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History · Ashby

Ashby dates to 1879, and 35% of its homes were built before 1940

Below: maps from 1913 on and the census since 1890.

1879founded
0on the National Register
35%homes built before 1940
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Photo: Farragutful · CC BY-SA 4.0
Quick answers

How Ashby began

When was Ashby founded?

1879

Ashby dates its founding to 1879 (Wikipedia’s history). The census first counted it in 1890.

First census: 231 in 18902020 census: 469147 years
Founding year: Wikipedia. First post office: 1880.The full story ↓

What stands out about Ashby’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 Ashby are in the public archives yet. The rest are in attics and albums.Old housesHalf of Ashby’s homes were built before 1960.
★ What stands out · Help out

Start Ashby’s collection

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

Decades since 1900 with photos
00s10s20s30s40s50s60s70s80s90s
0 of 10 decades. The empty ones are waiting for someone’s album.
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The story

How Ashby came to be

From Wikipedia’s history of Ashby.

Read it all →

Ashby was platted in 1879, and named for Gunder Ash, an early Norwegian settler. Roughly half the city's population is of Norwegian heritage. A post office has been in operation at Ashby since 1880.

On July 8, 2020, areas north of Ashby were struck by a violent EF4 tornado. It killed one person and destroyed three farmsteads.

In 2021, there was an 80-car pileup on Interstate 94 near Ashby.

Text from Wikipedia, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0.

Timeline

Ashby, 1879 to 1913

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

  1. 19th century
  2. 1879
    FoundingAshby is established
  3. 1880Post officeThe Ashby post office opens
  4. 20th century
  5. 1913On the mapFirst mapped by the U.S. Geological Survey
By decade

Ashby, decade by decade

Today18 recent
Viking Bank2022Viking BankPeace Lutheran Church2022Peace Lutheran ChurchGlende-Nilson Funeral Home2022Glende-Nilson Funeral HomeFormer Trinity Church2022Former Trinity ChurchFirst Presbyterian Church2022First Presbyterian ChurchCentral Lakes Trail bridge2022Central Lakes Trail bridgeBrew House2022Brew HouseAshby, Minnesota 082022Ashby, Minnesota 08Ashby, Minnesota 072022Ashby, Minnesota 07Ashby, Minnesota 062022Ashby, Minnesota 06Ashby, Minnesota 052022Ashby, Minnesota 05Ashby, Minnesota 042022Ashby, Minnesota 04Ashby, Minnesota 032022Ashby, Minnesota 03Ashby, Minnesota 022022Ashby, Minnesota 02Ashby, Minnesota 012022Ashby, Minnesota 01Ashby Co-op Creamery Association2022Ashby Co-op Creamery AssociationAmerican Legion2022American LegionMNMap-doton-Ashby2005MNMap-doton-Ashby
On the map

Ashby on the map, 1913 to 1973

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

Ashby on the 1913 USGS mapAshby on the 1973 USGS map1913Ashby 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 Ashby.

People over time

Ashby, census by census

01002003004005001900192019401960198020002020Peak: 486

Between 231 and 486 people in every census since 1890.

14 censuses, 1890–2020.

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

Places that used to be

Places now gone

Ashby’s post office has been open since 1880.

Gone or out of use
Ashbylocale

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

Questions about Ashby’s history

What year was Ashby founded?

In 1879, according to Wikipedia’s history of the town. Ashby’s post office opened in 1880, and the census of 1890 counted 231 people here.

Memory lane

What the archives can’t tell you, neighbors can.

Town Square →
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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 (18), 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.