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–Not graded
History · Davenport

Davenport’s post office opened in 1882, and 25% of its homes were built before 1940

Below: maps from 1895 on and the census since 1890.

1882first post office
0on the National Register
25%homes built before 1940
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Quick answers

How Davenport began

When was Davenport founded?

1882

The Davenport post office opened in 1882, the earliest record of the town by name.

First census: 437 in 18902020 census: 256144 years
Founding year: the first Davenport post office (Blevins & Helbock, CC0).The full story ↓

What stands out about Davenport’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 Davenport are in the public archives yet. The rest are in attics and albums.On the map since 18953 editions of the USGS map, 1895 to 1986. Watch Davenport change.
★ What stands out · Help out

Start Davenport’s collection

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

Davenport on the map, 1895 to 1986

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

Davenport on the 1895 USGS mapDavenport on the 1959 USGS mapDavenport on the 1986 USGS map1895Casselton 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 Davenport.

The story

How Davenport came to be

From Wikipedia’s history of Davenport.

Read it all →

Davenport was platted in 1882 when the railroad was extended to that point. The city was named for Mary Buckland Claflin, wife of Massachusetts governor William Claflin. A post office has been in operation at Davenport since 1882.

Text from Wikipedia, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0.

By decade

Davenport, decade by decade

Today2 recent
Davenport ND2025Davenport NDRed River Valley and Western Train near2024Red River Valley and Western Train near
People over time

Davenport, census by census

01002003004001900192019401960198020002020Peak: 437

Between 143 and 437 people in every census since 1890.

14 censuses, 1890–2020.

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

Famous people

Famous people close to Davenport

Nobody well known was born in Davenport itself, so here are the best known from just nearby.

See all →
Jake HagerFormer american professional wrestler and mixed… · b. 1982
Bobby VeeAmerican singer · b. 1943
W
William H. GassAmerican fiction writer, critic, philosophy pro… · b. 1924
CariDee EnglishAmerican model · b. 1984
Dalton KnechtAmerican basketball player · b. 2001
D
Daniel ChongAmerican filmmaker · b. 1978
Stories next door

History across the town line

Each neighbor’s History grade, on the same three inputs.

Davenport TownshipIts storynot graded: under 1,000 residents or part of its townAddison TownshipIts storynot graded: under 1,000 residents or part of its town

Questions about Davenport’s history

What year was Davenport founded?

The Davenport post office opened in 1882, 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 (2), 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.