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History · Irene

Irene’s post office opened in 1893, and 48% of its homes were built before 1940

Its Register listing is the Aggergaard Manor.

1893first post office
1on the National Register
48%homes built before 1940
1famous people
Add an old photoShare a memory
Quick answers

How Irene began

When was Irene founded?

1893

The Irene post office opened in 1893, the earliest record of the town by name. Wikidata gives 1895.

2020 census: 422133 years
Founding year: the first Irene post office (Blevins & Helbock, CC0). Wikidata: 1895.

What stands out about Irene’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 Irene are in the public archives yet. The rest are in attics and albums.Old housesHalf of Irene’s homes were built before 1945.
★ What stands out · Help out

Start Irene’s collection

The first neighbors to add old photos shape how Irene’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
The story so far

Irene, in brief

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

Irene is a city in Clay, Turner, and Yankton counties in South Dakota, United States. The population was 422 at the 2020 census. The portion of Irene that is located in Turner County is a part of the Sioux Falls, South Dakota metropolitan area, the portion located in Yankton County is part of the Yankton Micropolitan Statistical Area, and the portion located in Clay County is part of both the Vermillion Micropolitan Statistical Area and the Sioux City-Vermillion Combined Statistical Area. Irene is also host to the Irene Rodeo, held every summer. Irene was laid out in 1893, and named after Irene Fry, the daughter of a first settler.

Its first post office opened in 1893. Its population held steady between the last two censuses: 420 in 2010, 422 in 2020.

Intro from Wikipedia. Population: U.S. Census Bureau.

By decade

Irene, decade by decade

Today2 recent
Agergaard farm residence 19062025Agergaard farm residence 1906SDMap-doton-Irene2004SDMap-doton-Irene
On the National Register

1 historic place in Irene

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

place listed
1
National Historic Landmarks
0
none yet
historic buildings protected
2
each building in a district counts
first listed
2001
Aggergaard Manor
Aggergaard Manor
Buildings

Architectural styles listings

Late 19th and 20th Century Revival1
Colonial Revival1
Aggergaard ManorLate 19th and 20th Century Revival

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

Stories next door

History across the town line

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

Turkey Valley Township2 historic placesnot graded: under 1,000 residents or part of its townDaneville Township1 historic placenot graded: under 1,000 residents or part of its townStar Township1 historic placenot graded: under 1,000 residents or part of its townMarindahl Township4 historic placesnot graded: under 1,000 residents or part of its town

Questions about Irene’s history

What year was Irene founded?

The Irene post office opened in 1893, the earliest record of the town by name (U.S. post office records). Wikidata gives 1895.

What is on the National Register in Irene?

One place: the Aggergaard Manor (listed 2001).

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 (2), Wikidata (1), the National Register of Historic Places (1), Wikidata and Wikipedia for famous people, 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.