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History · Oakesdale

Oakesdale dates to 1876, and 40% of its homes were built before 1940

Its Register listings are the Barron, J. C., Flour Mill, the Edwin H. Hanford House and the Oakesdale City Hall. Its Register listings are the Barron, J. C., Flour Mill, the Edwin H. Hanford House and the Oakesdale City Hall.

1876founded
3on the National Register
40%homes built before 1940
Add an old photoShare a memory
Quick answers

How Oakesdale began

When was Oakesdale founded?

1876

Oakesdale dates its founding to 1876 (Wikidata). Its post office opened in 1887.

2020 census: 395150 years
Founding year: Wikidata. First post office: 1887.The full story ↓

What stands out about Oakesdale’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 Oakesdale are in the public archives yet. The rest are in attics and albums.Old housesHalf of Oakesdale’s homes were built before 1949.
★ What stands out · Help out

Start Oakesdale’s collection

The first neighbors to add old photos shape how Oakesdale’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

How Oakesdale came to be

From Wikipedia’s history of Oakesdale.

Read it all →

Oakesdale was first settled in 1876 by James McCoy. The community was named after Thomas F. Oakes, a railroad official. Oakesdale was incorporated in 1890.

Text from Wikipedia, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0.

Timeline

Oakesdale, 1876 to 1892

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

  1. 19th century
  2. 1876
    FoundingOakesdale is established
  3. 1887Post officeThe Oakesdale post office opens
  4. 1887Post officeThe Oaksdale post office opens
  5. 1887Post officeThe Oaksdale post office closes
  6. 1892BuiltOakesdale City Hall is built
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.
Add from your album
On the National Register

3 historic places in Oakesdale

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

places listed
3
National Historic Landmarks
0
none yet
historic buildings protected
3
each building in a district counts
first listed
1978
Barron, J. C., Flour Mill
Barron, J. C., Flour MillOakesdale City Hall, built 1892
Buildings

Architectural styles listings

Queen Anne1
Vernacular Romanesque Revival1
Barron, J. C., Flour MillBuilding
Edwin H. Hanford HouseQueen Anne
Oakesdale City HallVernacular Romanesque Revival · Built 1892

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

Places that used to be

Lost post offices and burying grounds

Oakesdale’s post office has been open since 1887. Another post office, Oaksdale, opened and closed inside today’s town.

Oakesdale
1887–today
Oaksdale
1887–1887
18801950today
1cemetery inside Oakesdale
Oakesdale

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

Questions about Oakesdale’s history

What year was Oakesdale founded?

In 1876, according to Wikidata. Oakesdale’s post office opened in 1887.

What is on the National Register in Oakesdale?

Three places: the Barron, J. C., Flour Mill (listed 1978), the Edwin H. Hanford House (1986) and the Oakesdale City Hall (1993).

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 Wikidata (2), the National Register of Historic Places (3), 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.