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History · Wing River Township

Wing River Township’s post office opened in 1880, and 11% of its homes were built before 1940

Below: maps from 1969 on.

1880first post office
0on the National Register
11%homes built before 1940
Add an old photoShare a memory
Photo: Tim Kiser (Malepheasant at English Wikipedia) · CC BY-SA 2.5
Quick answers

How Wing River Township began

When was Wing River Township founded?

1880

The Wing River Township post office opened in 1880, the earliest record of the town by name. Another post office, Wing River (1880), opened inside today’s town and later closed.

2020 census: 422146 years
Founding year: the first Wing River Township post office (Blevins & Helbock, CC0).

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

Start Wing River Township’s collection

The first neighbors to add old photos shape how Wing River 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

Wing River Township, in brief

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

Wing River Township is a township in Wadena County, Minnesota, United States. As of the 2020 census, the population was 422. The township is named for the Wing River, which converges with the Leaf River within its boundaries.

Its first post office opened in 1880. Between the 2010 and 2020 censuses its population fell from 468 to 422 (-10%).

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

Timeline

Wing River Township, 1880 to 1969

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

  1. 19th century
  2. 1880Post officeThe Wing River post office opens
  3. 1883Post officeThe Wing River post office closes
  4. 20th century
  5. 1969On the mapFirst mapped by the U.S. Geological Survey
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.
Add from your album
On the map

Wing River Township on the map in 1969

The U.S. Geological Survey’s map of Wing River Township.

Wing River Township on the 1969 USGS map1969Nimrod SW 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 Wing River Township.

Famous people

Famous people close to Wing River Township

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

See all →
Kenneth ArnoldAmerican aviator and businessman · b. 1915
Lesley J. McNairRecipient of the Purple Heart medal · b. 1883
Forrest MarsAmerican businessman · b. 1904
David JoergerAmerican basketball coach · b. 1974
E
Elizabeth ColsonUS social anthropologist · b. 1917
J
John CampbellAmerican football player and Navy veteran · b. 1938
Places that used to be

Lost post offices, old corners and burying grounds

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

Hamlets and corners on the map
Blue Grass
2cemeteries and burying grounds inside Wing River Township
Saint HubertsWing River Union

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.

Aldrich TownshipIts storynot graded: under 1,000 residents or part of its townLeaf River TownshipIts storynot graded: under 1,000 residents or part of its townNorth Germany TownshipIts storynot graded: under 1,000 residents or part of its townThomastown TownshipIts storynot graded: under 1,000 residents or part of its town

Questions about Wing River Township’s history

What year was Wing River Township founded?

The Wing River Township post office opened in 1880, 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 U.S. Geological Survey historical maps, 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.