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History · Abercrombie Township

Abercrombie Township dates to 1884, and 13% of its homes were built before 1940

Its Register listing is the South Wild Rice Church. Below: maps from 1904 on and the census since 1910.

1884founded
1on the National Register
13%homes built before 1940
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Quick answers

How Abercrombie Township began, and where its name came from

When was Abercrombie Township founded?

1884

Abercrombie Township dates its founding to 1884 (Wikidata and Wikipedia’s history agree). The census first counted it in 1910.

First census: 299 in 19102020 census: 256142 years

How did Abercrombie Township get its name?

Abercrombie Township was named after Fort Abercrombie, a local military installation adjacent to the city.

More on the name

This means the city indirectly received its name from Lieutenant Colonel Abercrombie, first commanding officer of the fort.

Founding year: Wikidata; Wikipedia’s history section gives the same year. First post office: 1891. Name: Wikipedia, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0.The full story ↓

What stands out about Abercrombie 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 Abercrombie Township are in the public archives yet. The rest are in attics and albums.On the map since 19043 editions of the USGS map, 1904 to 1985. Watch Abercrombie Township change.
★ What stands out · Help out

Start Abercrombie Township’s collection

The first neighbors to add old photos shape how Abercrombie 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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On the map

Abercrombie Township on the map, 1904 to 1985

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

Abercrombie Township on the 1904 USGS mapAbercrombie Township on the 1960 USGS mapAbercrombie Township on the 1985 USGS map1904Wahpeton sheet · 1:125,000

U.S. Geological Survey historical topographic maps (public domain), via Esri’s collection of the scans. The red ring marks the center of Abercrombie Township.

The story

How Abercrombie Township came to be

From Wikipedia’s history of Abercrombie Township.

Read it all →

Abercrombie was founded in 1884. It was named after Fort Abercrombie, a local military installation adjacent to the city. This means the city indirectly received its name from Lieutenant Colonel Abercrombie, first commanding officer of the fort. The city is part of the military reservation and is located on section 4, 134–48. Abercrombie was incorporated as a village on April 5, 1904 and as a city on July 1, 1967.

Abercrombie did not come into being until 1884, when Fargo and Southern Railroad was built through the Red River Valley along the Red River. Then directly west of the old fort, the town of Abercrombie was started.

Text from Wikipedia, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0.

Timeline

Abercrombie Township, 1884 to 1978

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

  1. 19th century
  2. 1884
    FoundingAbercrombie Township is established
  3. 1891Post officeThe Galchutt post office opens
  4. 20th century
  5. 1904On the mapFirst mapped by the U.S. Geological Survey
  6. 1978Post officeThe Galchutt post office closes
By decade

Abercrombie Township, decade by decade

Today19 recent
Abercrombie2013AbercrombieFORT2007FORTAbercrombie North Dakota2007Abercrombie North DakotaAbercrombie, North Dakota2006Abercrombie, North DakotaAbercrombie, North Dakota2006Abercrombie, North DakotaAbercrombie, North Dakota2006Abercrombie, North DakotaAbercrombie, North Dakota2006Abercrombie, North DakotaAbercrombie, North Dakota2006Abercrombie, North DakotaAbercrombie, North Dakota2006Abercrombie, North DakotaAbercrombie, North Dakota2006Abercrombie, North DakotaAbercrombie, North Dakota2006Abercrombie, North DakotaAbercrombie, North Dakota2006Abercrombie, North DakotaAbercrombie, North Dakota2006Abercrombie, North DakotaAbercrombie, North Dakota2006Abercrombie, North DakotaAbercrombie, North Dakota2006Abercrombie, North DakotaAbercrombie, North Dakota2006Abercrombie, North DakotaAbercrombie, North Dakota2006Abercrombie, North DakotaAbercrombie, North Dakota2006Abercrombie, North DakotaNDMap-doton-Abercrombie2004NDMap-doton-Abercrombie
On the National Register

1 historic place in Abercrombie Township

The country’s official list of buildings and places worth saving.

place listed
1
National Historic Landmarks
0
none yet
historic buildings protected
1
each building in a district counts
first listed
1982
South Wild Rice Church
South Wild Rice Church
Buildings
South Wild Rice ChurchBuilding

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

People over time

Abercrombie Township, census by census

0100200300192019401960198020002020Peak: 299

Between 215 and 299 people in every census since 1910.

12 censuses, 1910–2020.

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

Places that used to be

Lost post offices, old corners and burying grounds

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

Hamlets and corners on the map
GalchuttPitcairn
2cemeteries and burying grounds inside Abercrombie Township
Bethany Free LutheranSaint Johns Lutheran Church

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.

Abercrombie1 historic placenot graded: under 1,000 residents or part of its townNansen TownshipIts storynot graded: under 1,000 residents or part of its townEagle TownshipIts storynot graded: under 1,000 residents or part of its townDwight TownshipIts storynot graded: under 1,000 residents or part of its townIbsen TownshipIts storynot graded: under 1,000 residents or part of its townColfax TownshipIts storynot graded: under 1,000 residents or part of its town

Questions about Abercrombie Township’s history

What year was Abercrombie Township founded?

In 1884, according to Wikidata and Wikipedia’s history of the town. Abercrombie Township’s post office opened in 1891, and the census of 1910 counted 299 people here.

What is on the National Register in Abercrombie Township?

One place: the South Wild Rice Church (listed 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 Wikimedia Commons (19), Wikidata (1), the National Register of Historic Places (1), 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.