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–Not graded
History · Cobden

Cobden’s post office opened in 1886, and 27% of its homes were built before 1940

Below: maps from 1953 on and the census since 1910.

1886first post office
0on the National Register
27%homes built before 1940
1famous people
Add an old photoShare a memory
Quick answers

How Cobden began

When was Cobden founded?

1886

The Cobden post office opened in 1886, the earliest record of the town by name.

First census: 87 in 19102020 census: 36140 years
Founding year: the first Cobden post office (Blevins & Helbock, CC0).The full story ↓

What stands out about Cobden’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 Cobden are in the public archives yet. The rest are in attics and albums.Boom and bustPeaked at 136 in 1940; 36 people lived here in 2020.Old housesHalf of Cobden’s homes were built before 1953.
★ What stands out · Help out

Start Cobden’s collection

The first neighbors to add old photos shape how Cobden’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

Cobden, census by census

0100192019401960198020002020Peak: 136

Peaked at 136 in 1940; 36 people lived here in 2020.

12 censuses, 1910–2020.

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

The story

How Cobden came to be

From Wikipedia’s history of Cobden.

Read it all →

A post office was established as Cobden in 1886, and remained in operation until it was discontinued in 1972. Cobden was platted in 1901, and incorporated in 1905. The city was named for Richard Cobden, a British statesman.

Text from Wikipedia, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0.

Timeline

Cobden, 1886 to 1972

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

  1. 19th century
  2. 1886Post officeThe Cobden post office opens
  3. 20th century
  4. 1909Born hereLefty Bertrand is born here
  5. 1940CensusPopulation peaks at 136
  6. 1953On the mapFirst mapped by the U.S. Geological Survey
  7. 1972Post officeThe Cobden post office closes
By decade

Cobden, decade by decade

Today2 recent
Cobden Jail2011Cobden JailMNMap-doton-Cobden2005MNMap-doton-Cobden
On the map

Cobden on the map, 1953 to 1991

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

Cobden on the 1953 USGS mapCobden on the 1983 USGS mapCobden on the 1991 USGS map1953Morgan 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 Cobden.

Places that used to be

Lost post offices and places now gone

Cobden had its own post office from 1886 to 1972.

Cobden
1886–1972
18801950today
Gone or out of use
Cobden Post Officepost office

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.

Prairieville TownshipIts storynot graded: under 1,000 residents or part of its townLeavenworth TownshipIts storynot graded: under 1,000 residents or part of its town

Questions about Cobden’s history

What year was Cobden founded?

The Cobden post office opened in 1886, the earliest record of the town by name (U.S. post office records).

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 Wikimedia Commons (2), 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.