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–Not graded
History · Holt

Holt’s post office opened in 1886, and 33% of its homes were built before 1940

Below: maps from 1918 on and the census since 1920.

1886first post office
0on the National Register
33%homes built before 1940
Add an old photoShare a memory
Photo: Andrew Filer from Seattle (ex-Minneapolis) · CC BY-SA 2.0
Quick answers

How Holt began

When was Holt founded?

1886

The Holt post office opened in 1886, the earliest record of the town by name. Another post office, Sandridge (1901), opened inside today’s city and later closed.

First census: 232 in 19202020 census: 90140 years
Founding year: the first Holt post office (Blevins & Helbock, CC0).

What stands out about Holt’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 Holt are in the public archives yet. The rest are in attics and albums.On the map since 19184 editions of the USGS map, 1918 to 1992. Watch Holt change.
★ What stands out · Help out

Start Holt’s collection

The first neighbors to add old photos shape how Holt’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
On the map

Holt on the map, 1918 to 1992

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

Holt on the 1918 USGS mapHolt on the 1962 USGS mapHolt on the 1985 USGS mapHolt on the 1992 USGS map1918Middle River 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 Holt.

The story so far

Holt, in brief

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

Holt is a city in Marshall County, Minnesota, United States. The population was 90 at the 2020 census.

Its first post office opened in 1886. Between the 2010 and 2020 censuses its population grew from 88 to 90 (+2%).

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

Timeline

Holt, 1886 to 1969

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

  1. 19th century
  2. 1886Post officeThe Holt post office opens
  3. 20th century
  4. 1901Post officeThe Sandridge post office opens
  5. 1908Post officeThe Sandridge post office closes
  6. 1918On the mapFirst mapped by the U.S. Geological Survey
  7. 1969Post officeThe Holt post office closes
By decade

Holt, decade by decade

Today18 recent
Former Holt School2007Former Holt SchoolFormer Holt School2007Former Holt SchoolFormer Holt School2007Former Holt SchoolFormer Holt School2007Former Holt SchoolFormer Holt School2007Former Holt SchoolFormer Holt School2007Former Holt SchoolFormer Holt School2007Former Holt SchoolFormer Holt School2007Former Holt SchoolFormer Holt School2007Former Holt SchoolFormer Holt School2007Former Holt SchoolFormer Holt School2007Former Holt SchoolFormer Holt School2007Former Holt SchoolHolt, Minnesota2006Holt, MinnesotaMNMap-doton-Holt2005MNMap-doton-HoltService station2001Service stationService station, Holt, Minnesota 8-1-20012001Service station, Holt, Minnesota 8-1-2001Service station2001Service stationService station2001Service station
People over time

Holt, census by census

0100200192019401960198020002020Peak: 232

Between 88 and 232 people in every census since 1920.

11 censuses, 1920–2020.

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

Famous people

Famous people close to Holt

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

See all →
M
Mel PetersonAmerican basketball player · b. 1938
Wyatt SmithAmerican ice hockey player · b. 1977
M
Michael ForneyAmerican ice hockey player · b. 1988
Ralph R. EricksonUnited States federal judge · b. 1959
J
John McCormickEnglish philologist · b. 1918
R
Robert BakerAmerican ice hockey player · b. 1926
Places that used to be

Lost post offices, places now gone and burying grounds

Holt had its own post office from 1886 to 1969. Another post office, Sandridge, opened and closed inside today’s town.

Holt
1886–1969
Sandridge
1901–1908
18801950today
Gone or out of use
Holt Post Officepost office
1cemetery inside Holt
Holt

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

Stories next door

History across the town line

Each neighbor’s History grade, on the same three inputs.

Holt TownshipIts storynot graded: under 1,000 residents or part of its town

Questions about Holt’s history

What year was Holt founded?

The Holt post office opened in 1886, 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 (18), 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.