Aitkin’s history is
mostly unwritten
The public archives hold only 4 old photos of Aitkin. The rest are in attics, shoeboxes and the historical society. Help start the collection.
The story
from WikipediaRead it all ↗Before the establishment of City of Aitkin, there was a transient community of Lexington at the mouth of the Ripple River, where it meets the Mississippi River. Maps from the 1860s erroneously depict the village of Ojibway at the mouth of the Ripple River.
Due to the importance of regional trade at Lexington, the Northern Pacific Railroad was planned to pass near there. Aitkin was founded in 1870 when the Northern Pacific Railroad was extended to that point, replacing and annexing Lexington. The city and county were named for William Alexander Aitken, a partner of the American Fur Company and chief factor of the company's regional operations in the early 19th century.
Text from Wikipedia, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0.
Timeline
built from the dates on the items belowStart Aitkin’s collection
The first neighbors to add old photos shape how Aitkin’s history is told.
1 of 10 decades since 1900 have photos 🔁Retake an old viewCourt house, 1910: stand where they stood+15 📦Share a family photoSign in to add one+10Famous people from Aitkin
See all 6 →
Aitkin, decade by decade
1990s
Then & now
No then-and-now pairs yet. Take a photo from the same spot as Court house (1910) and it appears here side by side.
🔁 Retake this view · +15Historic places
National Register · via Wikidata
From Wikimedia Commons (1), the Library of Congress (3) and the National Register (2). Images are copied here with their credits and licenses, shown on each photo’s page. Refreshed monthly.