Lochemes, Muenzer, Froehlich and A. V. Mueller. March 24, 1895, the church was burned to the ground. By this time Random Lake village had grown to considerable extent and it was believed by the parishioners that the interests of the co…
History of Sheboygan County, Wisconsin, past and present1912Read the page →
Read the text

Father Fessler's successors have been Revs. Haberstock, Welbes, Lochemes, Muenzer, Froehlich and A. V. Mueller. March 24, 1895, the church was burned to the ground. By this time Random Lake village had grown to considerable extent and it was believed by the parishioners that the interests of the congregation would be best promoted by erecting the new church in the village. Accordingly a site was secured in the village from the Butler estate, Mrs. Butler donating her interests in the same. This is Roman Gothic in style and is 38 by 88 feet in size. There is also a parochial school

Text read by machine from the scan; it may contain errors.
The Milwaukee & Northern Railroad Company, which was incorporated in 1870, immediately organized and let contracts for building the road. The road was built from Milwaukee north to Green Bay, entering Sheboygan county near the west shore of Random Lake, in the town of Sherman, it extended thence no…
History of Sheboygan County, Wisconsin, past and present1912 · page 138Read the page →
Read the text

The Milwaukee & Northern Railroad Company, which was incorporated in 1870, immediately organized and let contracts for building the road. The road was built from Milwaukee north to Green Bay, entering Sheboygan county near the west shore of Random Lake, in the town of Sherman, it extended thence north through the towns of Sherman, Lyndon, Plymouth and Rhine. They utilized part of the grading, done by the Milwaukee & Superior Railroad Company. Trains were run to Rymouth in February, 1872.

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

Random Lake, 1872 to 1954

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

  1. 19th century
  2. 1872Post officeThe Random Lake post office opens
  3. 1885Born hereLeander J. Foley is born here
  4. 20th century
  5. 1954On the mapFirst mapped by the U.S. Geological Survey
By decade

Random Lake, decade by decade

Today23 recent
Random Lake Wisconsin Panorama - Looking North2024Random Lake Wisconsin Panorama - Looking NorthAerial view of the Random Lake water tower, Random Lake, Wisconsin, US julesvernex22022Aerial view of the Random Lake water tower, Random La…Aerial view of the Random Lake and water tower, Random Lake, Wisconsin, US julesvernex22022Aerial view of the Random Lake and water tower, Rando…Aerial view of houses at the shore of Random Lake, Random Lake, Wisconsin, US julesvernex22022Aerial view of houses at the shore of Random Lake, Ra…Aerial view of crops, Random Lake, Wisconsin, US julesvernex22022Aerial view of crops, Random Lake, Wisconsin, US jule…Aerial view of crops, Random Lake, Wisconsin, US julesvernex2-22022Aerial view of crops, Random Lake, Wisconsin, US jule…Aerial view of Random Lake, Random Lake, Wisconsin, US julesvernex22022Aerial view of Random Lake, Random Lake, Wisconsin, U…Aerial view of Random Lake, Random Lake, Wisconsin, US julesvernex2-32022Aerial view of Random Lake, Random Lake, Wisconsin, U…Aerial view of Random Lake, Random Lake, Wisconsin, US julesvernex2-22022Aerial view of Random Lake, Random Lake, Wisconsin, U…Nowack House - 52020Nowack House - 5Nowack House - 42020Nowack House - 4Nowack House - 32020Nowack House - 3Nowack House - 22020Nowack House - 2Nowack House - 12020Nowack House - 1Charles T. and Gertrude Rietz House2020Charles T. and Gertrude Rietz HouseRandom Lake Pano 1(hs)2016Random Lake Pano 1(hs)RandomLakeWisconsinSign2009RandomLakeWisconsinSignRandomLakeWisconsinPostOffice2009RandomLakeWisconsinPostOfficeRandomLakeWisconsinDowntown22009RandomLakeWisconsinDowntown2RandomLakeWisconsinDowntown12009RandomLakeWisconsinDowntown1RandomLakeLakeviewCommunityLibraryVillageHall2009RandomLakeLakeviewCommunityLibraryVillageHallRandomLakeHighSchoolWisconsin2009RandomLakeHighSchoolWisconsinNowackHouseRandomLakeWisconsin2009NowackHouseRandomLakeWisconsin
On the map

Random Lake on the map, 1954 to 1974

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

Random Lake on the 1954 USGS mapRandom Lake on the 1974 USGS map1954Sheboygan Falls 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 Random Lake.

People over time

Random Lake, census by census

02004006008001,0001,2001,4001,60018801900192019401960198020002020Peak: 1,594

Between 158 and 1,594 people in every census since 1880.

13 censuses, 1880–2020.

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

Stories next door

History across the town line

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

Sherman3 historic placesA

Questions about Random Lake’s history

What year was Random Lake founded?

The Random Lake post office opened in 1872, the earliest record of the town by name (U.S. post office records).

How does Random Lake rank for history?

Random Lake is more historic than 46% 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.

How old are the homes in Random Lake?

26% of Random Lake’s homes were built before 1940 (Census estimate, ±6.6 points), against a typical 12% for a Wisconsin town; the median home was built in 1969.

Memory lane

What the archives can’t tell you, neighbors can.

Town Square →
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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).

From Wikimedia Commons (23), 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 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.