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History · Wheeling Township

Wheeling Township’s post office opened in 1865, and 46% of its homes were built before 1940

3 places in town are on the National Register, among them the Veblen Farmstead, a National Historic Landmark.

1865first post office
3on the National Register
46%homes built before 1940
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Quick answers

How Wheeling Township began

When was Wheeling Township founded?

1865

The Wheeling Township post office opened in 1865, the earliest record of the town by name. Another post office, Wheeling (1865), opened inside today’s town and later closed.

2020 census: 525161 years
Founding year: the first Wheeling Township post office (Blevins & Helbock, CC0).

What stands out about Wheeling 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 Wheeling Township are in the public archives yet. The rest are in attics and albums.A National Historic Landmark3 places on the National Register, including Veblen Farmstead, a National Historic Landmark.Old housesHalf of Wheeling Township’s homes were built before 1948.
★ What stands out · Help out

Start Wheeling Township’s collection

The first neighbors to add old photos shape how Wheeling 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
On the National Register

3 historic places in Wheeling Township

The country’s official list of buildings and places worth saving. One is a National Historic Landmark, the highest tier.

places listed
3
National Historic Landmark
1
Veblen Farmstead
historic buildings protected
9
each building in a district counts
first listed
1975
Veblen Farmstead
Bonde Farmhouse, built 1875Valley Grove, built 1862Veblen Farmstead★
Buildings★ landmark

Architectural styles listings

East Lake1
Bonde FarmhouseBuilt 1875
Valley GroveBuilt 1862
All 3 listings
Veblen FarmsteadBuilding · listed 1975

National Park Service, National Register of Historic Places. Photos from Wikimedia Commons, credited on each place’s page.

The story so far

Wheeling Township, in brief

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

Wheeling Township is a rural township in Rice County, Minnesota, United States. The population was 541 at the 2000 census. The first permanent settlement at Wheeling Township was made circa 1855.

Its first post office opened in 1865. Between the 2010 and 2020 censuses its population fell from 551 to 525 (-5%).

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

Timeline

Wheeling Township, 1862 to 1981

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

  1. 19th century
  2. 1862BuiltValley Grove is built
  3. 1865Post officeThe Wheeling post office opens
  4. 1875BuiltBonde Farmhouse is built
  5. 1886Post officeThe Wheeling post office closes
  6. 20th century
  7. 1981LandmarkVeblen Farmstead named a National Historic Landmark
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.

Be the first to add onePhotograph a print flat, in daylight, no flash.
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Famous people

Famous people close to Wheeling Township

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

See all →
Andrew VolsteadAmerican politician · b. 1859
Tom LiebAmerican discus thrower and football player · b. 1899
S
Steven EnglerAmerican politician – Minnesota -- "Steve" Sena… · b. 1949
Places that used to be

Lost post offices and burying grounds

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

1cemetery inside Wheeling Township
Wheeling Evangelical

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.

Northfield TownshipIts storynot graded: under 1,000 residents or part of its townRichland TownshipIts storynot graded: under 1,000 residents or part of its townCannon City TownshipIts storyC+Holden Township1 historic placenot graded: under 1,000 residents or part of its town

Questions about Wheeling Township’s history

What year was Wheeling Township founded?

The Wheeling Township post office opened in 1865, the earliest record of the town by name (U.S. post office records).

What is on the National Register in Wheeling Township?

Three places: the Veblen Farmstead (listed 1975), the Bonde Farmhouse (1982) and the Valley Grove (1982).

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 Wikidata (1), the National Register of Historic Places (3), 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.