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History · Mandan Township

The history of Mandan Township

Below: 23 old photos and papers, maps from 1980 on, and the census since 1880.

0on the National Register
0.0%homes built before 1940
23old photos & papers
Add an old photoShare a memory
From Mandan Township’s archive · credits on each photo

What stands out about Mandan Township’s past

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

A town in postcards23 old photos, postcards and papers, 1883–1990.
★ What stands out · By decade

Mandan Township, decade by decade

5 decades in the archive, from the 1880s to the 1990s. Scroll each row; tap a photo for its story.

1880s–1930s11 items
Bird's eye view of Mandan, Dak., county seat of Morton Co. 18831883Bird's eye view of Mandan, Dak., county seat of Morto…President Roosevelt at Mandan, North Dakota1903President Roosevelt at Mandan, North DakotaNorth Dakota State Reform Schoolc. 1907North Dakota State Reform SchoolPostcardLewis and Clark hotelc. 1919Lewis and Clark hotelPostcardGreetings from Mandan, North Dakota (74689)c. 1930Greetings from Mandan, North Dakota (74689)PostcardLewis and Clark Hotel, Mandan, N. Dak (75603)c. 1930Lewis and Clark Hotel, Mandan, N. Dak (75603)PostcardMotel Elite, Mandan, N. Dak., where the west begins (82786)c. 1930Motel Elite, Mandan, N. Dak., where the west begins (…PostcardPresident Roosevelt with rehabilitation client. Mandan, North Dakota1936President Roosevelt with rehabilitation client. Manda…President Roosevelt at rehabilitation client's home. Mandan, North Dakota1936President Roosevelt at rehabilitation client's home. …President Roosevelt greeted by workers on stock water dam near Mandan, North Dakota1936President Roosevelt greeted by workers on stock water…President Roosevelt visits farmer who is receiving drought relief grant. Mandan, North Dakota1936President Roosevelt visits farmer who is receiving dr…
1940s–1980snothing 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
1990s12 items
Detail view if the rivet pattern, southeast corner - Northern Pacific Railroad Overhead Bridge, Spanning Burlington Nor…1990Detail view if the rivet pattern, southeast corner - …Detail view of fixed bearing and connecting pin, southeast corner - Northern Pacific Railroad Overhead Bridge, Spanning…1990Detail view of fixed bearing and connecting pin, sout…Detail view of north end of bridge - Northern Pacific Railroad Overhead Bridge, Spanning Burlington Northern Railroad, …1990Detail view of north end of bridge - Northern Pacific…Detail view of rocker bearings, middle of the east side of bridge - Northern Pacific Railroad Overhead Bridge, Spanning…1990Detail view of rocker bearings, middle of the east si…Detail view of sidewalk railing, west side - Northern Pacific Railroad Overhead Bridge, Spanning Burlington Northern Ra…1990Detail view of sidewalk railing, west side - Northern…Detail view of south end of bridge - Northern Pacific Railroad Overhead Bridge, Spanning Burlington Northern Railroad, …1990Detail view of south end of bridge - Northern Pacific…Detail view of south end of the north span - Northern Pacific Railroad Overhead Bridge, Spanning Burlington Northern Ra…1990Detail view of south end of the north span - Northern…Detail view of the rivet pattern, southwest corner - Northern Pacific Railroad Overhead Bridge, Spanning Burlington Nor…1990Detail view of the rivet pattern, southwest corner - …Distant view of east side of bridge - Northern Pacific Railroad Overhead Bridge, Spanning Burlington Northern Railroad,…1990Distant view of east side of bridge - Northern Pacifi…Distant view of fixed bearing, southeast corner - Northern Pacific Railroad Overhead Bridge, Spanning Burlington Northe…1990Distant view of fixed bearing, southeast corner - Nor…Distant view of sidewalk railing, west side - Northern Pacific Railroad Overhead Bridge, Spanning Burlington Northern R…1990Distant view of sidewalk railing, west side - Norther…Distant view of south end of bridge - Northern Pacific Railroad Overhead Bridge, Spanning Burlington Northern Railroad,…1990Distant view of south end of bridge - Northern Pacifi…
The story

How Mandan Township came to be

From Wikipedia’s history of Mandan Township.

Read it all →

The city was named after the historic indigenous Mandan of the area. The Mandan are now part of the Three Affiliated Tribes of the Fort Berthold Reservation, spanning the upper Missouri River in the western part of the state. Their people also live in cities of the state and other areas. In the 2010 census, nearly 5% of the people in Mandan identified as Native American.

The Mandan Indian village at the southern base of Crying Hill prominent in east Mandan was recorded as early as 1738 and called Good Fur Robe, after their chief. The settlement was also recorded as Crying Hill and Two Face Stone, after their corresponding geographic features. It was one of six Mandan villages on the west riverbank between the Knife and Cannonball Rivers.

ChaptersNamingEarly historyTransportation developmentRecent history

Text from Wikipedia, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0.

Timeline

Mandan Township, 1883 to 1990

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

  1. 19th century
  2. 1883In the archiveBird's eye view of Mandan, Dak., county seat of Morton Co. 1883
  3. 20th century
  4. 1903In the archivePresident Roosevelt at Mandan, North Dakota
  5. 1919In the archiveLewis and Clark hotel
  6. 1930In the archiveGreetings from Mandan, North Dakota (74689)
  7. 1980On the mapFirst mapped by the U.S. Geological Survey
  8. 1990In the archiveDetail view if the rivet pattern, southeast corner - Northern Pacific Railroad Overhead B…
On the map

Mandan Township on the map in 1980

The U.S. Geological Survey’s map of Mandan Township.

Mandan Township on the 1980 USGS map1980Rice Lake NW 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 Mandan 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.

Bird's eye view of Mandan, Dak., county seat of Morton Co. 1883
Retake this viewBird's eye view of Mandan, Dak., county seat of Morton Co. 1883, 1883

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

Retake this view · +15
People over time

Mandan Township, census by census

05,00010,00015,00020,00025,0001880190019201940196019802000202024,206

Grew from 239 people in 1880 to 24,206 in 2020, more than tenfold.

15 censuses, 1880–2020.

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

Help out

Finish Mandan 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
4 of 10 decades. The empty ones are waiting for someone’s album.
Retake an old viewBird's eye view of Mandan, Dak., county…: 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.

Des Lacs TownshipIts storynot graded: under 1,000 residents or part of its townBerthold TownshipIts storynot graded: under 1,000 residents or part of its townTolgen TownshipIts storynot graded: under 1,000 residents or part of its townEvergreen TownshipIts storynot graded: under 1,000 residents or part of its town

Questions about Mandan Township’s history

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 (18), the Library of Congress (5), 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.