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A−History
History · South Bend

South Bend’s post office opened in 1875, and 32% of its homes were built before 1940

More historic than 80% of U.S. towns. What drives it

4 places in town are on the National Register. Below: 11 old photos and papers, maps from 1891 on, and the census since 1900.

1875first post office
4on the National Register
32%homes built before 1940
11old photos & papers
3famous people
Add an old photoShare a memory
From South Bend’s archive · credits on each photo
Quick answers

How South Bend began

When was South Bend founded?

1875

The South Bend post office opened in 1875, the earliest record of the town by name.

First census: 711 in 19002020 census: 1,746151 years

How historic is South Bend?

A−

More historic than 80% of U.S. towns, on its age, its old homes and the National Register.

What drives the grade ↓
Founding year: the first South Bend post office (Blevins & Helbock, CC0).The full story ↓
History grade

What drives South Bend’s History grade

On its age, its old homes and the National Register, South Bend is more historic than 80% of U.S. towns. Its share of homes from before 1940 holds the grade up; its age pulls it down.

A−
HistoryA character grade: shown, never part of South Bend’s overall grade.
Founding era1875, from the first post office: founded 1850–1899, an older era than 37% of U.S. townsC+Homes built before 194032.4% of homes (±7.3) · typical WA town 4.3% · U.S. 8.4%ANational Register4 listings, 21.4 per 10,000 residents · typical WA town 0.1 · U.S. 2.4A−
All U.S. towns we grade (21,289)Ahead of 80%
NewerOlder

Few Washington towns list much on the Register (a typical Washington town has 0.1 per 10,000 residents, the U.S. 2.4), so South Bend’s 21.4 sits above most of its state (90% of Washington towns have fewer) while its 4 listings outnumber those of 68% of U.S. towns.

How sure. Graded on any two of the three inputs instead, the letter would range from B to A. The pre-1940 share is a Census survey estimate (±7.3 points). The founding year is the first post office, not a stated founding date.

Founding year: the first post office (other dates in Quick answers). Homes: Census ACS 2020–24. National Register: National Park Service, May 2026 list; each listing counted once (boundary changes and added documentation belong to their listing), and a historic district counts its contributing buildings. How TownRatings grades history →

What stands out about South Bend’s past

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

Boom and bustPeaked at 3,023 in 1910; 1,746 people lived here in 2020.Mapped building by building5 fire insurance maps, 1891 to 1929, drew every building in South Bend.Landmarks on the Register4 places on the National Register.
★ What stands out · People over time

South Bend, census by census

05001,0001,5002,0002,5003,0001900192019401960198020002020Peak: 3,023

Peaked at 3,023 in 1910; 1,746 people lived here in 2020.

13 censuses, 1900–2020.

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

Every building

South Bend, building by building, 1891–1929

Fire insurance maps drew every building, what it was made of and what it was used for, so insurers could price the risk of fire. Pick a year, then a sheet.

South Bend fire insurance map, 1891, sheet 11891Sheet 1 of 3
Edition
BrickWoodStone

Sanborn Map Company, via the Library of Congress. Editions published in 1930 or earlier, which are in the public domain.

On the National Register

4 historic places in South Bend

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

places listed
4
National Historic Landmarks
0
none yet
historic buildings protected
4
each building in a district counts
first listed
1977
Pacific County Courthouse
Pacific County Courthouse, built 1910Russell House, built 1891South Bend Carnegie Public LibraryLumber Exchange Building
Buildings

Architectural styles listings

Second Renaissance Revival1
Queen Anne1
Classical Revival1
Pacific County CourthouseSecond Renaissance Revival · Built 1910
Russell HouseQueen Anne · Built 1891
South Bend Carnegie Public LibraryBuilding
Lumber Exchange BuildingClassical Revival

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

The story

How South Bend came to be

From Wikipedia’s history of South Bend.

Read it all →

South Bend was officially incorporated on September 27, 1890. The name of the city comes from its location on the Willapa River. The county seat was relocated from Oysterville to South Bend in 1893. The Pacific County Courthouse is on the National Register of Historic Places. The old South Bend Courthouse was the site of the first and only execution carried out in Pacific County, when convicted murderer Lum You was hanged in 1902.

Text from Wikipedia, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0.

