Most of Lincoln was built recently: 0.0% of its homes predate 1940 and the median home dates from 2004. Below: maps from 1951 on and the census since 1980.
Founding year: Wikidata; Wikipedia’s history section gives the same year.The full story ↓
History grade
What drives Lincoln’s History grade
On its age, its old homes and the National Register, Lincoln is among the newest of U.S. towns. Its National Register listings hold the grade up; its age pulls it down.
D−
HistoryA character grade: shown, never part of Lincoln’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 Lincoln’s 0.0 sits below most of its state (22% of North Dakota towns have fewer) while its 0 listings outnumber those of 23% of U.S. towns.
How sure. Graded on any two of the three inputs instead, the letter would still be D−. The pre-1940 share (±0.6 points) is firm at this size. Two sources give 1977.
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 Lincoln’s past
Read from the archive, the National Register and the record. The page puts what stands out first.
A Lincoln Township south of present-day Bismarck has been shown on maps dating back to 1872, when Edwinton – as Bismarck was originally known – was first platted. Efforts to formerly organize a township and city under the name of Lincoln have persisted, including one in 1965.
What is today considered the City of Lincoln was first established as a 300-acre, 492-lot housing development called Fort Lincoln Estates in 1972. It was originally considered part of Apple Creek Township. Billy Rippley was the principal developer. 24 homes were constructed by 1973.
Lincoln, along with eleven other sections of Apple Creek Township, entered the Bismarck Public School district through annexation in 1973.
In 1977, according to Wikidata and Wikipedia’s history of the town. the census of 1980 counted 656 people here.
How does Lincoln rank for history?
Lincoln is among the newest of U.S. towns. 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.
How old are the homes in Lincoln?
0.0% of Lincoln’s homes were built before 1940 (Census estimate), against a typical 7.2% for a North Dakota town; the median home was built in 2004.
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 (2), Wikipedia, U.S. Geological Survey historical maps, U.S. Census counts (via Wikipedia) 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.
2009
2004
