Devils Lake dates to 1882, and 10% of its homes were built before 1940
More historic than 64% of U.S. towns · #4 of 23 in North Dakota. What drives it
13 places in town are on the National Register, among them a historic district with 46 buildings. Below: 6 old photos and papers, maps from 1886 on, and the census since 1890.
Founding year: Wikidata. First post office: 1882.The full story ↓
History grade
What drives Devils Lake’s History grade
On its age, its old homes and the National Register, Devils Lake is more historic than 64% of U.S. towns, #4 of 23 in North Dakota. Its National Register listings hold the grade up; its age pulls it down.
B
HistoryA character grade: shown, never part of Devils Lake’s overall grade.
North Dakota towns list about as much on the Register as the country (a typical North Dakota town has 2.8 per 10,000 residents, the U.S. 2.4), so Devils Lake’s 80.7 sits above most of its state (96% of North Dakota towns have fewer) while its 59 historic buildings outnumber those of 86% of U.S. towns.
How sure. Graded on any two of the three inputs instead, the letter would range from C+ to A−. The pre-1940 share is a Census survey estimate (±3.6 points). Two sources give 1882.
Founding year: Wikidata (other dates in Quick answers). Homes: Census ACS 2020–24. National Register: National Park Service, May 2026 list; each listing counted once (boundary changes and added documentation belong to their listing), and a historic district counts its contributing buildings. How TownRatings grades history →
What stands out about Devils Lake’s past
Read from the archive, the National Register and the record. The page puts what stands out first.
Fire insurance maps drew every building, what it was made of and what it was used for, so insurers could price the risk of fire. Pick a year, then a sheet.
The present site of Devils Lake was, historically, a territory of the Dakota people. However, the Sisseton, Wahpeton, and Cut-Head bands of the Dakotas were relocated to the Spirit Lake Reservation as a result of the 1867 treaty between the United States and the Dakota that established a reservation for those who had not been forcibly relocated to Crow Creek Reservation in what is now South Dakota. The name "Devils Lake" is a calque of the Dakota phrase mni wak’áŋ (literally translating to spirit water), which is also reflected in the names of the Spirit Lake Tribe and the nearby town of Minnewaukan.
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.
In 1882, according to Wikidata. Devils Lake’s post office opened in 1882, and the census of 1890 counted 846 people here.
How does Devils Lake rank for history?
Devils Lake is more historic than 64% of U.S. towns, #4 of 23 in North Dakota. The History grade combines the town’s founding era, the share of homes built before 1940 and its National Register listings. It’s a character grade, so it isn’t part of the overall grade. How it works.
What is on the National Register in Devils Lake?
13 listings: 12 buildings, among them the Ramsey County Sheriff's House (listed 1978, the first), and 1 historic district, the Devils Lake Commercial District, with 46 contributing buildings. 59 historic buildings in all.
How old are the homes in Devils Lake?
10% of Devils Lake’s homes were built before 1940 (Census estimate, ±3.6 points), against a typical 7.2% for a North Dakota town; the median home was built in 1976.
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).
From Wikimedia Commons (6), the National Register of Historic Places (13), Wikipedia, Wikidata and Wikipedia for famous people, U.S. Geological Survey historical maps, U.S. Census counts (via Wikipedia), the US Post Offices dataset (Blevins & Helbock), the USGS Geographic Names Information System and Sanborn fire insurance maps (Library of Congress). Archive images are copied here with their credits and licenses, shown on each photo’s page. Refreshed monthly.
1879
c. 1898
1898
