On its age, its old homes and the National Register, Harris is more historic than 73% of U.S. towns. Its share of homes from before 1940 holds the grade up; its age pulls it down.
B+
HistoryA character grade: shown, never part of Harris’ overall grade.
Minnesota towns list about as much on the Register as the country (a typical Minnesota town has 2.1 per 10,000 residents, the U.S. 2.4), so Harris’ 25.8 sits above most of its state (87% of Minnesota towns have fewer) while its 2 historic buildings outnumber those of 60% of U.S. towns.
How sure. Graded on any two of the three inputs instead, the letter would range from B to A. The pre-1940 share is a Census survey estimate (±10.8 points). The founding year is the first post office, not a stated founding date.
Founding year: the first post office (other dates in Quick answers). Homes: Census ACS 2020–24. National Register: National Park Service, May 2026 list; each listing counted once (boundary changes and added documentation belong to their listing), and a historic district counts its contributing buildings. How TownRatings grades history →
What stands out about Harris’ past
Read from the archive, the National Register and the record. The page puts what stands out first.
Harris was platted in 1873, and incorporated as a city in 1883. It was named after Philip S. Harris, an officer of the St. Paul and Duluth Railroad Company. A post office has been in operation in Harris since 1874.
On April 11, 1933, a pregnant woman and her seven children died in a house fire at a farm in Harris. Her husband was charged with murder but was never found.
On September 11, 2026, Mayor Lance Kociemba dedicated the Harris 9/11 Memorial on the 25th anniversary of the event.
The Harris post office opened in 1874, the earliest record of the town by name (U.S. post office records).
How does Harris rank for history?
Harris is more historic than 73% of U.S. towns. The History grade combines the town’s founding era, the share of homes built before 1940 and its National Register listings. It’s a character grade, so it isn’t part of the overall grade. How it works.
What is on the National Register in Harris?
One place: the Sayer House (listed 1980).
How old are the homes in Harris?
27% of Harris’ homes were built before 1940 (Census estimate, ±10.8 points), against a typical 8.1% for a Minnesota town; the median home was built in 1978.
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).
From Wikimedia Commons (6), the National Register of Historic Places (1), Wikipedia, Wikidata and Wikipedia for famous people, 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.
2024
2024
2021
2021
2017
2005