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History · Cosmos

Cosmos’ post office opened in 1870, and 25% of its homes were built before 1940

Below: maps from 1967 on and the census since 1930.

1870first post office
0on the National Register
25%homes built before 1940
Add an old photoShare a memory
Photo: Myotus · CC BY-SA 4.0
Quick answers

How Cosmos began

When was Cosmos founded?

1870

The Cosmos post office opened in 1870, the earliest record of the town by name.

First census: 230 in 19302020 census: 507156 years
Founding year: the first Cosmos post office (Blevins & Helbock, CC0).The full story ↓

What stands out about Cosmos’ 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 Cosmos are in the public archives yet. The rest are in attics and albums.Old housesHalf of Cosmos’ homes were built before 1957.
★ What stands out · Help out

Start Cosmos’s collection

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

From Wikipedia’s history of Cosmos.

Read it all →

Cosmos Township was first settled by Daniel Jackman, from Maine, in 1867. On his arrival, until he could build his house, he lived in a tent and cooked on an open fire. He took up a homestead in section 26. He returned to Minneapolis the following spring, but immediately returned and built his home in the summer of 1868. In 1877, he made a trip to the Black Hills and spent the season in gold mining, but returned in the fall. When the township was organized, the first election was held at his house. He was elected the first chairman of the board of supervisors and held that office for three years.

Text from Wikipedia, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0.

From the old history books

What they wrote about Cosmos in 1888

Passages that mention Cosmos, cut from the printed page as they were published.

with a man named Hale, who had adopted him. He remained there until 1873, when he came to Meeker county, Minn., and located in what is now the town of Cosmos. After remaining there a year he went to Stevens county, Minn., where he also remained a year, and then returned to Meeker county.
Album of history and biography of Meeker County, Minnesota1888 · page 187Read the page →
Read the text

with a man named Hale, who had adopted him. He remained there until 1873, when he came to Meeker county, Minn., and located in what is now the town of Cosmos. After remaining there a year he went to Stevens county, Minn., where he also remained a year, and then returned to Meeker county.

Text read by machine from the scan; it may contain errors.

Scans and text from the Internet Archive. Books published in 1930 or earlier, which are in the public domain.

By decade

Cosmos, decade by decade

Today10 recent
Water tower2023Water towerWater tower in2023Water tower inWater tower at2023Water tower atBusiness district in2023Business district inMilkyway Street2022Milkyway StreetMilkyway Street2022Milkyway StreetCosmos City Hall2022Cosmos City HallWaterTowerCosmosMN-Panoramio(cropped)2010WaterTowerCosmosMN-Panoramio(cropped)Luce Line Bike-Walk Trail, Cosmos MN - panoramio (2)2010Luce Line Bike-Walk Trail, Cosmos MN - panoramio (2)Luce Line Bike-Walk Trail, Cosmos MN - Lake Thompsom - panoramio (1)2010Luce Line Bike-Walk Trail, Cosmos MN - Lake Thompsom …
On the map

Cosmos on the map, 1967 to 1986

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

Cosmos on the 1967 USGS mapCosmos on the 1986 USGS map1967Cosmos 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 Cosmos.

People over time

Cosmos, census by census

010020030040050060019401960198020002020Peak: 610

Between 230 and 610 people in every census since 1930.

10 censuses, 1930–2020.

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

Famous people

Famous people close to Cosmos

Nobody well known was born in Cosmos itself, so here are the best known from just nearby.

See all →
Lindsay WhalenAmerican Hall of Fame basketball player and coa… · b. 1982
Bradley JosephAmerican composer, pianist, keyboardist, arrang… · b. 1965
J
John Jeremiah McRaithCatholic bishop · b. 1934
John W. FossUnited States general · b. 1933
Ancher NelsenAmerican politician · b. 1904
D
Debbii DawsonAmerican singer · b. 1997
Places that used to be

Old corners, places now gone and burying grounds

Cosmos’s post office has been open since 1870.

Hamlets and corners on the map
Cosmos Mobile Home Park
Gone or out of use
Cosmoslocale
1cemetery inside Cosmos
Peace

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

Questions about Cosmos’ history

What year was Cosmos founded?

The Cosmos post office opened in 1870, 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 (10), Wikipedia, U.S. Geological Survey historical maps, U.S. Census counts (via Wikipedia), the US Post Offices dataset (Blevins & Helbock), the USGS Geographic Names Information System and old county and town histories (Internet Archive). Archive images are copied here with their credits and licenses, shown on each photo’s page. Refreshed monthly.