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History · Medina

Medina’s post office opened in 1888, and 23% of its homes were built before 1940

Below: maps from 1954 on and the census since 1910.

1888first post office
0on the National Register
23%homes built before 1940
2famous people
Add an old photoShare a memory
Photo: Andrew Filer from Seattle (ex-Minneapolis) · CC BY-SA 2.0
Quick answers

How Medina began

When was Medina founded?

1888

The Medina post office opened in 1888, the earliest record of the town by name. Wikidata gives 1899.

First census: 343 in 19102020 census: 264138 years
Founding year: the first Medina post office (Blevins & Helbock, CC0). Wikidata: 1899.The full story ↓

What stands out about Medina’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 Medina are in the public archives yet. The rest are in attics and albums.Boom and bustPeaked at 564 in 1950; 264 people lived here in 2020.Old housesHalf of Medina’s homes were built before 1961.
★ What stands out · Help out

Start Medina’s collection

The first neighbors to add old photos shape how Medina’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
People over time

Medina, census by census

0100200300400500600192019401960198020002020Peak: 564

Peaked at 564 in 1950; 264 people lived here in 2020.

12 censuses, 1910–2020.

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

The story

How Medina came to be

From Wikipedia’s history of Medina.

Read it all →

Medina was originally called Eleventh Siding, and under the latter name got its start in the 1870s when the railroad was extended to that point. A post office called Medina has been in operation since 1888. The city took its name after Medina, New York.

The town made national news on February 13, 1983 when it was the site of a shoot-out in which two U.S. Marshals were slain.

Text from Wikipedia, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0.

Timeline

Medina, 1888 to 1964

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

  1. 19th century
  2. 1888Post officeThe Medina post office opens
  3. 20th century
  4. 1935Born hereFred Kirschenmann is born here
  5. 1950CensusPopulation peaks at 564
  6. 1954On the mapFirst mapped by the U.S. Geological Survey
  7. 1964Born hereJon Wanzek is born here
By decade

Medina, decade by decade

Today18 recent
Medina, North Dakota2008Medina, North DakotaMedina, North Dakota2008Medina, North DakotaMedina, North Dakota2008Medina, North DakotaMedina, North Dakota2008Medina, North DakotaMedina, North Dakota2008Medina, North DakotaMedina, North Dakota2008Medina, North DakotaMedina, North Dakota2008Medina, North DakotaMedina, North Dakota2008Medina, North DakotaMedina, North Dakota2008Medina, North DakotaMedina, North Dakota2008Medina, North DakotaMedina, North Dakota2008Medina, North DakotaMedina, North Dakota2008Medina, North DakotaMedina, North Dakota2008Medina, North DakotaMedina, North Dakota2008Medina, North DakotaMedina, North Dakota2008Medina, North DakotaMedina, North Dakota2008Medina, North DakotaMedina, North Dakota2008Medina, North DakotaMedina, North Dakota2008Medina, North Dakota
On the map

Medina on the map, 1954 to 1985

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

Medina on the 1954 USGS mapMedina on the 1985 USGS map1954Medina 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 Medina.

Famous people

2 famous people were born in Medina

Writers, athletes, leaders and more, ranked by how widely they’re known.

See all →
Fred KirschenmannAmerican agriculturalist · b. 1935
Jon WanzekAmerican businessman · b. 1964
Stories next door

History across the town line

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

Chicago TownshipIts storynot graded: under 1,000 residents or part of its townFlint TownshipIts storynot graded: under 1,000 residents or part of its town

Questions about Medina’s history

What year was Medina founded?

The Medina post office opened in 1888, the earliest record of the town by name (U.S. post office records). Wikidata gives 1899.

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), 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) 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.