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History · Round Lake Township

Half of Round Lake Township’s homes were built after 1984

Most of Round Lake Township was built recently: 6% of its homes predate 1940 and the median home dates from 1984. Below: maps from 1969 on.

0on the National Register
6%homes built before 1940
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What stands out about Round Lake Township’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 Round Lake Township are in the public archives yet. The rest are in attics and albums.
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Start Round Lake Township’s collection

The first neighbors to add old photos shape how Round Lake Township’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 Round Lake Township came to be

From Wikipedia’s history of Round Lake Township.

Read it all →

Founding of Round Lake: Round Lake was established in 1882 when the Burlington Railroad built a line connecting Lake Park, Iowa, to Worthington, Minnesota. A site for a railroad station was chosen in fall of 1882, and the initial choice of name was Indian Lake, after the township in which it was located. However, a wealthy Chicago Board of Trade operator named Mr. O. H. Roche donated 20 acres (81,000 m2) of land for a townsite, and it was his wish that it be called Round Lake. Mr. Roche owned nearly 2,000 acres (8.1 km2) of land on nearby Round Lake in Jackson County, and he was apparently fond of the name Round Lake. A town was platted in December 1882 and the site was divided into 100 lots, not one of which were sold. Only two buildings were built in that first year, and both were constructed by the railroad. The railroad section foreman and his crew were the only residents of …

Text from Wikipedia, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0.

By decade

No old photos in the archives yet

Weddings on Main Street, storms, parades, school pictures, the old store. If it’s in your family album, it belongs here.

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On the map

Round Lake Township on the map, 1969 to 1985

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

Round Lake Township on the 1969 USGS mapRound Lake Township on the 1985 USGS map1969Big Rush 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 Round Lake Township.

Places that used to be

Old corners

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

Hamlets and corners on the map
Elbow Lake

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.

Eagle View TownshipIts storynot graded: under 1,000 residents or part of its townSugar Bush TownshipIts storynot graded: under 1,000 residents or part of its townPine Point TownshipIts storynot graded: under 1,000 residents or part of its townLa Prairie TownshipIts storynot graded: under 1,000 residents or part of its townForest TownshipIts storynot graded: under 1,000 residents or part of its townShell Lake TownshipIts storynot graded: under 1,000 residents or part of its town

Questions about Round Lake Township’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 Wikipedia, U.S. Geological Survey historical maps 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.