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History · Rutland Township

Rutland Township dates to 1905, and 39% of its homes were built before 1940

1905founded
0on the National Register
39%homes built before 1940
Add an old photoShare a memory
Quick answers

How Rutland Township began

When was Rutland Township founded?

1905

Rutland Township dates its founding to 1905 (Wikipedia’s history). Its post office opened in 1882.

2020 census: 191121 years
Founding year: Wikipedia. First post office: 1882.

What stands out about Rutland Township’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 Rutland Township are in the public archives yet. The rest are in attics and albums.Lost villages2 post offices opened and closed inside today’s Rutland Township, and 1 old place names are still on the map.
★ What stands out · Help out

Start Rutland Township’s collection

The first neighbors to add old photos shape how Rutland Township’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, old corners, places now gone and burying grounds

Two other post offices opened and closed inside today’s town.

Egge
1882–1903
Rutland
1906–1976
18801950today
Hamlets and corners on the map
Rutland
Gone or out of use
Bethel Presbyterian ChurchchurchEgge Post Officepost office
1cemetery inside Rutland Township
Lake Park

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

The story so far

Rutland Township, in brief

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

Rutland is an unincorporated community in Lake County, South Dakota, United States. Rutland was founded in 1905, and named after Rutland Township by Richard F. Pettigrew, a surveyor and politician from Sioux Falls. There is a veterinary clinic in the town, which was formerly a small gas station called the "Rambler Stop", named after the original Rutland School sports team name, the "Ramblers".

Rutland Township was established in 1905. Between the 2010 and 2020 censuses its population grew from 182 to 191 (+5%).

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

Timeline

Rutland Township, 1882 to 1976

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

  1. 19th century
  2. 1882Post officeThe Egge post office opens
  3. 20th century
  4. 1903Post officeThe Egge post office closes
  5. 1905
    FoundingRutland Township is established
  6. 1906Post officeThe Rutland post office opens
  7. 1976Post officeThe Rutland post office closes
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.

Be the first to add onePhotograph a print flat, in daylight, no flash.
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Famous people

Famous people close to Rutland Township

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

See all →
C
Charles JacobsAmerican pole vaulter · b. 1886
C
Charles McCallisterAmerican water polo player · b. 1903
Mary HartAmerican journalist and television personality · b. 1950
Eugene Luther VidalAmerican commercial aviation pioneer and Olympi… · b. 1895
Richard Barrett LoweEducator and governor of American Samoa and Guam · b. 1902
L
Lance CarsonAmerican politician · b. 1945
Stories next door

History across the town line

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

Wentworth TownshipIts storynot graded: under 1,000 residents or part of its townLe Roy Township2 historic placesnot graded: under 1,000 residents or part of its townSummit TownshipIts storynot graded: under 1,000 residents or part of its townJefferson TownshipIts storynot graded: under 1,000 residents or part of its town

Questions about Rutland Township’s history

What year was Rutland Township founded?

In 1905, according to Wikipedia’s history of the town. Rutland Township’s post office opened in 1882.

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 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.