Most of Russell was built recently: 5% of its homes predate 1940 and the median home dates from 1989. Its Register listing is the Hokenson Fishing Dock. Below: maps from 1964 on.
The Russell post office opened in 1913, the earliest record of the town by name. Another post office, Redcliff (1898), opened inside today’s town and later closed.
2020 census: 1,553113 years
How historic is Russell?
C
More historic than 31% of U.S. towns, on its age, its old homes and the National Register.
Founding year: the first Russell post office (Blevins & Helbock, CC0).
History grade
What drives Russell’s History grade
On its age, its old homes and the National Register, Russell is more historic than 31% of U.S. towns. Its National Register listings hold the grade up; its age pulls it down.
C
HistoryA character grade: shown, never part of Russell’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 Russell’s 21.2 sits above most of its state (83% of Wisconsin towns have fewer) while its 3 historic buildings outnumber those of 65% of U.S. towns.
How sure. Graded on any two of the three inputs instead, the letter would range from D to B−. The pre-1940 share (±2.4 points) is firm at this size. 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 Russell’s past
Read from the archive, the National Register and the record. The page puts what stands out first.
Wikipedia doesn’t have a history of Russell yet. The photos, dates and memories neighbors add here are how it gets written.
Russell is a town in Bayfield County, Wisconsin, United States. The population was 1,553 at the 2020 census, up from 1,279 at the 2010 census. The unincorporated communities of Red Cliff and Sand Bay are located in Russell. Red Cliff is the administrative center of the Red Cliff Band of Lake Superior Chippewa. York Island and Raspberry Island (of the Apostle Islands) are part of the town.
Its first post office opened in 1913. Between the 2010 and 2020 censuses its population grew from 1,279 to 1,553 (+21%).
Intro from Wikipedia. Population: U.S. Census Bureau.
Timeline
Russell, 1898 to 1964
Woven from the archive, old maps, post office records, the National Register and the people born here.
The Russell post office opened in 1913, the earliest record of the town by name (U.S. post office records).
How does Russell rank for history?
Russell is more historic than 31% 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 Russell?
One place: the Hokenson Fishing Dock (listed 1976).
How old are the homes in Russell?
5% of Russell’s homes were built before 1940 (Census estimate, ±2.4 points), against a typical 12% for a Wisconsin town; the median home was built in 1989.
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 Wikidata (1), the National Register of Historic Places (1), 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.
