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History · Elba

Elba dates to 1856, and 41% of its homes were built before 1940

Below: maps from 1934 on and the census since 1880.

1856founded
0on the National Register
41%homes built before 1940
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Quick answers

How Elba began

When was Elba founded?

1856

Elba dates its founding to 1856 (Wikipedia’s history). The census first counted it in 1880.

First census: 98 in 18802020 census: 129170 years
Founding year: Wikipedia. First post office: 1858.The full story ↓

What stands out about Elba’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 Elba are in the public archives yet. The rest are in attics and albums.Boom and bustPeaked at 220 in 1990; 129 people lived here in 2020.Old housesHalf of Elba’s homes were built before 1964.
★ What stands out · Help out

Start Elba’s collection

The first neighbors to add old photos shape how Elba’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

Elba, census by census

010020018801900192019401960198020002020Peak: 220

Peaked at 220 in 1990; 129 people lived here in 2020.

14 censuses, 1880–2020.

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

The story

How Elba came to be

From Wikipedia’s history of Elba.

Read it all →

Elba was laid out in 1856, and named after the island of Elba. The city was originally built up chiefly by ethnic Germans from Luxembourg. A post office was in operation at Elba from 1858 until 1965.

As a result of the 2007 Midwest flooding, the town was flooded when the dikes holding back the Whitewater River failed on August 18, 2007.

Text from Wikipedia, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0.

Timeline

Elba, 1856 to 1990

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

  1. 19th century
  2. 1856
    FoundingElba is established
  3. 1858Post officeThe Elba post office opens
  4. 1882Post officeThe Fairwater post office opens
  5. 20th century
  6. 1906Post officeThe Fairwater post office closes
  7. 1934On the mapFirst mapped by the U.S. Geological Survey
  8. 1960Post officeThe Elba post office closes
  9. 1990CensusPopulation peaks at 220
By decade

Elba, decade by decade

Today1 recent
Yellow Trees at Whitewater State Park, Minnesota2017Yellow Trees at Whitewater State Park, Minnesota
On the map

Elba on the map, 1934 to 1972

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

Elba on the 1934 USGS mapElba on the 1972 USGS map1934Plainview 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 Elba.

Places that used to be

Lost post offices, places now gone and burying grounds

Elba had its own post office from 1858 to 1960. Another post office, Fairwater, opened and closed inside today’s town.

Elba
1858–1960
Fairwater
1882–1906
18501940today
Gone or out of use
Elba Post Officepost office
2cemeteries and burying grounds inside Elba
FairwaterSaint Aloysius

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

Questions about Elba’s history

What year was Elba founded?

In 1856, according to Wikipedia’s history of the town. Elba’s post office opened in 1858, and the census of 1880 counted 98 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 Wikimedia Commons (1), Wikipedia, 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.