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History · Ambrose

Ambrose’s post office opened in 1906, and 41% of its homes were built before 1940

Below: 9 old photos and papers, maps from 1948 on, and the census since 1910.

1906first post office
0on the National Register
41%homes built before 1940
9old photos & papers
1famous people
Add an old photoShare a memory
From Ambrose’s archive · credits on each photo
Quick answers

How Ambrose began

When was Ambrose founded?

1906

The Ambrose post office opened in 1906, the earliest record of the town by name.

First census: 320 in 19102020 census: 24120 years
Founding year: the first Ambrose post office (Blevins & Helbock, CC0).The full story ↓

What stands out about Ambrose’s past

Read from the archive, the National Register and the record. The page puts what stands out first.

Boom and bustPeaked at 389 in 1920; 24 people lived here in 2020.Old housesHalf of Ambrose’s homes were built before 1950.
★ What stands out · People over time

Ambrose, census by census

0100200300400192019401960198020002020Peak: 389

Peaked at 389 in 1920; 24 people lived here in 2020.

12 censuses, 1910–2020.

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

The story

How Ambrose came to be

From Wikipedia’s history of Ambrose.

Read it all →

Ambrose was laid out in 1906 on the Soo Railway. The city was named in honor of a railroad worker. A post office has been in operation at Ambrose since 1906.

Text from Wikipedia, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0.

Timeline

Ambrose, 1906 to 1948

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

  1. 20th century
  2. 1906Post officeThe Ambrose post office opens
  3. 1910In the archiveCounty Division Convention - Ambrose, N.D., March 18th, 1910
  4. 1920CensusPopulation peaks at 389
  5. 1932In the archiveAmbrose ND border station 1932
  6. 1938Born hereDonald F. Hagen is born here
  7. 1948On the mapFirst mapped by the U.S. Geological Survey
By decade

Ambrose, decade by decade

2 decades in the archive, from the 1910s to the 1930s. Scroll each row; tap a photo for its story.

1910s–1930s9 items
County Division Convention - Ambrose, N.D., March 18th, 19101910County Division Convention - Ambrose, N.D., March 18t…Ambrose ND border station 19321932Ambrose ND border station 1932Abandoned house near Ambrose, North Dakota1937Abandoned house near Ambrose, North DakotaAbandoned house near Ambrose, North Dakota1937Abandoned house near Ambrose, North DakotaHouse of Bakke farm. Ambrose, North Dakota1937House of Bakke farm. Ambrose, North DakotaThe Bakke family, farmers near Ambrose, North Dakota1937The Bakke family, farmers near Ambrose, North DakotaBarn on Bakke farm near Ambrose, North Dakota1937Barn on Bakke farm near Ambrose, North DakotaMrs. Baker, wife of farmer, kneading dough near Ambrose, North Dakota1937Mrs. Baker, wife of farmer, kneading dough near Ambro…One of the Bakke children in living room of farm house. Note decorations and chair. Near Ambrose, North Dakota1937One of the Bakke children in living room of farm hous…
1940s–1990snothing yet
Nothing in the archives for these yearsWeddings on Main Street, storms, parades, school pictures, the old store. If it’s in your family album, it belongs here.
Add from your album
Today7 recent
Ambrose, North Dakota2008Ambrose, North DakotaAmbrose, North Dakota2008Ambrose, North DakotaAmbrose, North Dakota2008Ambrose, North DakotaAmbrose, North Dakota2008Ambrose, North DakotaAmbrose, North Dakota2008Ambrose, North DakotaAmbrose, North Dakota2008Ambrose, North DakotaAmbrose, North Dakota2008Ambrose, North Dakota
On the map

Ambrose on the map, 1948 to 1950

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

Ambrose on the 1948 USGS mapAmbrose on the 1950 USGS map1948Ambrose 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 Ambrose.

Then & now

Stand where they stood

No then-and-now pairs yet. Take a photo from the same spot as an old one and they appear here side by side.

County Division Convention - Ambrose, N.D., March 18th, 1910
Retake this viewCounty Division Convention - Ambrose, N.D., March 18th, 1910, 1910

Find the spot, match the angle, and add your photo. It becomes the first then-and-now pair on Ambrose’s page.

Retake this view · +15
Help out

Finish Ambrose’s story

Most archives stop around 1920. The photos from after that are in family albums, not libraries.

Decades since 1900 with photos
00s10s20s30s40s50s60s70s80s90s
2 of 10 decades. The empty ones are waiting for someone’s album.
Retake an old viewCounty Division Convention - Ambrose, N…: stand where they stood+15Share a family photoSign in to add one+10

Questions about Ambrose’s history

What year was Ambrose founded?

The Ambrose post office opened in 1906, 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 Wikimedia Commons (8), the Library of Congress (8), Wikipedia, Wikidata and Wikipedia for famous people, 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.