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History · Hettinger Township

Hettinger Township dates to 1907, and 22% of its homes were built before 1940

Below: 18 old photos and papers, maps from 1974 on, and the census since 1910.

1907founded
0on the National Register
22%homes built before 1940
18old photos & papers
Add an old photoShare a memory
From Hettinger Township’s archive · credits on each photo
Quick answers

How Hettinger Township began

When was Hettinger Township founded?

1907

Hettinger Township dates its founding to 1907 (Wikidata and Wikipedia’s history agree). The census first counted it in 1910.

First census: 766 in 19102020 census: 168119 years
Founding year: Wikidata; Wikipedia’s history section gives the same year.The full story ↓

What stands out about Hettinger Township’s past

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

A town in old photos18 old photos, postcards and papers, 1909–1942.Boom and bustPeaked at 1,769 in 1960; 1,074 people lived here in 2020.Old housesHalf of Hettinger Township’s homes were built before 1960.
★ What stands out · By decade

Hettinger Township, decade by decade

3 decades in the archive, from the 1900s to the 1940s. Scroll each row; tap a photo for its story.

1900s5 items
Lover's Butte1909Lover's ButteMain Street1909Main StreetElevators & depot1909Elevators & depotMirror Lake & elevators1909Mirror Lake & elevatorsBirdseye view of Hettinger, N. Dak1909Birdseye view of Hettinger, N. Dak
1930s–1940s13 items
Adams County Courthouse (North Dakota)c. 1930Adams County Courthouse (North Dakota)Mirror Lake, Hettinger, N. Dak (71572)c. 1930Mirror Lake, Hettinger, N. Dak (71572)Hettinger, North Dakota1942Hettinger, North DakotaHettinger, North Dakota1942Hettinger, North DakotaHettinger, North Dakota1942Hettinger, North DakotaHettinger, North Dakota1942Hettinger, North DakotaHettinger, North Dakota1942Hettinger, North DakotaHettinger, North Dakota1942Hettinger, North DakotaHettinger, North Dakota1942Hettinger, North DakotaHettinger, North Dakota1942Hettinger, North DakotaHettinger, North Dakota. Church1942Hettinger, North Dakota. ChurchHettinger, North Dakota. Church1942Hettinger, North Dakota. ChurchHettinger, North Dakota. Barber1942Hettinger, North Dakota. Barber
1950s–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
People over time

Hettinger Township, census by census

02004006008001,0001,2001,4001,6001,800192019401960198020002020Peak: 1,769

Peaked at 1,769 in 1960; 1,074 people lived here in 2020.

12 censuses, 1910–2020.

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

The story

How Hettinger Township came to be

From Wikipedia’s history of Hettinger Township.

Read it all →

Hettinger was founded in 1907 along the Milwaukee Road's transcontinental rail line known as the Pacific Extension. The city and its surrounding township were named by popular demand in recognition of Hettinger County, from which Adams County was created in 1907.

In 1923 a tornado struck ten miles east of Hettinger, destroying a farmstead and killing two people.

Text from Wikipedia, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0.

Timeline

Hettinger Township, 1907 to 1974

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

  1. 20th century
  2. 1907
    FoundingHettinger Township is established
  3. 1909In the archiveLover's Butte
  4. 1930In the archiveAdams County Courthouse (North Dakota)
  5. 1942In the archiveHettinger, North Dakota
  6. 1960CensusPopulation peaks at 1,769
  7. 1974On the mapFirst mapped by the U.S. Geological Survey
On the map

Hettinger Township on the map, 1974 to 1998

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

Hettinger Township on the 1974 USGS mapHettinger Township on the 1984 USGS mapHettinger Township on the 1998 USGS map1974Hettinger South 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 Hettinger 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.

Lover's Butte
Retake this viewLover's Butte, 1909

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

Retake this view · +15
Help out

Finish Hettinger 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
3 of 10 decades. The empty ones are waiting for someone’s album.
Retake an old viewLover's Butte: 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.

Hettinger2 historic placesB−Scott TownshipIts storynot graded: under 1,000 residents or part of its townDuck Creek TownshipIts storynot graded: under 1,000 residents or part of its town

Questions about Hettinger Township’s history

What year was Hettinger Township founded?

In 1907, according to Wikidata and Wikipedia’s history of the town. the census of 1910 counted 766 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 Wikimedia Commons (2), the Library of Congress (16), Wikipedia, U.S. Geological Survey historical maps and U.S. Census counts (via Wikipedia). Archive images are copied here with their credits and licenses, shown on each photo’s page. Refreshed monthly.