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History · Peever

Peever dates to 1898, and 27% of its homes were built before 1940

Below: 2 old photos and papers, maps from 1971 on, and the census since 1910.

1898founded
0on the National Register
27%homes built before 1940
2old photos & papers
Add an old photoShare a memory
From Peever’s archive · credits on each photo
Quick answers

How Peever began

When was Peever founded?

1898

Peever dates its founding to 1898 (Wikipedia’s history). The census first counted it in 1910.

First census: 259 in 19102020 census: 180128 years
Founding year: Wikipedia. First post office: 1898.

What stands out about Peever’s past

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

A history waiting to be writtenOnly 2 old photos are in the public archives. The rest are in attics and albums.Boom and bustPeaked at 386 in 1920; 180 people lived here in 2020.
★ What stands out · Help out

Start Peever’s collection

The first neighbors to add old photos shape how Peever’s history is told.

Decades since 1900 with photos
00s10s20s30s40s50s60s70s80s90s
1 of 10 decades. The empty ones are waiting for someone’s album.
Retake an old viewPeever, So. Dak. seen from north west: stand where they stood+15Share a family photoSign in to add one+10
People over time

Peever, census by census

0100200300400192019401960198020002020Peak: 386

Peaked at 386 in 1920; 180 people lived here in 2020.

12 censuses, 1910–2020.

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

The story so far

Peever, in brief

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

Peever is a town in Roberts County, South Dakota, United States. The population was 180 at the 2020 census. Peever was laid out in 1898, and named in honor of Thomas Henry Peever, a settler.

Peever was established in 1898. Between the 2010 and 2020 censuses its population grew from 168 to 180 (+7%).

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

Timeline

Peever, 1898 to 1971

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

  1. 19th century
  2. 1898
    FoundingPeever is established
  3. 1898Post officeThe Keller post office opens
  4. 20th century
  5. 1901Post officeThe Keller post office closes
  6. 1901Post officeThe Peever post office opens
  7. 1910In the archivePeever, So. Dak. seen from north west
  8. 1920CensusPopulation peaks at 386
  9. 1971On the mapFirst mapped by the U.S. Geological Survey
By decade

Peever, decade by decade

One decade in the archive so far: the 1910s. Scroll each row; tap a photo for its story.

1910s2 items
Peever, So. Dak. seen from north west1910Peever, So. Dak. seen from north westMain Street looking north1910Main Street looking north
1920s–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

Peever on the map, 1971 to 1985

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

Peever on the 1971 USGS mapPeever on the 1985 USGS map1971Peever 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 Peever.

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.

Peever, So. Dak. seen from north west
Retake this viewPeever, So. Dak. seen from north west, 1910

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

Retake this view · +15
Famous people

Famous people close to Peever

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

See all →
Arthur E. NelsonAmerican politician · b. 1892
Charles M. DaleAmerican lawyer, 66th governor of New Hampshire · b. 1893
Royce WilliamsRetired United States Navy aviator · b. 1925
Joe RobbieNFL Team Owner · b. 1916
Charles BurnettSenior commander in the Royal Air Force · b. 1882
J
Jeff BackerAmerican politician · b. 1967
Places that used to be

Lost post offices

Peever’s post office has been open since 1901. Another post office, Keller, opened and closed inside today’s town.

Keller
1898–1901
Peever
1901–today
18901960today

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

Questions about Peever’s history

What year was Peever founded?

In 1898, according to Wikipedia’s history of the town. Peever’s post office opened in 1898, and the census of 1910 counted 259 people here.

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 (2), 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.