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Business district, Lafayette, MinnesotaPhoto: Public domain · Public domain
–Not graded
History · Lafayette Township

Lafayette Township dates to 1897, and 33% of its homes were built before 1940

Below: 16 old photos and papers, maps from 1964 on, and the census since 1910.

1897founded
0on the National Register
33%homes built before 1940
16old photos & papers
Add an old photoShare a memory
From Lafayette Township’s archive · credits on each photo
Quick answers

How Lafayette Township began

When was Lafayette Township founded?

1897

Lafayette Township dates its founding to 1897 (Wikipedia’s history). The census first counted it in 1910.

First census: 195 in 19102020 census: 700129 years
Founding year: Wikipedia. First post office: 1896.The full story ↓

What stands out about Lafayette Township’s past

Read from the archive, the National Register and the record. The page puts what stands out first.

A town in postcards16 old photos, postcards and papers, 1907–1935.
★ What stands out · By decade

Lafayette Township, decade by decade

4 decades in the archive, from the 1900s to the 1930s. Scroll each row; tap a photo for its story.

1900s8 items
Business district, Lafayette, Minnesota - DPLA - 882b4ae1a87d486306d09ce654cb019f1907–1910Business district, Lafayette, Minnesota - DPLA - 882b…PostcardBusiness district, Lafayette, Minnesota - DPLA - a12743f5901b322e828202c37734cf54c. 1907Business district, Lafayette, Minnesota - DPLA - a127…PostcardBusiness district, Lafayette, Minnesota - DPLA - ca02b48ce76da9e0f36e4e38c6a03eca1907–1917Business district, Lafayette, Minnesota - DPLA - ca02…PostcardAfter the Fire of October 2, 1908, Lafayette, Minnesota - DPLA - e38f3803f6bb66073c77a5fa13943749c. 1908After the Fire of October 2, 1908, Lafayette, Minneso…PostcardAftermath of the 1908 fire, Lafayette, Minnesota - DPLA - cd4831a4c182c7f201c00845f73def9e1908Aftermath of the 1908 fire, Lafayette, Minnesota - DP…PostcardAftermath of the 1908 fire, Lafayette, Minnesota - DPLA - dd8eabe6bd5f5b7a4183c2d8c2facf9b1908Aftermath of the 1908 fire, Lafayette, Minnesota - DP…PostcardAftermath of the 1908 fire, Lafayette, Minnesota - DPLA - ebfd70b2806b89baab5eae05274c34f41908Aftermath of the 1908 fire, Lafayette, Minnesota - DP…PostcardPortrait of the P. A. Retrum family, Lafayette, Minnesota - DPLA - 1b6ca85d802eeebcce0bae6820ed4abe1909Portrait of the P. A. Retrum family, Lafayette, Minne…Postcard
1910s–1930s6 items
Lund Grocery Store, Lafayette, Minnesota - DPLA - 5ab1bf8aba3e7242e7b4f0ee8e1fe2c31910Lund Grocery Store, Lafayette, Minnesota - DPLA - 5ab…PostcardStreet Scene, Lafayette, Minnesota - DPLA - 5bec261221441c6c78351c658c8d1ae0c. 1910Street Scene, Lafayette, Minnesota - DPLA - 5bec26122…PostcardLund and Lindquist Grocery and Dry Goods, Lafayette, Minnesota - DPLA - 10a088c5bc54676c5cef2e3347653020c. 1916Lund and Lindquist Grocery and Dry Goods, Lafayette, …PostcardJoe Messner Repair Shop, Lafayette, Minnesota - DPLA - 80b10fecb37c90fd7e5c86dcae2baaa9c. 1926Joe Messner Repair Shop, Lafayette, Minnesota - DPLA …Lafayette Municipal Band, Lafayette, Minnesota - DPLA - c44299612718246c5d80525bf9f8bb6dc. 1934Lafayette Municipal Band, Lafayette, Minnesota - DPLA…PostcardLafayette Baseball Team. Lafayette, Minnesota - DPLA - 36f0ba129dde7800b19c4d860d40a00bc. 1935Lafayette Baseball Team. Lafayette, Minnesota - DPLA …Postcard
1940s–1990snothing yet
Nothing in the archives for these yearsWeddings on Main Street, storms, parades, school pictures, the old store. If it’s in your family album, it belongs here.
Add from your album
Date unknown2 to date
Business districtDate?Business districtPostcardStreet SceneDate?Street ScenePostcard
The story

How Lafayette Township came to be

From Wikipedia’s history of Lafayette Township.

