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–Not graded
History · Chatfield Township

20% of Chatfield Township’s homes were built before 1940

Below: maps from 1954 on and the census since 1880.

0on the National Register
20%homes built before 1940
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What stands out about Chatfield 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 Chatfield Township are in the public archives yet. The rest are in attics and albums.Shrank, then grewLost two-thirds of its people between 1880 and 1910, then more than doubled.
★ What stands out · Help out

Start Chatfield Township’s collection

The first neighbors to add old photos shape how Chatfield 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

Chatfield Township, census by census

02,0004,0006,0008,00010,000188019001920194019601980200020209,001 in 1880Low: 1,228

Lost two-thirds of its people between 1880 and 1910, then more than doubled.

15 censuses, 1880–2020.

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

The story

How Chatfield Township came to be

From Wikipedia’s history of Chatfield Township.

Read it all →

The city was named after Judge Andrew G. Chatfield. It was founded in 1853 by Andrew Twiford, and originally served as the Fillmore county seat prior to the county being further divided. The founding population was overwhelmingly from New England. The New Englanders who founded Chatfield built a community that became so successful it was dubbed "the Chosen Valley". During the American Civil War, the Chatfield Guards militia distinguished themselves as Company A of the 2nd Minnesota Volunteer Infantry, and their commander, former engineer and newspaperman Captain (later promoted to colonel) Judson W. Bishop, later commanded the entire regiment.

Text from Wikipedia, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0.

By decade

Chatfield Township, decade by decade

Today6 recent
2009-0528-Chatfield-sign20092009-0528-Chatfield-sign2009-0528-Chatfield-main20092009-0528-Chatfield-main2009-0528-Chatfield-church20092009-0528-Chatfield-churchMainStreetChatfieldMNdusk2006MainStreetChatfieldMNduskChatfieldMNdowntown2006-05-012006ChatfieldMNdowntown2006-05-01MNMap-doton-Chatfield2005MNMap-doton-Chatfield
On the map

Chatfield Township on the map, 1954 to 1974

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

Chatfield Township on the 1954 USGS mapChatfield Township on the 1974 USGS map1954Chatfield 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 Chatfield Township.

Places that used to be

Old burying grounds

4cemeteries and burying grounds inside Chatfield Township
CalvaryChatfieldSaint MarysSaint Paul

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.

Chatfield5 historic placesB+Fountain Township1 historic placenot graded: under 1,000 residents or part of its townPilot Mound TownshipIts storynot graded: under 1,000 residents or part of its townJordan TownshipIts storynot graded: under 1,000 residents or part of its townElmira TownshipIts storynot graded: under 1,000 residents or part of its town

Questions about Chatfield Township’s history

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