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History · Big Springs Township

Big Springs Township’s post office opened in 1879, and 24% of its homes were built before 1940

Below: maps from 1898 on.

1879first post office
0on the National Register
24%homes built before 1940
Add an old photoShare a memory
Quick answers

How Big Springs Township began

When was Big Springs Township founded?

1879

The Big Springs Township post office opened in 1879, the earliest record of the town by name. Another post office, Big Springs (1879), opened inside today’s town and later closed.

2020 census: 212147 years
Founding year: the first Big Springs Township post office (Blevins & Helbock, CC0).

What stands out about Big Springs Township’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 Big Springs Township are in the public archives yet. The rest are in attics and albums.On the map since 18983 editions of the USGS map, 1898 to 1986. Watch Big Springs Township change.
★ What stands out · Help out

Start Big Springs Township’s collection

The first neighbors to add old photos shape how Big Springs Township’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
On the map

Big Springs Township on the map, 1898 to 1986

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

Big Springs Township on the 1898 USGS mapBig Springs Township on the 1901 USGS mapBig Springs Township on the 1986 USGS map1898Elk Point sheet · 1:125,000

U.S. Geological Survey historical topographic maps (public domain), via Esri’s collection of the scans. The red ring marks the center of Big Springs Township.

The story so far

Big Springs Township, in brief

Wikipedia doesn’t have a history of Big Springs Township yet. The photos, dates and memories neighbors add here are how it gets written.

Its first post office opened in 1879. Between the 2010 and 2020 censuses its population fell from 275 to 212 (-23%).

Timeline

Big Springs Township, 1879 to 1902

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

  1. 19th century
  2. 1879Post officeThe Big Springs post office opens
  3. 1898On the mapFirst mapped by the U.S. Geological Survey
  4. 20th century
  5. 1902Post officeThe Big Springs post office closes
By decade

Big Springs Township, decade by decade

Today1 recent
Big Springs, South Dakota2012Big Springs, South Dakota
Places that used to be

Lost post offices, old corners, places now gone and burying grounds

Another post office, Big Springs, opened and closed inside today’s town.

Hamlets and corners on the map
Big Springs
Gone or out of use
Big Spring ChurchchurchSchool Number 63school
3cemeteries and burying grounds inside Big Springs Township
Big SpringsOld Big SpringsPeace Lutheran

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

Stories next door

History across the town line

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

Sioux Valley Township2 historic placesnot graded: under 1,000 residents or part of its townVirginia Township1 historic placenot graded: under 1,000 residents or part of its townEmmet Township2 historic placesnot graded: under 1,000 residents or part of its townAlcester TownshipIts storynot graded: under 1,000 residents or part of its town

Questions about Big Springs Township’s history

What year was Big Springs Township founded?

The Big Springs Township post office opened in 1879, 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 (1), U.S. Geological Survey historical maps, 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.