Guest, Sign inJoin

Post to Thor

We’ll email a one-tap link to publish your post. No password, and nothing is public until you click it.
Already a member? Sign in
–Not graded
History · Thor

Thor’s post office opened in 1882, and 54% of its homes were built before 1940

Below: maps from 1923 on and the census since 1900.

1882first post office
0on the National Register
54%homes built before 1940
Add an old photoShare a memory
Photo: Brandonrush · CC BY-SA 4.0
Quick answers

How Thor began, and where its name came from

When was Thor founded?

1882

The Thor post office opened in 1882, the earliest record of the town by name. Another post office, Verbeck (1880), opened inside today’s city and later closed.

First census: 274 in 19002020 census: 181144 years

How did Thor get its name?

Thor was named after the mythical deity Thor in Old Norse mythology.

Founding year: the first Thor post office (Blevins & Helbock, CC0). Name: Wikipedia, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0.The full story ↓

What stands out about Thor’s past

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

A history waiting to be writtenNo old photos of Thor are in the public archives yet. The rest are in attics and albums.Old housesHalf of Thor’s homes were built before 1938.
★ What stands out · Help out

Start Thor’s collection

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

Decades since 1900 with photos
00s10s20s30s40s50s60s70s80s90s
0 of 10 decades. The empty ones are waiting for someone’s album.
Share a family photoSign in to add one+10
The story

How Thor came to be

From Wikipedia’s history of Thor.

Read it all →

The small city of Thor is a farming community which was originally built up chiefly by Scandinavian immigrants. Settlement of the township started in 1869 with the filing of a claim by Ole Willicksen, who was a native of Stavanger, Norway. In 1881, the town of Thor was laid out by the Western Town Lot Company. Thor was platted in 1882. It was named after the mythical deity Thor in Old Norse mythology.

Thor was formerly serviced by Iowa Highway 302, which was decommissioned in 1980.

Text from Wikipedia, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0.

Timeline

Thor, 1880 to 1923

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

  1. 19th century
  2. 1880Post officeThe Verbeck post office opens
  3. 1882Post officeThe Verbeck post office closes
  4. 1882Post officeThe Thor post office opens
  5. 20th century
  6. 1923On the mapFirst mapped by the U.S. Geological Survey
By decade

Thor, decade by decade

Today2 recent
Thor, Iowa 0012017Thor, Iowa 001IAMap-doton-Thor2004IAMap-doton-Thor
On the map

Thor on the map, 1923 to 1979

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

Thor on the 1923 USGS mapThor on the 1979 USGS map1923Fort Dodge sheet · 1:62,500

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

People over time

Thor, census by census

01002003001900192019401960198020002020Peak: 285

Between 174 and 285 people in every census since 1900.

13 censuses, 1900–2020.

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

Famous people

Famous people close to Thor

Nobody well known was born in Thor itself, so here are the best known from just nearby.

See all →
G
George ReevesAmerican actor · b. 1914
Jenny SimpsonAmerican middle-distance runner and steeplechas… · b. 1986
C
Christian ClemensonAmerican actor · b. 1958
MacKinlay KantorAmerican journalist, novelist and screenwriter · b. 1904
Katie PorterU.S. Representative from California · b. 1974
C
Corita KentPop artist · b. 1918
Places that used to be

Lost post offices and places now gone

Thor’s post office has been open since 1882. Another post office, Verbeck, opened and closed inside today’s town.

Verbeck
1880–1882
Thor
1882–today
18801950today
Gone or out of use
Thorlocale

US Post Offices dataset (Blevins & Helbock, CC0). Places and cemeteries from the USGS Geographic Names Information System (2021).

Questions about Thor’s history

What year was Thor founded?

The Thor post office opened in 1882, the earliest record of the town by name (U.S. post office records).

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 (2), Wikipedia, U.S. Geological Survey historical maps, U.S. Census counts (via Wikipedia), 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.