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History · Bowdle

Bowdle’s post office opened in 1886, and 25% of its homes were built before 1940

Its Register listing is the Bank of Bowdle. Below: 11 old photos and papers, maps from 1893 on, and the census since 1900.

1886first post office
1on the National Register
25%homes built before 1940
11old photos & papers
2famous people
Add an old photoShare a memory
From Bowdle’s archive · credits on each photo
Quick answers

How Bowdle began

When was Bowdle founded?

1886

The Bowdle post office opened in 1886, the earliest record of the town by name. Another post office, Kellie (1884), opened inside today’s city and later closed.

First census: 622 in 19002020 census: 470140 years
Founding year: the first Bowdle post office (Blevins & Helbock, CC0).The full story ↓

What stands out about Bowdle’s past

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

Boom and bustPeaked at 818 in 1920; 470 people lived here in 2020.Mapped building by building5 fire insurance maps, 1893 to 1921, drew every building in Bowdle.
★ What stands out · People over time

Bowdle, census by census

02004006008001900192019401960198020002020Peak: 818

Peaked at 818 in 1920; 470 people lived here in 2020.

13 censuses, 1900–2020.

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

Every building

Bowdle, building by building, 1893–1921

Fire insurance maps drew every building, what it was made of and what it was used for, so insurers could price the risk of fire. Pick a year, then a sheet.

Bowdle fire insurance map, 1893, sheet 11893Sheet 1 of 1
Edition
Sheets
BrickWoodStone

Sanborn Map Company, via the Library of Congress. Editions published in 1930 or earlier, which are in the public domain.

The story

How Bowdle came to be

From Wikipedia’s history of Bowdle.

Read it all →

Bowdle was platted in 1886. Bowdle most likely derives its name from C.C. Bowdle, the pioneer banker in the city. However, other sources claim the name either comes from Alexander M. Bowdle, an employee for the Chicago & Milwaukee Railroad, or G.M. Bowdle, a pioneer settler of Mitchell.

On May 22nd, 2010, Bowdle was struck by an EF4 tornado. While no fatalities or injuries were reported, the tornado did damage several farms to the north of town along with tossing multiple vehicles. The tornado was part of a larger outbreak taking place from the 22nd to the 25th.

Text from Wikipedia, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0.

Timeline

Bowdle, 1884 to 1974

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

  1. 19th century
  2. 1884Post officeThe Kellie post office opens
  3. 1886Post officeThe Kellie post office closes
  4. 1886Post officeThe Bowdle post office opens
  5. 20th century
  6. 1908BuiltBank of Bowdle is built
  7. 1909In the archiveGreetings from Bowdle, S.D
  8. 1916Born hereViolet Cowden is born here
  9. 1920CensusPopulation peaks at 818
  10. 1928Born hereShirley Huffman is born here
  11. 1942In the archiveSaturday afternoon
  12. 1974On the mapFirst mapped by the U.S. Geological Survey
By decade

Bowdle, decade by decade

2 decades in the archive, from the 1900s to the 1940s. Scroll each row; tap a photo for its story.

1900s2 items
Greetings from Bowdle, S.D1909Greetings from Bowdle, S.DS.W. portion of Bowdle, S. Dak1909S.W. portion of Bowdle, S. Dak
1910s–1930snothing 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
1940s9 items
Saturday afternoon1942Saturday afternoonBowdle, South Dakota. Saturday afternoon1942Bowdle, South Dakota. Saturday afternoonBowdle, South Dakota. On the main line1942Bowdle, South Dakota. On the main lineUntitled photo, possibly related to: Bowdle, South Dakota. Saturday afternoon1942Untitled photo, possibly related to: Bowdle, South Da…Untitled photo, possibly related to: Bowdle, South Dakota. On the main line1942Untitled photo, possibly related to: Bowdle, South Da…Untitled photo, possibly related to: Bowdle, South Dakota. On the main line1942Untitled photo, possibly related to: Bowdle, South Da…Bowdle, South Dakota. Soldier on furlough with friends in front of pool hall1942Bowdle, South Dakota. Soldier on furlough with friend…Bowdle, South Dakota. Soldier home on furlough, talking with friend in front of pool hall1942Bowdle, South Dakota. Soldier home on furlough, talki…Untitled photo, possibly related to: Bowdle, South Dakota. Soldier on furlough with friends in front of pool hall1942Untitled photo, possibly related to: Bowdle, South Da…
1950s–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
On the map

Bowdle on the map, 1974 to 1985

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

Bowdle on the 1974 USGS mapBowdle on the 1985 USGS map1974Bowdle 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 Bowdle.

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.

Greetings from Bowdle, S.D
Retake this viewGreetings from Bowdle, S.D, 1909

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

Retake this view · +15
On the National Register

1 historic place in Bowdle

The country’s official list of buildings and places worth saving.

place listed
1
National Historic Landmarks
0
none yet
historic buildings protected
1
each building in a district counts
first listed
1985
Bank of Bowdle
Bank of Bowdle, built 1908
Buildings
Bank of BowdleBuilt 1908

National Park Service, National Register of Historic Places. Photos from Wikimedia Commons, credited on each place’s page.

Famous people

2 famous people were born in Bowdle

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

See all →
Shirley HuffmanAmerican mayor · b. 1928
V
Violet CowdenCongressional Gold Medal recipient · b. 1916
Places that used to be

Lost post offices and burying grounds

Bowdle’s post office has been open since 1886. Another post office, Kellie, opened and closed inside today’s town.

Kellie
1884–1886
Bowdle
1886–today
18801950today
3cemeteries and burying grounds inside Bowdle
Bowdle CitySaint AugustineSaint John Evangelical Lutheran

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

Help out

Finish Bowdle’s story

Most archives stop around 1920. The photos from after that are in family albums, not libraries.

Decades since 1900 with photos
00s10s20s30s40s50s60s70s80s90s
2 of 10 decades. The empty ones are waiting for someone’s album.
Retake an old viewGreetings from Bowdle, S.D: stand where they stood+15Share a family photoSign in to add one+10

Questions about Bowdle’s history

What year was Bowdle founded?

The Bowdle post office opened in 1886, the earliest record of the town by name (U.S. post office records).

What is on the National Register in Bowdle?

One place: the Bank of Bowdle (listed 1985).

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 the Library of Congress (11), Wikidata (1), the National Register of Historic Places (1), 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), the USGS Geographic Names Information System and Sanborn fire insurance maps (Library of Congress). Archive images are copied here with their credits and licenses, shown on each photo’s page. Refreshed monthly.