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–Not graded
History · Spruce

Spruce dates to 1870, and 23% of its homes were built before 1940

Below: maps from 1956 on.

1870founded
0on the National Register
23%homes built before 1940
Add an old photoShare a memory
Photo: Royalbroil · CC BY-SA 3.0
Quick answers

How Spruce began

When was Spruce founded?

1870

Spruce dates its founding to 1870 (Wikipedia’s history). Its post office opened in 1880.

2020 census: 918156 years
Founding year: Wikipedia. First post office: 1880.

What stands out about Spruce’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 Spruce are in the public archives yet. The rest are in attics and albums.Lost villages2 post offices opened and closed inside today’s Spruce, and 1 old place names are still on the map.
★ What stands out · Help out

Start Spruce’s collection

The first neighbors to add old photos shape how Spruce’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

Spruce had its own post office from 1884 to 1912. Two other post offices opened and closed inside today’s town.

Kelley Brook
1880–1906
Spruce
1884–1912
Kadlec
1905–1906
18801950today
Hamlets and corners on the map
Kelly Brook
Gone or out of use
Funk FieldairportKelly Brook SchoolschoolKelly Lake SchoolschoolOak SchoolschoolSpruce Schoolschool
5cemeteries and burying grounds inside Spruce
Kelly BrookPine HillSacred HeartSaint MarkSpruce

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

The story so far

Spruce, in brief

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

Spruce is a town in Oconto County, Wisconsin, United States. The population was 918 at the 2020 census. The town of Spruce did have an operating post office from 1884 to 1912. Spruce was established in 1870, and set off from Maple Valley in 1892 along with Brazeau.

Spruce was established in 1870. Between the 2010 and 2020 censuses its population grew from 835 to 918 (+10%).

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

Timeline

Spruce, 1870 to 1956

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

  1. 19th century
  2. 1870
    FoundingSpruce is established
  3. 1880Post officeThe Kelley Brook post office opens
  4. 1884Post officeThe Spruce post office opens
  5. 20th century
  6. 1905Post officeThe Kadlec post office opens
  7. 1906Post officeThe Kelley Brook post office closes
  8. 1906Post officeThe Kadlec post office closes
  9. 1912Post officeThe Spruce post office closes
  10. 1956On the mapFirst mapped by the U.S. Geological Survey
By decade

Spruce, decade by decade

Today2 recent
SpruceWisconsinTownHall2010SpruceWisconsinTownHallWIMap-doton-Spruce2004WIMap-doton-Spruce
On the map

Spruce on the map, 1956 to 1974

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

Spruce on the 1956 USGS mapSpruce on the 1974 USGS map1956Oconto 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 Spruce.

Famous people

Famous people close to Spruce

Nobody well known was born in Spruce itself, so here are the best known from just nearby.

See all →
Dan HaggertyAmerican actor · b. 1942
Fay HoldernessAmerican actress · b. 1881
David G. ClassonAmerican politician · b. 1870
Red MackAmerican football player · b. 1937
G
George BurnsideAmerican football player · b. 1899
B
Blaine WalshAmerican sportscaster · b. 1925
Stories next door

History across the town line

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

Maple ValleyIts storynot graded: under 1,000 residents or part of its townOconto FallsIts storyC+BrazeauIts storyC−LenaIts storynot graded: under 1,000 residents or part of its town

Questions about Spruce’s history

What year was Spruce founded?

In 1870, according to Wikipedia’s history of the town. Spruce’s post office opened in 1880.

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 (2), 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.