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–Not graded
History · Washburn

21% of Washburn’s homes were built before 1940

Below: 1 old photo or paper, maps from 1886 on, and the census since 1890.

0on the National Register
21%homes built before 1940
1old photo or paper
3famous people
Add an old photoShare a memory
From Washburn’s archive · credits on each photo

What stands out about Washburn’s past

Read from the archive, the National Register and the record. The page puts what stands out first.

A history waiting to be writtenOnly 1 old photo is in the public archives. The rest are in attics and albums.Mapped building by building7 fire insurance maps, 1886 to 1918, drew every building in Washburn.Boom and bustPeaked at 3,830 in 1910; 2,051 people lived here in 2020.
★ What stands out · Help out

Start Washburn’s collection

The first neighbors to add old photos shape how Washburn’s history is told.

Decades since 1900 with photos
00s10s20s30s40s50s60s70s80s90s
0 of 10 decades. The empty ones are waiting for someone’s album.
Retake an old viewBirds eye view of Washburn, Wis. Bayfie…: stand where they stood+15Share a family photoSign in to add one+10
Every building

Washburn, building by building, 1886–1918

Fire insurance maps drew every building, what it was made of and what it was used for, so insurers could price the risk of fire. Pick a year, then a sheet.

Washburn fire insurance map, 1886, sheet 11886Sheet 1 of 3
Edition
BrickWoodStone

Sanborn Map Company, via the Library of Congress. Editions published in 1930 or earlier, which are in the public domain.

People over time

Washburn, census by census

05001,0001,5002,0002,5003,0003,5004,0001900192019401960198020002020Peak: 3,830

Peaked at 3,830 in 1910; 2,051 people lived here in 2020.

13 censuses, 1890–2020.

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

The story

How Washburn came to be

From Wikipedia’s history of Washburn.

Read it all →

In 1659, the French explorers Radisson and Groseilliers touched here on their trip along the south shore of Lake Superior. In 1665 the Jesuit Claude-Jean Allouez established on the shore of the bay, a short distance south of the present city, the first French mission in Wisconsin. He named it "La Pointe du Saint Esprit," and in 1669 it was placed in charge of Father Jacques Marquette. The place was visited by Daniel Greysolon (Du Luth) in 1681–1682, and here in 1693 Pierre-Charles Le Sueur built a stockaded post. In 1718 a fort was erected and a French garrison placed in it. About 1820–1821 a trading post of the American Fur Company was established in the area.

Text from Wikipedia, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0.

Timeline

Washburn, 1886 to 1982

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

  1. 19th century
  2. 1886In the archiveBirds eye view of Washburn, Wis. Bayfield County 1886
  3. 1899Born hereVic C. Wallin is born here
  4. 20th century
  5. 1910CensusPopulation peaks at 3,830
  6. 1964On the mapFirst mapped by the U.S. Geological Survey
  7. 1982Born herePaul Hamm is born here
  8. 1982Born hereMorgan Hamm is born here
By decade

Washburn, decade by decade

One decade in the archive so far: the 1880s. Scroll each row; tap a photo for its story.

1880s1 item
Birds eye view of Washburn, Wis. Bayfield County 18861886Birds eye view of Washburn, Wis. Bayfield County 1886
1890s–1990snothing yet
Nothing in the archives for these yearsWeddings on Main Street, storms, parades, school pictures, the old store. If it’s in your family album, it belongs here.
Add from your album
Today3 recent
Bayfield county IMG 16282012Bayfield county IMG 1628WashburnWI-054-0505072007WashburnWI-054-050507WIMap-doton-Washburn2004WIMap-doton-Washburn
On the map

Washburn on the map, 1964 to 2005

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

Washburn on the 1964 USGS mapWashburn on the 2005 USGS map1964Mt Valhalla sheet · 1:24,000

U.S. Geological Survey historical topographic maps (public domain), via Esri’s collection of the scans. The red ring marks the center of Washburn.

Then & now

Stand where they stood

No then-and-now pairs yet. Take a photo from the same spot as an old one and they appear here side by side.

Birds eye view of Washburn, Wis. Bayfield County 1886
Retake this viewBirds eye view of Washburn, Wis. Bayfield County 1886, 1886

Find the spot, match the angle, and add your photo. It becomes the first then-and-now pair on Washburn’s page.

Retake this view · +15
Famous people

3 famous people were born in Washburn

Writers, athletes, leaders and more, ranked by how widely they’re known.

See all →
Paul HammAmerican artistic gymnast · b. 1982
Morgan HammGymnast · b. 1982
V
Vic C. WallinAmerican politician · b. 1899
Stories next door

History across the town line

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

BarksdaleIts storynot graded: under 1,000 residents or part of its townBayviewIts storynot graded: under 1,000 residents or part of its townBellIts storynot graded: under 1,000 residents or part of its townTrippIts storynot graded: under 1,000 residents or part of its townClover1 historic placenot graded: under 1,000 residents or part of its town

Questions about Washburn’s history

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), Wikidata (2), Wikipedia, Wikidata and Wikipedia for famous people, U.S. Geological Survey historical maps, U.S. Census counts (via Wikipedia) and Sanborn fire insurance maps (Library of Congress). Archive images are copied here with their credits and licenses, shown on each photo’s page. Refreshed monthly.