Read it all →

Lafayette was platted in 1897, and named for Gilbert du Motier, Marquis de Lafayette (1757–1834), a French and American Revolutionary War general.

Text from Wikipedia, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0.

Timeline

Lafayette Township, 1896 to 1964

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

  1. 19th century
  2. 1896Post officeThe Klossner post office opens
  3. 1897
    FoundingLafayette Township is established
  4. 20th century
  5. 1907In the archiveBusiness district, Lafayette, Minnesota - DPLA - 882b4ae1a87d486306d09ce654cb019f
  6. 1910In the archiveLund Grocery Store, Lafayette, Minnesota - DPLA - 5ab1bf8aba3e7242e7b4f0ee8e1fe2c3
  7. 1926In the archiveJoe Messner Repair Shop, Lafayette, Minnesota - DPLA - 80b10fecb37c90fd7e5c86dcae2baaa9
  8. 1934In the archiveLafayette Municipal Band, Lafayette, Minnesota - DPLA - c44299612718246c5d80525bf9f8bb6d
  9. 1964On the mapFirst mapped by the U.S. Geological Survey
On the map

Lafayette Township on the map, 1964 to 1991

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

Lafayette Township on the 1964 USGS mapLafayette Township on the 1986 USGS mapLafayette Township on the 1991 USGS map1964Lafayette 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 Lafayette Township.

Then & now

Stand where they stood

No then-and-now pairs yet. Take a photo from the same spot as an old one and they appear here side by side.

Business district, Lafayette, Minnesota - DPLA - 882b4ae1a87d486306d09ce654cb019f
Retake this viewBusiness district, Lafayette, Minnesota - DPLA - 882b4ae1a87d486306d09ce654cb019f, 1907–1910

Find the spot, match the angle, and add your photo. It becomes the first then-and-now pair on Lafayette Township’s page.

Retake this view · +15
People over time

Lafayette Township, census by census

0100200300400500192019401960198020002020Peak: 529

Between 195 and 529 people in every census since 1910.

12 censuses, 1910–2020.

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

Famous people

Famous people close to Lafayette Township

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

See all →
Tippi HedrenAmerican actress, model and activist · b. 1930
Wanda GágAmerican artist and children's writer · b. 1893
Kathryn Adams DotyActress, psychologist, writer · b. 1920
Brad FinstadAmerican politician · b. 1976
Lenore UlricAmerican actress · b. 1892
David RysdahlAmerican actor · b. 1960
Places that used to be

Old corners, places now gone and burying grounds

Old hamlets and crossroads still carry their names on the map.

Hamlets and corners on the map
Klossner
Gone or out of use
Klossnerlocale
1cemetery inside Lafayette Township
Salem Methodist

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

Help out

Finish Lafayette Township’s story

Most archives stop around 1920. The photos from after that are in family albums, not libraries.

Decades since 1900 with photos
00s10s20s30s40s50s60s70s80s90s
4 of 10 decades. The empty ones are waiting for someone’s album.
Date a photo2 archive items have no date. Guess the decade.+2Retake an old viewBusiness district, Lafayette, Minnesota…: stand where they stood+15Share a family photoSign in to add one+10
Stories next door

History across the town line

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

New Ulm22 historic placesA−Bernadotte TownshipIts storynot graded: under 1,000 residents or part of its townLafayetteIts storynot graded: under 1,000 residents or part of its townCornish TownshipIts storynot graded: under 1,000 residents or part of its townWest Newton Township1 historic placenot graded: under 1,000 residents or part of its townBrighton TownshipIts storynot graded: under 1,000 residents or part of its townMilford Township2 historic placesnot graded: under 1,000 residents or part of its townCourtland TownshipIts storynot graded: under 1,000 residents or part of its town

Questions about Lafayette Township’s history

What year was Lafayette Township founded?

In 1897, according to Wikipedia’s history of the town. Lafayette Township’s post office opened in 1896, and the census of 1910 counted 195 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 (16), 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.