Each edition grades its towns against each other only.
More historic than 20% of U.S. towns. What drives it
Most of West Point was built recently: 4% of its homes predate 1940 and the median home dates from 1993. Below: maps from 1895 on.
The West Point post office opened in 1858, the earliest record of the town by name.
More historic than 20% of U.S. towns, on its age, its old homes and the National Register.
On its age, its old homes and the National Register, West Point is more historic than 20% of U.S. towns. Its age holds the grade up; its National Register listings pull it down.
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 West Point’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.
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 →
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 West Point’s history is told.
Every edition of the U.S. Geological Survey’s map of West Point. 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 West Point.
Wikipedia doesn’t have a history of West Point yet. The photos, dates and memories neighbors add here are how it gets written.
West Point is a town in Columbia County, Wisconsin, United States. The population was 2,028 at the 2020 census.
Its first post office opened in 1858. Between the 2010 and 2020 censuses its population grew from 1,955 to 2,028 (+4%).
Intro from Wikipedia. Population: U.S. Census Bureau.
Woven from the archive, old maps, post office records, the National Register and the people born here.
On the mapFirst mapped by the U.S. Geological Survey
2013Wisconsin River Valley
2013West Point Township Farm
2013West Point Cell Tower
2013Lantz Pond though the Trees
2013Lantz Pond
2013Grain Bins - panoramio (2)
2013Farm on Hwy 60 - panoramio (1)
2013Corn Maze and the Moon
2013Corn Maze
2013Corn Maze - panoramio (1)
2009Highway 60 Bridge
2004WIMap-doton-West PointNobody well known was born in West Point itself, so here are the best known from just nearby.
West Point had its own post office from 1858 to 1900.
US Post Offices dataset (Blevins & Helbock, CC0). Places and cemeteries from the USGS Geographic Names Information System (2021).
Each neighbor’s History grade, on the same three inputs.
The West Point post office opened in 1858, the earliest record of the town by name (U.S. post office records).
West Point is more historic than 20% 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.
4% of West Point’s homes were built before 1940 (Census estimate, ±1.8 points), against a typical 12% for a Wisconsin town; the median home was built in 1993.
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 (12), 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.
