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History · Des Lacs Township

Des Lacs Township dates to 1888, and 63% of its homes were built before 1940

Below: 9 old photos and papers, maps from 1980 on, and the census since 1920.

1888founded
0on the National Register
63%homes built before 1940
9old photos & papers
Add an old photoShare a memory
From Des Lacs Township’s archive · credits on each photo
Quick answers

How Des Lacs Township began

When was Des Lacs Township founded?

1888

Des Lacs Township dates its founding to 1888 (Wikidata and Wikipedia’s history agree). The census first counted it in 1920.

First census: 188 in 19202020 census: 136138 years
Founding year: Wikidata; Wikipedia’s history section gives the same year. First post office: 1890.

What stands out about Des Lacs Township’s past

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

Old housesHalf of Des Lacs Township’s homes were built before 1938.Lost villages2 post offices opened and closed inside today’s Des Lacs Township, and 1 old place names are still on the map.
★ What stands out · The story so far

Des Lacs Township, in brief

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

Des Lacs is a city in Ward County, North Dakota, United States. The population was 185 at the 2020 census. It is part of the Minot Metropolitan Statistical Area. Des Lacs was founded in 1888, named after the Riviere de Lacs (now Des Lacs River), from the French for "River [of] The Lakes."

Des Lacs Township was established in 1888. Between the 2010 and 2020 censuses its population grew from 85 to 136 (+60%).

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

Places that used to be

Lost post offices, old corners and burying grounds

Two other post offices opened and closed inside today’s town.

Lone Tree
1890–1891
Lonetree
1902–1957
18901960today
Hamlets and corners on the map
Lonetree
1cemetery inside Des Lacs Township
Des Lacs

US Post Offices dataset (Blevins & Helbock, CC0). Places and cemeteries from the USGS Geographic Names Information System (2021).

Timeline

Des Lacs Township, 1888 to 1980

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

  1. 19th century
  2. 1888
    FoundingDes Lacs Township is established
  3. 1890Post officeThe Lone Tree post office opens
  4. 1891Post officeThe Lone Tree post office closes
  5. 20th century
  6. 1902Post officeThe Lonetree post office opens
  7. 1937In the archiveDoorway. Des Lacs, North Dakota
  8. 1957Post officeThe Lonetree post office closes
  9. 1980On the mapFirst mapped by the U.S. Geological Survey
By decade

Des Lacs Township, decade by decade

One decade in the archive so far: the 1930s. Scroll each row; tap a photo for its story.

1930s9 items
Doorway. Des Lacs, North Dakota1937Doorway. Des Lacs, North DakotaBell tower. Des Lacs, North Dakota1937Bell tower. Des Lacs, North DakotaOld store. Des Lacs, North Dakota1937Old store. Des Lacs, North DakotaBlacksmith shop. Des Lacs, North Dakota1937Blacksmith shop. Des Lacs, North DakotaPost office. Des Lacs, North Dakota1937Post office. Des Lacs, North DakotaOld surrey. Des Lacs, North Dakota1937Old surrey. Des Lacs, North DakotaTrademark of blacksmith. Des Lacs, North Dakota1937Trademark of blacksmith. Des Lacs, North DakotaUntitled photo, possibly related to: Old surrey. Des Lacs, North Dakota1937Untitled photo, possibly related to: Old surrey. Des …Untitled photo, possibly related to: Old surrey. Des Lacs, North Dakota1937Untitled photo, possibly related to: Old surrey. Des …
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
On the map

Des Lacs Township on the map in 1980

The U.S. Geological Survey’s map of Des Lacs Township.

Des Lacs Township on the 1980 USGS map1980Mork Lake 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 Des Lacs Township.

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.

Doorway. Des Lacs, North Dakota
Retake this viewDoorway. Des Lacs, North Dakota, 1937

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

Retake this view · +15
People over time

Des Lacs Township, census by census

0100200192019401960198020002020Peak: 216

Between 180 and 216 people in every census since 1920.

11 censuses, 1920–2020.

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

Famous people

Famous people close to Des Lacs Township

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

See all →
Josh DuhamelAmerican actor and former model · b. 1972
Gary JohnsonAmerican politician, businessman, and 29th Gove… · b. 1953
Greg RaymerAmerican poker player · b. 1964
M
Mark LandsbergerAmerican basketball player · b. 1955
Mary OsborneAmerican jazz musician · b. 1921
Thomas M. DavisRepublican member of the United States House of… · b. 1949
Help out

Finish Des Lacs Township’s story

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

Decades since 1900 with photos
00s10s20s30s40s50s60s70s80s90s
1 of 10 decades. The empty ones are waiting for someone’s album.
Retake an old viewDoorway. Des Lacs, North Dakota: stand where they stood+15Share a family photoSign in to add one+10
Stories next door

History across the town line

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

Mandan TownshipIts storynot graded: under 1,000 residents or part of its townBurlington TownshipIts storynot graded: under 1,000 residents or part of its townFoxholm TownshipIts storynot graded: under 1,000 residents or part of its townRolling Green TownshipIts storynot graded: under 1,000 residents or part of its town

Questions about Des Lacs Township’s history

What year was Des Lacs Township founded?

In 1888, according to Wikidata and Wikipedia’s history of the town. Des Lacs Township’s post office opened in 1890, and the census of 1920 counted 188 people here.

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 the Library of Congress (9), 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.