Rockport was laid out by Thomas Holmes, the first surveyed town in the county; one passage dates this to the fall of 1835.

The evidence

• “Rockport was laid out by Thomas Holmes in Dec, 1835, the first surveyed town in the county. Wisconsin City, by John Inman, Breese and Shepherd, in 1886.”

  1856-history-of-rock-county/24-rock.md, PDF p. 164 / book p. 148

  Guernsey, Orrin, and Josiah F. Willard, editors. History of Rock County, and Transactions of the Rock County Agricultural Society and Mechanics' Institute. Janesville, Wis.: William M. Doty & Brother, 1856. Cornell University Library via the Internet Archive, archive.org/details/cu31924028871593.

  Grade A: Found on a page of one of our sources

  

• “Its corner and water lots have made no small figure in Wall street ; its lithographed city plats have been honored with a conspicuous place in all the great land-agency ofiices of the country. At one time, this town could boast of four cities and villages — ' Wisconsin City,' ' Koshkonong City,' ' Rockport,' ' Monterey ' and ' Afton.' Rockport was laid out by Thomas Holmes in December, 1835, and was the first surveyed village (or city) in the county. ' Wisconsin City ' was surveyed by Inman, Breese and Shepherd, in 1836 ; ' City of Koshkonong,' in the summer of the same year, by Kenzie, Hunter and Booby; ' Monterey,' by Ira Miltimore, in 1850. By an act of the Legislature of Wisconsin, approved March 19, 1853, the city of Janesville was incorporated, and, by its charter, Sections 1 and 2 of the town of Rock were brought within its limits.”

  1879-history-of-rock-county/13-rock-county-ch07-town-histories.md, PDF p. 522 / book p. 526

  Butterfield, C. W., et al. The History of Rock County, Wisconsin: its early settlement, growth, development, resources, etc. Chicago: Western Historical Company, 1879. Cornell University Library via the Internet Archive, archive.org/details/cu31924028871585.

  Grade A: Found on a page of one of our sources · may repeat 1856-history-of-rock-county, so not counted as independent

  

• “At one time this town could boast of four cities and villages on paper, Wisconsin city, Koshkonong City, Rock Port, Monterey and Afton. Rockport was laid out by Thomas Holmes in December, 1835. and was the first surveyed village (or city) in the county. Wisconsin city was surveyed by Inman, Breese and Sheperd in 1836 ;”

  1908-brown-rock-county/31-smaller-cities-villages-towns.md, Vol. 2, PDF p. 202 / book p. 706

  Brown, William Fiske, editor. Rock County, Wisconsin: A New History of Its Cities, Villages, Towns, Citizens and Varied Interests, from the Earliest Times, Up to Date. Chicago: C. F. Cooper & Co., 1908. 2 vols. archive.org/details/rockcountywiscon01brow, archive.org/details/rockcountywiscon02brow.

  Grade A: Found on a page of one of our sources · may repeat 1856-history-of-rock-county, 1879-history-of-rock-county, so not counted as independent