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–Not graded
History · Hawkins

27% of Hawkins’ homes were built before 1940

Below: maps from 1970 on and the census since 1930.

0on the National Register
27%homes built before 1940
Add an old photoShare a memory

What stands out about Hawkins’ 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 Hawkins are in the public archives yet. The rest are in attics and albums.Boom and bustPeaked at 496 in 1940; 331 people lived here in 2020.
★ What stands out · Help out

Start Hawkins’s collection

The first neighbors to add old photos shape how Hawkins’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
People over time

Hawkins, census by census

010020030040050019401960198020002020Peak: 496

Peaked at 496 in 1940; 331 people lived here in 2020.

10 censuses, 1930–2020.

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

The story

How Hawkins came to be

From Wikipedia’s history of Hawkins.

Read it all →

Before the railroad came, the area around Hawkins was forested, cut by Main Creek and its tributaries, with swamp in the lowlands along those branches. In 1884 the Minneapolis, St. Paul and Sault Ste. Marie Railroad (the Soo Line) built its line through the area, aiming to connect the grain of the Twin Cities with the shipping at Sault Ste. Marie. The railroad created a station near where it crossed the south fork of Main Creek, which became Hawkins.

Text from Wikipedia, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0.

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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On the map

Hawkins on the map, 1970 to 2005

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

Hawkins on the 1970 USGS mapHawkins on the 2005 USGS map1970Jump River Fire Tower NW 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 Hawkins.

Famous people

Famous people close to Hawkins

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

See all →
Ron KovicAnti-war activist · b. 1946
Lois CappsAmerican politician and writer · b. 1938
Jim LeonhardAmerican football player and coach · b. 1982
B
Beverley AndersonAmerican alpine skier · b. 1938
M
Mark HayesAmerican composer · b. 1953
M
Mike NewkirkPlayer of American and Canadian football · b. 1986
Places that used to be

Places now gone

Gone or out of use
Diderrich Ranch Airportairport

Places and cemeteries from the USGS Geographic Names Information System (2021).

Stories next door

History across the town line

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

KennanIts storynot graded: under 1,000 residents or part of its townRichland1 historic placenot graded: under 1,000 residents or part of its townLawrenceIts storynot graded: under 1,000 residents or part of its townSouth ForkIts storynot graded: under 1,000 residents or part of its townJump RiverIts storynot graded: under 1,000 residents or part of its townGeorgetownIts storynot graded: under 1,000 residents or part of its town

Questions about Hawkins’ 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 Wikipedia, U.S. Geological Survey historical maps, U.S. Census counts (via Wikipedia) 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.