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History · Bellechester

Bellechester dates to 1877, and 44% of its homes were built before 1940

Below: maps from 1968 on and the census since 1960.

1877founded
0on the National Register
44%homes built before 1940
1famous people
Add an old photoShare a memory
Quick answers

How Bellechester began

When was Bellechester founded?

1877

Bellechester dates its founding to 1877 (Wikipedia’s history). The census first counted it in 1960.

First census: 184 in 19602020 census: 176149 years
Founding year: Wikipedia. First post office: 1911.The full story ↓

What stands out about Bellechester’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 Bellechester are in the public archives yet. The rest are in attics and albums.Old housesHalf of Bellechester’s homes were built before 1953.
★ What stands out · Help out

Start Bellechester’s collection

The first neighbors to add old photos shape how Bellechester’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 Bellechester came to be

From Wikipedia’s history of Bellechester.

Read it all →

Bellechester was laid out in 1877, and named for its location in Chester Township, belle being derived from French meaning "beautiful". A post office was established on the Wabasha County side in 1879.

Text from Wikipedia, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0.

Timeline

Bellechester, 1877 to 1968

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

  1. 19th century
  2. 1877
    FoundingBellechester is established
  3. 1893Born herePeter William Bartholome is born here
  4. 20th century
  5. 1911Post officeThe Bellechester post office opens
  6. 1917Post officeThe Bellechester post office closes
  7. 1968On the mapFirst mapped by the U.S. Geological Survey
By decade

No old photos in the archives yet

Weddings on Main Street, storms, parades, school pictures, the old store. If it’s in your family album, it belongs here.

Be the first to add onePhotograph a print flat, in daylight, no flash.
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On the map

Bellechester on the map, 1968 to 1985

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

Bellechester on the 1968 USGS mapBellechester on the 1985 USGS map1968Mazeppa sheet · 1:24,000

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

People over time

Bellechester, census by census

01002001960198020002020Peak: 220

Between 110 and 220 people in every census since 1960.

7 censuses, 1960–2020.

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

Places that used to be

Lost post offices, places now gone and burying grounds

Bellechester had its own post office from 1911 to 1917.

Bellechester
1911–1917
19101970today
Gone or out of use
Bellechester Post Officepost office
1cemetery inside Bellechester
Saint Mary's Catholic

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.

Chester Township1 historic placenot graded: under 1,000 residents or part of its townBelvidere TownshipIts storynot graded: under 1,000 residents or part of its town

Questions about Bellechester’s history

What year was Bellechester founded?

In 1877, according to Wikipedia’s history of the town. Bellechester’s post office opened in 1911, and the census of 1960 counted 184 people here.

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 Wikipedia, Wikidata and Wikipedia for famous people, 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.