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History · Auburn

Auburn’s post office opened in 1883

Below: maps from 1939 on.

1883first post office
0on the National Register
0.0%homes built before 1940
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Quick answers

How Auburn began

When was Auburn founded?

1883

The Auburn post office opened in 1883, the earliest record of the town by name.

2020 census: 31143 years
Founding year: the first Auburn post office (Blevins & Helbock, CC0).The full story ↓

What stands out about Auburn’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 Auburn are in the public archives yet. The rest are in attics and albums.
★ What stands out · Help out

Start Auburn’s collection

The first neighbors to add old photos shape how Auburn’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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The story

How Auburn came to be

From Wikipedia’s history of Auburn.

Read it all →

A post office called Auburn was established in 1883 and remained in operation until 1943. With the construction of the railroad, business activity shifted to nearby Grafton, and the town's population dwindled.

Text from Wikipedia, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0.

By decade

Auburn, decade by decade

Today4 recent
Northern Pacific Railway steam engine 2196 at Auburn, n.d2010Northern Pacific Railway steam engine 2196 at Auburn,…Orig, North Dakota2005Orig, North DakotaAuburn, North Dakota2005Auburn, North DakotaAuburn, North Dakota sign2005Auburn, North Dakota sign
On the map

Auburn on the map, 1939 to 1941

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

Auburn on the 1939 USGS mapAuburn on the 1941 USGS map1939Glasston sheet · 1:62,500

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

Questions about Auburn’s history

What year was Auburn founded?

The Auburn post office opened in 1883, 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 →
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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 (4), Wikipedia and U.S. Geological Survey historical maps. Archive images are copied here with their credits and licenses, shown on each photo’s page. Refreshed monthly.