Timeline

South Bend, 1875 to 1987

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

  1. 19th century
  2. 1875Post officeThe South Bend post office opens
  3. 1880In the archiveWillapa Hotel, South Bend, probably between 1880 and 1900
  4. 1890In the archiveShips and sawmill in South Bend, Wash., circa 1890
  5. 1891BuiltRussell House is built
  6. 20th century
  7. 1901In the archiveF. A. Hazeltine, publisher of the South Bend Journal, South Bend, Washington, ca. 1901
  8. 1907Born hereHelen Kleeb is born here
  9. 1910BuiltPacific County Courthouse is built
  10. 1910CensusPopulation peaks at 3,023
  11. 1911In the archiveSouth Bend, 1911
  12. 1924Born hereJohn E. Corbally is born here
  13. 1927Born herePat Paulsen is born here
  14. 1938On the mapFirst mapped by the U.S. Geological Survey
  15. 1987In the archiveLumber Exchange Building
By decade

South Bend, decade by decade

5 decades in the archive, from the 1880s to the 1980s. Scroll each row; tap a photo for its story.

1880s–1900s7 items
Willapa Hotel, South Bend, probably between 1880 and 19001880Willapa Hotel, South Bend, probably between 1880 and …Ships and sawmill in South Bend, Wash., circa 1890c. 1890Ships and sawmill in South Bend, Wash., circa 1890Ships and sawmill in South Bend, Wash., circa 1890c. 1890Ships and sawmill in South Bend, Wash., circa 1890F. A. Hazeltine, publisher of the South Bend Journal, South Bend, Washington, ca. 1901c. 1901F. A. Hazeltine, publisher of the South Bend Journal,…DocumentUnidentified women in hat, South Bend, Washington, ca. 1901c. 1901Unidentified women in hat, South Bend, Washington, ca…South Bend, Washington, ca. 1903c. 1903South Bend, Washington, ca. 1903Northern Pacific Railroad at South Bend, Washington station, probably between 1909 and 19221909Northern Pacific Railroad at South Bend, Washington s…
1910s3 items
South Bend, 19111911South Bend, 1911South Bend, Wash1911South Bend, WashSouth Bend, Wash1911South Bend, Wash
1920s–1970snothing 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
1980s1 item
Lumber Exchange Building1987Lumber Exchange Building
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
Today5 recent
Spills aren't slick - report oil spills Washington Department of Emergency Management2015Spills aren't slick - report oil spills Washington De…SouthBend Monument2013SouthBend MonumentWillapa Oysters2011Willapa OystersSouth Bend Washington Pacific County Museum2008South Bend Washington Pacific County MuseumSouth Bend WA fishing boat2008South Bend WA fishing boat
On the map

South Bend on the map, 1938 to 1994

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

South Bend on the 1938 USGS mapSouth Bend on the 1940 USGS mapSouth Bend on the 1957 USGS mapSouth Bend on the 1984 USGS mapSouth Bend on the 1994 USGS map1938South Bend sheet · 1:62,500

U.S. Geological Survey historical topographic maps (public domain), via Esri’s collection of the scans. The red ring marks the center of South Bend.

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.

Willapa Hotel, South Bend, probably between 1880 and 1900
Retake this viewWillapa Hotel, South Bend, probably between 1880 and 1900, 1880

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

Retake this view · +15
Famous people

3 famous people were born in South Bend

Writers, athletes, leaders and more, ranked by how widely they’re known.

See all →
Helen KleebAmerican actress · b. 1907
Pat PaulsenAmerican actor · b. 1927
John E. CorballyAmerican university president · b. 1924
Help out

Finish South Bend’s story

Most archives stop around 1920. The photos from after that are in family albums, not libraries.

Decades since 1900 with photos
00s10s20s30s40s50s60s70s80s90s
3 of 10 decades. The empty ones are waiting for someone’s album.
Retake an old viewWillapa Hotel, South Bend, probably bet…: stand where they stood+15Share a family photoSign in to add one+10
Stories next door

History across the town line

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

Raymond3 historic placesB

Questions about South Bend’s history

What year was South Bend founded?

The South Bend post office opened in 1875, the earliest record of the town by name (U.S. post office records).

How does South Bend rank for history?

South Bend is more historic than 80% of U.S. towns. The History grade combines the town’s founding era, the share of homes built before 1940 and its National Register listings. It’s a character grade, so it isn’t part of the overall grade. How it works.

What is on the National Register in South Bend?

4 listings: 4 buildings, among them the Pacific County Courthouse (listed 1977, the first).

How old are the homes in South Bend?

32% of South Bend’s homes were built before 1940 (Census estimate, ±7.3 points), against a typical 4.3% for a Washington town; the median home was built in 1966.

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).

From Wikimedia Commons (15), the Library of Congress (1), Wikidata (2), the National Register of Historic Places (4), Wikipedia, Wikidata and Wikipedia for famous people, U.S. Geological Survey historical maps, U.S. Census counts (via Wikipedia), the US Post Offices dataset (Blevins & Helbock), the USGS Geographic Names Information System and Sanborn fire insurance maps (Library of Congress). Archive images are copied here with their credits and licenses, shown on each photo’s page. Refreshed monthly.