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History · Elsie

Elsie’s history is
mostly unwritten

The public archives hold just one old photo of Elsie. The rest are in attics, shoeboxes and the historical society. Help start the collection.

1old images & papers
0recent photos
Views of Elsie, by S. Wight, 1908 · Library of Congress

The story

from WikipediaRead it all ↗

Elsie was founded in 1857 and platted the same year. It was incorporated in 1885. Elsie is named for Miss Elsie Tillotson, the daughter of an early settler.

Text from Wikipedia, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0.

Timeline

built from the dates on the items below
1908Views of Elsie, by S. WightLOC
1910–1999Nothing yet. Family albums go here.
Be one of the first

Start Elsie’s collection

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

1 of 10 decades since 1900 have photos 🔁Retake an old viewViews of Elsie, by S. Wight, 1908: stand where they stood+15 📦Share a family photoSign in to add one+10

Famous people from Elsie

See all 3 →
Frank OberlinFrank OberlinSportsGPGary L. PeltierScience & MedicinePMPaul R. MortNotable
By decade

Elsie, decade by decade

1900s1 item
Views of Elsie, by S. WightLOCViews of Elsie, by S. Wight1908
1910s–
1990s
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
National Register of Historic Places

Nothing in Elsie is on the National Register yet

That’s true of most small towns. It doesn’t mean Elsie has no history, only that no one has written up a nomination. The closest listed place is Grist Mill Bridge, Dam and Mill Site in Duplain, 1 miles away.

Elsie and the nearest listed places

Dashed line = Elsie. Tap a dot.
Grist Mill Bridge, Dam and Mill SiteMain Street Building, United Church of OvidGiles J. Gibbs Building-Sugar BowlWest Town Historic Commercial and Industrial DistrictGeorge Perrigo HouseSylvester Opdyke House

Closest to Elsie

Grist Mill Bridge, Dam and Mill SiteDuplain · District1miMain Street Building, United Church of OvidOvid · Building5.7miGiles J. Gibbs Building-Sugar BowlSt. Johns · Late Victorian · Built 186710.5miWest Town Historic Commercial and Industrial DistrictOwosso · District12.1miGeorge Perrigo HouseOwosso · Built 189112.2mi

How a place gets listed

1Talk to the stateEvery nomination goes through the State Historic Preservation Office. Owners, towns and historical societies can start one.
2Try a local or state list firstMany states keep their own register with a shorter form, a common first step for old barns, halls and schoolhouses.
3Write it upA nomination covers the history, photos and a map. Grist Mill Bridge, Dam and Mill Site’s page links to a real one.
Know an old place in Elsie?A mill, a schoolhouse, a cellar hole, a church: add a photo of it to Elsie’s story, or a memory of it.
📷 Add a photo of an old place
National Park Service, National Register of Historic Places · photos from Wikimedia Commons

Then & now

No then-and-now pairs yet. Take a photo from the same spot as Views of Elsie, by S. Wight (1908) and it appears here side by side.

🔁 Retake this view · +15

Stories next door

nearby towns’ history
📜 Duplain📜 Fairfield📜 Elba📜 Ovid

From the Library of Congress (1). Images are copied here with their credits and licenses, shown on each photo’s page. Refreshed monthly.

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Boundary source: https://tigerweb.geo.census.gov/arcgis/rest/services/TIGERweb/Places_CouSub_ConCity_SubMCD/MapServer/18 · 2025-01-01
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