Each edition grades its towns against each other only.
More historic than 77% of U.S. towns · #96 of 362 in Wisconsin. What drives it
Its Register listing is the St. Peter's Roman Catholic Church. Its Register listing is the St. Peter's Roman Catholic Church. Below: maps from 1907 on and old-book passages.
Springfield dates its founding to 1848 (Wikipedia’s history). Its post office opened in 1849.
More historic than 77% of U.S. towns, on its age, its old homes and the National Register.
On its age, its old homes and the National Register, Springfield is more historic than 77% of U.S. towns, #96 of 362 in Wisconsin. All 3 inputs are above most U.S. towns; its age ranks highest and its share of homes from before 1940 lowest.
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 Springfield’s 10.5 sits above most of its state (77% of Wisconsin towns have fewer) while its 3 historic buildings outnumber those of 65% of U.S. towns.
Founding year: Wikipedia (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 →
Read from the archive, the National Register and the record. The page puts what stands out first.
The first neighbors to add old photos shape how Springfield’s history is told.
Three other post offices opened and closed inside today’s town.
US Post Offices dataset (Blevins & Helbock, CC0). Places and cemeteries from the USGS Geographic Names Information System (2021).
Woven from the archive, old maps, post office records, the National Register and the people born here.
BuiltSt. Peter's Roman Catholic Church is built
On the mapFirst mapped by the U.S. Geological SurveyFrom Wikipedia’s history of Springfield.
Springfield was established as a small colony by settlers from the United Kingdom. Springfield served as the location of Black Hawk War battles. The town was officially organized in 1848, after which various officers were elected to manage the community.
Text from Wikipedia, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0.
Passages that mention Springfield, cut from the printed page as they were published.
and close to a beautiful spring of clear crystal water, there building for himself the first house that stood in the city of Springfield. Inhabitants of Springfield today can hardly realize the wild, picturesque appearance of site of the city of Springfield as nature made it.
Text read by machine from the scan; it may contain errors.
persons by the name of Kreb and Brown made a settlement a little beyond where the Big Four Railroad crosses Mad River south of Springfield, the second time, and it is not far from what is now known as 'Limestone City. This settlement is known in history as Kreb's Station. No mark exists at this time of its locality.
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.
2013Cell Tower - panoramio (3)
2013Capitol from Church Road
2013Buechner Farm
2013Blue Star Dairy
2013Ashton Farm in Dane County, Wisconsin
2013America's Dairyland
2013Acker Family Farm - panoramio (1)
2012Middleton Farm with Three Silos
2012Farm Between Waunakee and Middleton
2012Campbell's Golden Corn Soup Silo
2012Barn with Three SilosEvery edition of the U.S. Geological Survey’s map of Springfield. Tap a year, or press play to watch the town change.
U.S. Geological Survey historical topographic maps (public domain), via Esri’s collection of the scans. The red ring marks the center of Springfield.
The country’s official list of buildings and places worth saving.
National Park Service, National Register of Historic Places. Photos from Wikimedia Commons, credited on each place’s page.
Nobody well known was born in Springfield itself, so here are the best known from just nearby.
Each neighbor’s History grade, on the same three inputs.
In 1848, according to Wikipedia’s history of the town. Springfield’s post office opened in 1849.
Springfield is more historic than 77% of U.S. towns, #96 of 362 in Wisconsin. 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.
One place: the St. Peter's Roman Catholic Church (listed 1980).
12% of Springfield’s homes were built before 1940 (Census estimate, ±4.6 points), against a typical 12% for a Wisconsin town; the median home was built in 1978.
What the archives can’t tell you, neighbors can.
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 (11), Wikidata (1), the National Register of Historic Places (1), Wikipedia, U.S. Geological Survey historical maps, 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.
