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Lorraine Motel Sign Resited 2016 by Chris Larson, Franconia Sculpture Park, MNPhoto: Lorie Shaull · CC BY 2.0
–Not graded
History · Shafer Township

21% of Shafer Township’s homes were built before 1940

Below: maps from 1978 on and the census since 1930.

0on the National Register
21%homes built before 1940
Add an old photoShare a memory
Photo: Lorie Shaull · CC BY 2.0

What stands out about Shafer 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 Shafer Township are in the public archives yet. The rest are in attics and albums.
★ What stands out · Help out

Start Shafer Township’s collection

The first neighbors to add old photos shape how Shafer Township’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
The story so far

Shafer Township, in brief

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

Between the 2010 and 2020 censuses its population grew from 1,048 to 1,131 (+8%).

Timeline

Shafer Township, 1899 to 1978

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

  1. 19th century
  2. 1899Post officeThe Palmdale post office opens
  3. 20th century
  4. 1903Post officeThe Palmdale post office closes
  5. 1978On the mapFirst mapped by the U.S. Geological Survey
By decade

Shafer Township, decade by decade

Today12 recent
Erin Paradis's 2018 "Steadying Pause" sculpture at the Franconia Sculpture Park, a nonprofit artist development park2019Erin Paradis's 2018 "Steadying Pause" sculpture at th…Kendra Elyse Douglas's 2018 "Saudade" sculpture at the Franconia Sculpture Park, a nonprofit artist development park2019Kendra Elyse Douglas's 2018 "Saudade" sculpture at th…Melanie Van Houten's 2007 "Reclamation" sculpture at the Franconia Sculpture Park, a nonprofit artist development park2019Melanie Van Houten's 2007 "Reclamation" sculpture at …Melanie Van Houten's 2007 "Reclamation" sculpture at the Franconia Sculpture Park, a nonprofit artist development park2019Melanie Van Houten's 2007 "Reclamation" sculpture at …Sam Rathbun's 2017 "Memory Merchandise" sculpture at the Franconia Sculpture Park, a nonprofit artist development park2019Sam Rathbun's 2017 "Memory Merchandise" sculpture at …Briget Beck's 2009 "Playstation" sculpture at the Franconia Sculpture Park, a nonprofit artist development park2019Briget Beck's 2009 "Playstation" sculpture at the Fra…Ryan Turley's 2012 "Spectacle" sculpture at the Franconia Sculpture Park, a nonprofit artist development park2019Ryan Turley's 2012 "Spectacle" sculpture at the Franc…Ryan Turley's 2012 "Spectacle" sculpture at the Franconia Sculpture Park, a nonprofit artist development park2019Ryan Turley's 2012 "Spectacle" sculpture at the Franc…Chris Manzione's 2014 "Dazzle" sculpture at the Franconia Sculpture Park, a nonprofit artist development park2019Chris Manzione's 2014 "Dazzle" sculpture at the Franc…Amy Toscani's 2009 "Rocco" sculpture at the Franconia Sculpture Park, a nonprofit artist development park2019Amy Toscani's 2009 "Rocco" sculpture at the Franconia…Kay Dartt's 2013 "Sapling" sculpture at the Franconia Sculpture Park, a nonprofit artist development park2019Kay Dartt's 2013 "Sapling" sculpture at the Franconia…Bayete Ross Smith's 2011 "Got the Power: Minnesota" sculpture at the Franconia Sculpture Park, a nonprofit artist devel…2019Bayete Ross Smith's 2011 "Got the Power: Minnesota" s…
On the map

Shafer Township on the map, 1978 to 1985

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

Shafer Township on the 1978 USGS mapShafer Township on the 1985 USGS map1978St Croix Dalles 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 Shafer Township.

People over time

Shafer Township, census by census

02004006008001,0001,200194019601980200020201,142

Grew from 117 people in 1930 to 1,142 in 2020, 9 times over.

10 censuses, 1930–2020.

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

Famous people

Famous people close to Shafer Township

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

See all →
James Breck PerkinsAmerican politician · b. 1847
Blake LizotteAmerican professional ice hockey forward · b. 1997
C
Chad AndersonAmerican ice hockey player · b. 1982
Gustav StickleyAmerican furniture designer · b. 1858
H
Hunter MiskaAmerican ice hockey player · b. 1995
H
Hugh P. BakerAmerican academic administrator · b. 1878
Places that used to be

Lost post offices, old corners and places now gone

Another post office, Palmdale, opened and closed inside today’s town.

Hamlets and corners on the map
Palmdale
Gone or out of use
Beskar AirportairportPalmdale Post Officepost office

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.

ShaferIts storyCTaylors Falls6 historic placesA−Franconia Township2 historic placesB+Amador Township1 historic placenot graded: under 1,000 residents or part of its townChisago Lake Township1 historic placeC+

Questions about Shafer Township’s history

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 the Library of Congress (12), 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.