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History · Georgetown

Georgetown dates to 1859, and 28% of its homes were built before 1940

Below: maps from 1963 on and the census since 1910.

1859founded
0on the National Register
28%homes built before 1940
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Quick answers

How Georgetown began

When was Georgetown founded?

1859

Georgetown dates its founding to 1859 (Wikipedia’s history). The census first counted it in 1910.

First census: 182 in 19102020 census: 86167 years
Founding year: Wikipedia. First post office: 1864.The full story ↓

What stands out about Georgetown’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 Georgetown are in the public archives yet. The rest are in attics and albums.
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Start Georgetown’s collection

The first neighbors to add old photos shape how Georgetown’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

How Georgetown came to be

From Wikipedia’s history of Georgetown.

Read it all →

Georgetown was established in 1859 as a trading post and company town for the Hudson's Bay Company. It served as the relay post for good traveling from Canada south to St. Cloud. In 1862, Georgetown was the northwestern most city in Minnesota. The city was evacuated during the U.S.-Dakota War of 1862, following the Dakota laying siege to Fort Abercrombie, the nearest settlement. The evacuees were lead north by Joe Rolette. Only two families would return to Georgetown after the war, despite the city never being attacked. A post office called Georgetown began operation in 1864. The city's importance began to decline with the arrival of railroads, and lower water levels making Red River transportation more difficult. The city moved further away from the river as its importance waned.

Text from Wikipedia, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0.

Timeline

Georgetown, 1859 to 1963

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

  1. 19th century
  2. 1859
    FoundingGeorgetown is established
  3. 1864Post officeThe Georgetown post office opens
  4. 20th century
  5. 1963On the mapFirst mapped by the U.S. Geological Survey
By decade

Georgetown, decade by decade

Today6 recent
US. POST OFFICE, GEORGETOWN MN 565462022US. POST OFFICE, GEORGETOWN MN 56546Georgetown Farmers Elevator March 24th, 20222022Georgetown Farmers Elevator March 24th, 2022GEORGETOWN FARMERS ELEVATOR CO. Est 19112022GEORGETOWN FARMERS ELEVATOR CO. Est 1911Georgetown, Minnesota is on U.S. Route 752021Georgetown, Minnesota is on U.S. Route 75Georgetown, Minnesota Skyline2018Georgetown, Minnesota SkylineMNMap-doton-Georgetown2005MNMap-doton-Georgetown
On the map

Georgetown on the map, 1963 to 1984

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

Georgetown on the 1963 USGS mapGeorgetown on the 1984 USGS map1963Georgetown 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 Georgetown.

People over time

Georgetown, census by census

0100200192019401960198020002020Peak: 193

Between 86 and 193 people in every census since 1910.

12 censuses, 1910–2020.

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

Questions about Georgetown’s history

What year was Georgetown founded?

In 1859, according to Wikipedia’s history of the town. Georgetown’s post office opened in 1864, and the census of 1910 counted 182 people here.

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 (6), 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.