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History · Old Elm Spring Colony

1 of Old Elm Spring Colony’s places is on the National Register

Below: maps from 1898 on.

1on the National Register
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What stands out about Old Elm Spring Colony’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 Old Elm Spring Colony 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 1985. Watch Old Elm Spring Colony change.
★ What stands out · Help out

Start Old Elm Spring Colony’s collection

The first neighbors to add old photos shape how Old Elm Spring Colony’s history is told.

Decades since 1900 with photos
00s10s20s30s40s50s60s70s80s90s
0 of 10 decades. The empty ones are waiting for someone’s album.
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On the map

Old Elm Spring Colony on the map, 1898 to 1985

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

Old Elm Spring Colony on the 1898 USGS mapOld Elm Spring Colony on the 1957 USGS mapOld Elm Spring Colony on the 1985 USGS map1898Olivet 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 Old Elm Spring Colony.

The story so far

Old Elm Spring Colony, in brief

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

Old Elm Spring Colony, formerly called the Old Elmspring Hutterite Colony, is a Hutterite colony and census-designated place (CDP) in Hutchinson County, South Dakota, United States. The population was 114 at the 2020 census. It was first listed as a CDP prior to the 2020 census. It is on the northern edge of the county, bordered to the north by Hanson County. It is on high ground on the east side of the James River. It is 24 miles (39 km) north-northwest of Olivet, the county seat, and 17 miles (27 km) northeast of Parkston. New Elm Spring Colony is 3 miles (5 km) to the west, across the James River. It began as a Hutterite colony in 1876. In 1982 it was listed on the National Register of H…

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

By decade

No old photos in the archives yet

Weddings on Main Street, storms, parades, school pictures, the old store. If it’s in your family album, it belongs here.

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On the National Register

1 historic place in Old Elm Spring Colony

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

place listed
1
National Historic Landmarks
0
none yet
historic buildings protected
6
each building in a district counts

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

Famous people

Famous people close to Old Elm Spring Colony

Nobody well known was born in Old Elm Spring Colony itself, so here are the best known from just nearby.

See all →
Riley ReiffAmerican football player · b. 1988
AlexanderMagician · b. 1880
Thomas H. WerdelAmerican politician · b. 1905
G
George FaustAmerican football player · b. 1917
T
Tony KayserAmerican politician

Questions about Old Elm Spring Colony’s history

Memory lane

What the archives can’t tell you, neighbors can.

Town Square →
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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 U.S. Geological Survey historical maps. Archive images are copied here with their credits and licenses, shown on each photo’s page. Refreshed monthly.