More historic than 25% of U.S. towns · #188 of 273 in Minnesota. What drives it
Most of Chisago City was built recently: 8% of its homes predate 1940 and the median home dates from 1991. Below: 1 old photo or paper, maps from 1955 on, and the census since 1880.
Founding year: the first Chisago City post office (Blevins & Helbock, CC0).The full story ↓
History grade
What drives Chisago City’s History grade
On its age, its old homes and the National Register, Chisago City is more historic than 25% of U.S. towns, #188 of 273 in Minnesota. Its share of homes from before 1940 holds the grade up; its National Register listings pull it down.
C
HistoryA character grade: shown, never part of Chisago City’s overall grade.
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 Chisago City’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 any two of the three inputs instead, the letter would range from C− to C. The pre-1940 share is a Census survey estimate (±3.0 points). The founding year is the first post office, not a stated founding date.
Founding year: the first post office (other dates in Quick answers). 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 Chisago City’s past
Read from the archive, the National Register and the record. The page puts what stands out first.
Chisago City was founded in May 1857 by Anders Swenson, a Swedish immigrant from Småland. He was born in 1817 and came to America in 1850. The city took its name from Chisago Lake.
During 1852 only a few settlers arrived. John Smith came from Örtofta in the spring of that year. Ahead of him, he declared, were only five settlers at Chisago Lake.
During 1853-54 a substantial number of Swedish immigrants arrived, most of them from Kronoberg County. Most of the land around the lake was taken up and settled During the settlement's first three or four years. Later-arriving immigrants had to go farther into the country to secure homesteads.
The Chisago City post office opened in 1856, the earliest record of the town by name (U.S. post office records).
How does Chisago City rank for history?
Chisago City is more historic than 25% of U.S. towns, #188 of 273 in Minnesota. 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 Chisago City?
8% of Chisago City’s homes were built before 1940 (Census estimate, ±3.0 points), against a typical 8.1% for a Minnesota town; the median home was built in 1991.
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 (5), 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.
2020
2017
2010
2005
