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History · Elbow Lake

Half of Elbow Lake’s homes were built after 1977

Most of Elbow Lake was built recently: 9% of its homes predate 1940 and the median home dates from 1977. Below: maps from 1969 on and the census since 2000.

0on the National Register
9%homes built before 1940
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What stands out about Elbow Lake’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 Elbow Lake are in the public archives yet. The rest are in attics and albums.
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Start Elbow Lake’s collection

The first neighbors to add old photos shape how Elbow Lake’s history is told.

Decades since 1900 with photos
00s10s20s30s40s50s60s70s80s90s
0 of 10 decades. The empty ones are waiting for someone’s album.
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The story so far

Elbow Lake, in brief

Wikipedia doesn’t have a history of Elbow Lake yet. The photos, dates and memories neighbors add here are how it gets written.

Elbow Lake is a census-designated place in Becker and Clearwater counties in Minnesota, United States. Its population was 95 at the 2010 census.

Between the 2010 and 2020 censuses its population grew from 95 to 118 (+24%).

Intro from Wikipedia. Population: U.S. Census Bureau.

By decade

Elbow Lake, decade by decade

Today1 recent
Detailed map of2008Detailed map ofMap
On the map

Elbow Lake on the map, 1969 to 1985

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

Elbow Lake on the 1969 USGS mapElbow Lake on the 1985 USGS map1969Tulaby Lake 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 Elbow Lake.

People over time

Elbow Lake, census by census

010020002020Peak: 118

Between 95 and 118 people in every census since 2000.

3 censuses, 2000–2020.

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

Questions about Elbow Lake’s history

Memory lane

What the archives can’t tell you, neighbors can.

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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 (1), U.S. Geological Survey historical maps and U.S. Census counts (via Wikipedia). Archive images are copied here with their credits and licenses, shown on each photo’s page. Refreshed monthly.