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–Not graded
History · Forman

Forman’s post office opened in 1883, and 17% of its homes were built before 1940

Its Register listing is the Sargent County Courthouse.

1883first post office
1on the National Register
17%homes built before 1940
Add an old photoShare a memory
Quick answers

How Forman began

When was Forman founded?

1883

The Forman post office opened in 1883, the earliest record of the town by name. Another post office, Sargent (1883), opened inside today’s city and later closed.

2020 census: 509143 years
Founding year: the first Forman post office (Blevins & Helbock, CC0).The full story ↓

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

Start Forman’s collection

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

How Forman came to be

From Wikipedia’s history of Forman.

Read it all →

Forman was founded in 1883 by Cornelius Forman. In 1886, the county seat was transferred to Forman from Milnor.

Until 1967, Forman was the only town in North Dakota, as all other incorporated communities were either villages or cities. It had become so by a special legal process. In that year it became a city, because the state legislature declared that all incorporated communities were to be cities without distinction of rank.

Text from Wikipedia, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0.

Timeline

Forman, 1883 to 1890

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

  1. 19th century
  2. 1883Post officeThe Forman post office opens
  3. 1883Post officeThe Sargent post office opens
  4. 1890Post officeThe Sargent post office closes
By decade

Forman, decade by decade

Today6 recent
Forman, North Dakota2009Forman, North DakotaForman, North Dakota2009Forman, North DakotaForman, North Dakota2009Forman, North DakotaForman, North Dakota2009Forman, North DakotaForman, North Dakota2009Forman, North DakotaSARGENT COUNTY COURTHOUSE2007SARGENT COUNTY COURTHOUSE
On the National Register

1 historic place in Forman

The country’s official list of buildings and places worth saving.

place listed
1
National Historic Landmarks
0
none yet
historic buildings protected
1
each building in a district counts
first listed
1980
Sargent County Courthouse
Sargent County Courthouse
Buildings

Architectural styles listings

Beaux Arts Neo Classicism1
Sargent County CourthouseBeaux Arts Neo Classicism

National Park Service, National Register of Historic Places. Photos from Wikimedia Commons, credited on each place’s page.

Places that used to be

Lost post offices and burying grounds

Forman’s post office has been open since 1883. Another post office, Sargent, opened and closed inside today’s town.

Forman
1883–today
Sargent
1883–1890
18801950today
1cemetery inside Forman
Forman

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

Stories next door

History across the town line

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

Rutland TownshipIts storynot graded: under 1,000 residents or part of its townDunbar TownshipIts storynot graded: under 1,000 residents or part of its townBowen TownshipIts storynot graded: under 1,000 residents or part of its town

Questions about Forman’s history

What year was Forman founded?

The Forman post office opened in 1883, the earliest record of the town by name (U.S. post office records).

What is on the National Register in Forman?

One place: the Sargent County Courthouse (listed 1980).

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 Wikimedia Commons (6), the National Register of Historic Places (1), 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.