More historic than 43% of U.S. towns · #230 of 362 in Wisconsin. What drives it
Most of Windsor was built recently: 6% of its homes predate 1940 and the median home dates from 1994. Below: maps from 1890 on and the census since 1990.
The Windsor post office opened in 1847, the earliest record of the town by name. Another post office, North Windsor (1865), opened inside today’s town and later closed.
First census: 2,182 in 19902020 census: 8,754179 years
How historic is Windsor?
C+
More historic than 43% of U.S. towns, on its age, its old homes and the National Register.
Founding year: the first Windsor post office (Blevins & Helbock, CC0).The full story ↓
History grade
What drives Windsor’s History grade
On its age, its old homes and the National Register, Windsor is more historic than 43% of U.S. towns, #230 of 362 in Wisconsin. Its age holds the grade up; its National Register listings pull it down.
C+
HistoryA character grade: shown, never part of Windsor’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 Windsor’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.
How sure. Graded on any two of the three inputs instead, the letter would range from C− to B−. The pre-1940 share is a Census survey estimate (±3.9 points). 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 Windsor’s past
Read from the archive, the National Register and the record. The page puts what stands out first.
While visited in the late 1830s, the first settler to the town was William Lawrence, who came from the state of Vermont in 1841. He later served in the Civil War. James Morrison settled in the town in 1843 at what is now Morrisonville. Windsor voted to incorporate as a village on November 3, 2015; prior to its incorporation, it was a town, and a portion of the town was a census-designated place.
Passages that mention Windsor, cut from the printed page as they were published.
History of Dane County, Wisconsin ... preceded by a history of Wisconsin, statistics of the state, and an abstract of its laws and constitution and of the Constitution of the United States1880 · page 873Read the page →
Read the text
When Dane County, by the act of the Territorial Legislature of February 2, 1846, was divided into towns, the territory now constituting the town of Windsor was a portion of the town of Madison ; it so remained until February 11, 1847, when, by an act approved on that day, what is now the towns of Vienna, Westport, Windsor and Burke, was erected into a single town, and called Wmdsor, from a town of the same name in Vermont. The first town meeting was held at the house of Horace Lawrence, February 11, 1847, when the following officers among others were elected : 1847 — Charles M. Nichols, Chairman ; Alexander Botkin, Charles Carnelison, Super-
Text read by machine from the scan; it may contain errors.
History of Dane County, Wisconsin ... preceded by a history of Wisconsin, statistics of the state, and an abstract of its laws and constitution and of the Constitution of the United States1880 · page 855Read the page →
Read the text
Pebliminaet View— Town of Christiana— Town of Cottage Grove— Town of Oregon- Village OF Oregon— Town of Montrose— Town of riTCHBURO — Town of Springfield- Town or Verona— Town of Clarkjson (extinct)— Town of Windsor- Town of Cross Plains. PRELIMINARY VIEW. Within a year after the formation of the towns of Rutland, Rome, Albion, Dunkirk, Sun Prairie and Madison — " the original towns" — the Territorial Legislature set off the north half of Albion into a new town. This was on the 23d of January, 1847. The same Legislature, on the 11th day of the next month, passed an act, as previously explained, greatly reducing the
Text read by machine from the scan; it may contain errors.
Madison, Dane County and surrounding towns1877 · page 260Read the page →
Read the text
Three villages, Windsor, De Forest and Morrison, are located on the line of the Miidison and Portage Kailroad, witldn the limits of the town of Windsor- Each village is favored with a railroad station; each has an express office, and each is a market for grain and other farm products. And although these villages are only about two miles apartj and are within ten mile^ of other competing markets, still quite an
Text read by machine from the scan; it may contain errors.
Madison, Dane County and surrounding towns1877 · page 556Read the page →
Read the text
land; but, finding out his mistake, abandoned the work, and did not attempt cultivation. William Lawrence made a settlement near the north line of the town of Windsor, in 1838; but to what extent he broke the soil, if at all, is doubtful. In 1839, Abel Dunning and William D. Bird made breakings within the present town, and " Esq. Peaslee " did the same on the " 76 farm," in Burke, which has passed through so many proprietors
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.
Timeline
Windsor, 1847 to 1890
Woven from the archive, old maps, post office records, the National Register and the people born here.
The Windsor post office opened in 1847, the earliest record of the town by name (U.S. post office records).
How does Windsor rank for history?
Windsor is more historic than 43% of U.S. towns, #230 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.
How old are the homes in Windsor?
6% of Windsor’s homes were built before 1940 (Census estimate, ±3.9 points), against a typical 12% for a Wisconsin town; the median home was built in 1994.
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 (6), Wikipedia, Wikidata and Wikipedia for famous people, U.S. Geological Survey historical maps, U.S. Census counts (via Wikipedia), 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.
2012
2012
2012
2012
2012
2011