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History · Amenia Township

Amenia Township dates to 1880, and 27% of its homes were built before 1940

Below: maps from 1967 on and the census since 1930.

1880founded
0on the National Register
27%homes built before 1940
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Photo: Andrew Filer · CC BY-SA 2.0
Quick answers

How Amenia Township began

When was Amenia Township founded?

1880

Amenia Township dates its founding to 1880 (Wikidata and Wikipedia’s history agree). The census first counted it in 1930.

First census: 90 in 19302020 census: 90146 years
Founding year: Wikidata; Wikipedia’s history section gives the same year.The full story ↓

What stands out about Amenia 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 Amenia Township are in the public archives yet. The rest are in attics and albums.Boom and bustPeaked at 127 in 1950; 85 people lived here in 2020.
★ What stands out · Help out

Start Amenia Township’s collection

The first neighbors to add old photos shape how Amenia 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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People over time

Amenia Township, census by census

010019401960198020002020Peak: 127

Peaked at 127 in 1950; 85 people lived here in 2020.

10 censuses, 1930–2020.

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

The story

How Amenia Township came to be

From Wikipedia’s history of Amenia Township.

Read it all →

Amenia was founded in 1880. The town of Amenia traces its roots to a group of wealthy New England investors from the villages of Amenia, New York and Sharon, Connecticut which formed the Amenia and Sharon Land Company and, in July 1875, under the representation of Eben W. Chaffee, purchased 27,832 acres (11,263 ha) of land from the then bankrupt Northern Pacific Railroad. The stockholders' plan had been to develop the land enough to sell it to settlers, thus quickly realizing a return on the investors shares. However, taking notice of the success of the Cass-Cheney-Dalrymple bonanza farm near Casselton, and the exceptional fertility of the soil, Chaffee convinced the stockholders to hold the land and break the prairie sod for the production of wheat. The company built a depot and, in 1881, a grain elevator in order to move their product to market. Around them grew the village of Amenia.…

Text from Wikipedia, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0.

Timeline

Amenia Township, 1880 to 1967

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

  1. 19th century
  2. 1880
    FoundingAmenia Township is established
  3. 20th century
  4. 1950CensusPopulation peaks at 127
  5. 1967On the mapFirst mapped by the U.S. Geological Survey
By decade

Amenia Township, decade by decade

Today2 recent
Amenia2013AmeniaAmenia, North Dakota2006Amenia, North Dakota
On the map

Amenia Township on the map, 1967 to 1985

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

Amenia Township on the 1967 USGS mapAmenia Township on the 1985 USGS map1967Ayr SE 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 Amenia Township.

Places that used to be

Old corners and burying grounds

Old hamlets and crossroads still carry their names on the map.

Hamlets and corners on the map
Vance
2cemeteries and burying grounds inside Amenia Township
AmeniaSaint Martins

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.

Rush River TownshipIts storynot graded: under 1,000 residents or part of its townEmpire TownshipIts storynot graded: under 1,000 residents or part of its townArthur TownshipIts storynot graded: under 1,000 residents or part of its townCasselton TownshipIts storynot graded: under 1,000 residents or part of its town

Questions about Amenia Township’s history

What year was Amenia Township founded?

In 1880, according to Wikidata and Wikipedia’s history of the town. the census of 1930 counted 90 people here.

Memory lane

What the archives can’t tell you, neighbors can.

Town Square →
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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 (2), Wikipedia, U.S. Geological Survey historical maps, U.S. Census counts (via Wikipedia) 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.