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History · Monowi

Monowi’s post office opened in 1902, and 75% of its homes were built before 1940

Below: 2 old photos and papers, maps from 1950 on, and the census since 1910.

1902first post office
0on the National Register
75%homes built before 1940
2old photos & papers
Add an old photoShare a memory
From Monowi’s archive · credits on each photo
Quick answers

How Monowi began

When was Monowi founded?

1902

The Monowi post office opened in 1902, the earliest record of the town by name. Another post office, Alford (1892), opened inside today’s town and later closed.

First census: 109 in 19102020 census: 2124 years
Founding year: the first Monowi post office (Blevins & Helbock, CC0).The full story ↓

What stands out about Monowi’s past

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

A history waiting to be writtenOnly 2 old photos are in the public archives. The rest are in attics and albums.Shrank, then grewLost two-thirds of its people between 1930 and 2010, then more than doubled.
★ What stands out · Help out

Start Monowi’s collection

The first neighbors to add old photos shape how Monowi’s history is told.

Decades since 1900 with photos
00s10s20s30s40s50s60s70s80s90s
1 of 10 decades. The empty ones are waiting for someone’s album.
Date a photo1 archive item has no date. Guess the decade.+2Retake an old viewMonowiNebraska1908: stand where they stood+15Share a family photoSign in to add one+10
People over time

Monowi, census by census

0100192019401960198020002020123 in 1930Low: 1

Lost two-thirds of its people between 1930 and 2010, then more than doubled.

12 censuses, 1910–2020.

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

The story

How Monowi came to be

From Wikipedia’s history of Monowi.

Read it all →

Monowi was platted in 1902 following the extension of the Mason, Elkhorn and Missouri Valley Railroad to the area. A post office was established in Monowi in 1902 and operated until its closure in 1967.

Monowi reached its peak population in the 1930s, when approximately 150 people lived in the village. Like many other small communities in the Great Plains, it lost its younger residents to larger cities that were experiencing growth and offering better employment opportunities.

ChaptersCensus data

Text from Wikipedia, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0.

Timeline

Monowi, 1892 to 1967

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

  1. 19th century
  2. 1892Post officeThe Alford post office opens
  3. 20th century
  4. 1902Post officeThe Alford post office closes
  5. 1902Post officeThe Monowi post office opens
  6. 1908In the archiveMonowiNebraska1908
  7. 1930CensusPopulation peaks at 123
  8. 1950On the mapFirst mapped by the U.S. Geological Survey
  9. 1967Post officeThe Monowi post office closes
By decade

Monowi, decade by decade

One decade in the archive so far: the 1900s. Scroll each row; tap a photo for its story.

1900s1 item
MonowiNebraska19081908MonowiNebraska1908
1910s–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
Date unknown1 to date
Monowi Tavern, Intersection of Broad Street and Grant Street (State Highway 12)Date?Monowi Tavern, Intersection of Broad Street and Grant…
Today12 recent
Monowi Tavern2013Monowi TavernMONOWI2013MONOWIMonowi, Nebraska2012Monowi, NebraskaMonowi, Nebraska2012Monowi, NebraskaMonowi, Nebraska2012Monowi, NebraskaMonowi, Nebraska2012Monowi, NebraskaMonowi, Nebraska2012Monowi, NebraskaMonowi, Nebraska2012Monowi, NebraskaMonowi, Nebraska2012Monowi, NebraskaDetailed map of2008Detailed map ofMapRudy's Library2007Rudy's LibraryPopulation sign2007Population sign
On the map

Monowi on the map in 1950

The U.S. Geological Survey’s map of Monowi.

Monowi on the 1950 USGS map1950Monowi 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 Monowi.

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.

MonowiNebraska1908
Retake this viewMonowiNebraska1908, 1908

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

Retake this view · +15
Famous people

Famous people close to Monowi

Nobody well known was born in Monowi itself, so here are the best known from just nearby.

See all →
George McGovernAmerican historian and politician · b. 1922
Doug EggersAmerican football player · b. 1930
W
William HillAmerican politician in Iowa · b. 1930
B
Barry DeKayAmerican politician · b. 1959
Places that used to be

Lost post offices and places now gone

Monowi had its own post office from 1902 to 1967. Another post office, Alford, opened and closed inside today’s town.

Alford
1892–1902
Monowi
1902–1967
18901960today
Gone or out of use
MonowilocaleMonowi Post Officepost office

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

Questions about Monowi’s history

What year was Monowi founded?

The Monowi post office opened in 1902, the earliest record of the town by name (U.S. post office records).

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 (13), the Library of Congress (1), Wikipedia, 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.