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History · Columbus

Columbus’ post office opened in 1903, and 37% of its homes were built before 1940

Below: maps from 1947 on and the census since 1910.

1903first post office
0on the National Register
37%homes built before 1940
Add an old photoShare a memory
Photo: Andrew Filer from Seattle (ex-Minneapolis) · CC BY-SA 3.0
Quick answers

How Columbus began

When was Columbus founded?

1903

The Columbus post office opened in 1903, the earliest record of the town by name. Wikidata gives 1906.

First census: 225 in 19102020 census: 139123 years
Founding year: the first Columbus post office (Blevins & Helbock, CC0). Wikidata: 1906.

What stands out about Columbus’ 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 Columbus are in the public archives yet. The rest are in attics and albums.Boom and bustPeaked at 672 in 1960; 139 people lived here in 2020.Old housesHalf of Columbus’ homes were built before 1957.
★ What stands out · Help out

Start Columbus’s collection

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

Columbus, census by census

0100200300400500600700192019401960198020002020Peak: 672

Peaked at 672 in 1960; 139 people lived here in 2020.

12 censuses, 1910–2020.

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

The story so far

Columbus, in brief

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

Columbus is a city in Burke County, North Dakota, United States. The population was 139 at the 2020 census. Columbus was founded in 1906. Both this town and nearby Larson were named for an early postmaster who served the area (Columbus Larson), making it possibly the only town so named that was not named for Christopher Columbus.

Its first post office opened in 1903. Between the 2010 and 2020 censuses its population grew from 133 to 139 (+5%).

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

Timeline

Columbus, 1903 to 1960

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

  1. 20th century
  2. 1903Post officeThe Columbus post office opens
  3. 1947On the mapFirst mapped by the U.S. Geological Survey
  4. 1960CensusPopulation peaks at 672
By decade

Columbus, decade by decade

Today23 recent
Columbus Nd2021Columbus NdColumbus, North Dakota2008Columbus, North DakotaColumbus, North Dakota2008Columbus, North DakotaColumbus, North Dakota2008Columbus, North DakotaColumbus, North Dakota2008Columbus, North DakotaColumbus, North Dakota2008Columbus, North DakotaColumbus, North Dakota2008Columbus, North DakotaColumbus, North Dakota2008Columbus, North DakotaColumbus, North Dakota2008Columbus, North DakotaColumbus, North Dakota2008Columbus, North DakotaColumbus, North Dakota2008Columbus, North DakotaColumbus, North Dakota2008Columbus, North DakotaColumbus, North Dakota2008Columbus, North DakotaColumbus, North Dakota2008Columbus, North DakotaColumbus, North Dakota2008Columbus, North DakotaColumbus, North Dakota2008Columbus, North DakotaColumbus, North Dakota2008Columbus, North DakotaColumbus, North Dakota2008Columbus, North DakotaColumbus, North Dakota2008Columbus, North DakotaColumbus, North Dakota2008Columbus, North DakotaColumbus, North Dakota2008Columbus, North DakotaColumbus, North Dakota2008Columbus, North DakotaColumbus, North Dakota (2008)2008Columbus, North Dakota (2008)
On the map

Columbus on the map, 1947 to 1950

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

Columbus on the 1947 USGS mapColumbus on the 1950 USGS map1947Columbus 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 Columbus.

Questions about Columbus’ history

What year was Columbus founded?

The Columbus post office opened in 1903, the earliest record of the town by name (U.S. post office records). Wikidata gives 1906.

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 (23), 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.