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C+History
History · Barnum Township

17% of Barnum Township’s homes were built before 1940

More historic than 39% of U.S. towns. What drives it

Below: maps from 1962 on and the census since 1880.

0on the National Register
17%homes built before 1940
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Quick answers

About Barnum Township’s history

How historic is Barnum Township?

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More historic than 39% of U.S. towns, on its age, its old homes and the National Register.

What drives the grade ↓
History grade

What drives Barnum Township’s History grade

On its age, its old homes and the National Register, Barnum Township is more historic than 39% of U.S. towns. Its share of homes from before 1940 holds the grade up; its National Register listings pull it down.

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HistoryA character grade: shown, never part of Barnum Township’s overall grade.
Founding eraNo founding year we can rely on, so the grade uses the other two–Homes built before 194016.5% of homes (±9.7) · typical MN town 8.1% · U.S. 8.4%BNational RegisterNo listings counted · typical MN town 2.1 per 10,000 · U.S. 2.4C−
All U.S. towns we grade (21,289)Ahead of 39%
NewerOlder

Minnesota towns list about as much on the Register as the country (a typical Minnesota town has 2.1 per 10,000 residents, the U.S. 2.4), so Barnum Township’s 0.0 sits below most of its state (23% of Minnesota towns have fewer) while its 0 listings outnumber those of 23% of U.S. towns.

How sure. Graded on two of the three inputs, so a change in either one moves the letter more than it would with three. The pre-1940 share is a Census survey estimate (±9.7 points).

Founding year: our sources. 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 Barnum Township’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 Barnum Township are in the public archives yet. The rest are in attics and albums.Shrank, then grewLost a third of its people between 1890 and 1920, then more than doubled.
★ What stands out · Help out

Start Barnum Township’s collection

The first neighbors to add old photos shape how Barnum Township’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
People over time

Barnum Township, census by census

010020030040050060018801900192019401960198020002020417 in 1890Low: 242

Lost a third of its people between 1890 and 1920, then more than doubled.

15 censuses, 1880–2020.

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

The story so far

Barnum Township, in brief

Wikipedia doesn’t have a history of Barnum Township yet. The photos, dates and memories neighbors add here are how it gets written.

Barnum is a city in Carlton County, Minnesota, United States. The population was 620 at the 2020 census. Interstate Highway 35, Carlton County Road 6 (Main Street), and Carlton County Road 61 (Front Street) are three of the main routes in Barnum.

Between the 2010 and 2020 censuses its population grew from 1,061 to 1,098 (+3%).

Intro from Wikipedia. Population: U.S. Census Bureau.

Timeline

Barnum Township, 1912 to 2020

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

  1. 20th century
  2. 1912Post officeThe Nemadji post office opens
  3. 1953Post officeThe Nemadji post office closes
  4. 1962On the mapFirst mapped by the U.S. Geological Survey
  5. 21st century
  6. 2020CensusPopulation peaks at 620
By decade

Barnum Township, decade by decade

Today9 recent
Water tower2024Water towerPublic Library2024Public LibraryGateway to the Northwoods2024Gateway to the NorthwoodsChrist Centered Church2024Christ Centered ChurchBridge over Moose Horn River2024Bridge over Moose Horn RiverBarnum, Minnesota-commercial area at Main Street2024Barnum, Minnesota-commercial area at Main StreetBarnum Main Street2024Barnum Main StreetBarnum Event Center, Liquor Store and City Offices2024Barnum Event Center, Liquor Store and City OfficesBig Louis2017Big Louis
On the map

Barnum Township on the map, 1962 to 1980

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

Barnum Township on the 1962 USGS mapBarnum Township on the 1980 USGS map1962Bruno 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 Barnum Township.

Places that used to be

Lost post offices, old corners and burying grounds

Another post office, Nemadji, opened and closed inside today’s town.

Hamlets and corners on the map
J's Trailer ParkNemadji
1cemetery inside Barnum Township
Sunset Memorial

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

Stories next door

History across the town line

Each neighbor’s History grade, on the same three inputs.

Moose Lake TownshipIts storyCBarnumIts storynot graded: under 1,000 residents or part of its townMahtowa TownshipIts storynot graded: under 1,000 residents or part of its townBlackhoof TownshipIts storyC−

Questions about Barnum Township’s history

How does Barnum Township rank for history?

Barnum Township is more historic than 39% of U.S. towns. 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 Barnum Township?

17% of Barnum Township’s homes were built before 1940 (Census estimate, ±9.7 points), against a typical 8.1% for a Minnesota town; the median home was built in 1991.

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).

From Wikimedia Commons (9), 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.