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History · Lake Norden

Lake Norden dates to 1908, and 43% of its homes were built before 1940

Its Register listing is the First National Bank of Norden. Below: maps from 1969 on and the census since 1910.

1908founded
1on the National Register
43%homes built before 1940
Add an old photoShare a memory
Quick answers

How Lake Norden began

When was Lake Norden founded?

1908

Lake Norden dates its founding to 1908 (Wikipedia’s history). The census first counted it in 1910.

First census: 202 in 19102020 census: 554118 years
Founding year: Wikipedia. First post office: 1895.

What stands out about Lake Norden’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 Lake Norden are in the public archives yet. The rest are in attics and albums.Lost villages2 post offices opened and closed inside today’s Lake Norden.Old housesHalf of Lake Norden’s homes were built before 1956.
★ What stands out · Help out

Start Lake Norden’s collection

The first neighbors to add old photos shape how Lake Norden’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
Places that used to be

Lost post offices

Lake Norden’s post office has been open since 1912. Two other post offices opened and closed inside today’s town.

Dolph
1895–1907
Norden
1907–1912
Lake Norden
1912–today
18901960today

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

The story so far

Lake Norden, in brief

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

Lake Norden is a city in Hamlin County, South Dakota, United States. It is part of the Watertown, South Dakota Micropolitan Statistical Area. The population was 554 at the 2020 census. Lake Norden was laid out in 1908, and named after a lake near the town site. In May 2023, a fire destroyed the city's volunteer fire department.

Lake Norden was established in 1908. Between the 2010 and 2020 censuses its population grew from 467 to 554 (+19%).

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

Timeline

Lake Norden, 1895 to 1969

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

  1. 19th century
  2. 1895Post officeThe Dolph post office opens
  3. 20th century
  4. 1907Post officeThe Dolph post office closes
  5. 1907Post officeThe Norden post office opens
  6. 1908
    FoundingLake Norden is established
  7. 1912Post officeThe Norden post office closes
  8. 1912Post officeThe Lake Norden post office opens
  9. 1921BuiltFirst National Bank of Norden is built
  10. 1969On the mapFirst mapped by the U.S. Geological Survey
By decade

Lake Norden, decade by decade

Today2 recent
First National Bank Of Norden NRHP 05001189 Hamlin County, SD2020First National Bank Of Norden NRHP 05001189 Hamlin Co…SDMap-doton-LakeNorden2004SDMap-doton-LakeNorden
On the map

Lake Norden on the map, 1969 to 1985

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

Lake Norden on the 1969 USGS mapLake Norden on the 1985 USGS map1969Lake Norden 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 Lake Norden.

On the National Register

1 historic place in Lake Norden

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
2005
First National Bank of Norden
First National Bank of Norden, built 1921
Buildings

Architectural styles listings

Classical Revival1
First National Bank of NordenClassical Revival · Built 1921

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

People over time

Lake Norden, census by census

0100200300400500600192019401960198020002020554

Grew from 202 people in 1910 to 554 in 2020.

12 censuses, 1910–2020.

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

Famous people

Famous people close to Lake Norden

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

See all →
Theodore SchultzAmerican economist · b. 1902
M
Marvin HeemeyerAmerican news figure · b. 1951
D
Debra R. AndersonAmerican politician · b. 1949

Questions about Lake Norden’s history

What year was Lake Norden founded?

In 1908, according to Wikipedia’s history of the town. Lake Norden’s post office opened in 1895, and the census of 1910 counted 202 people here.

What is on the National Register in Lake Norden?

One place: the First National Bank of Norden (listed 2005).

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), 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.