History · Bricelyn

Bricelyn’s history is
mostly unwritten

The public archives hold no old photos of Bricelyn. The rest are in attics, shoeboxes and the historical society. Help start the collection.

0old images & papers
0recent photos

The story

from WikipediaRead it all ↗

The town developed as a result of the railroad passing through the area. In 1899, town lots were auctioned. The city was named for John Brice, the original owner of the town site. A post office has been in operation at Bricelyn since 1899.

Text from Wikipedia, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0.

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The first neighbors to add old photos shape how Bricelyn’s history is told.

0 of 10 decades since 1900 have photos 📦Share a family photoSign in to add one+10
Famous people from BricelynWriters, athletes, leaders and more who were born in Bricelyn.Meet them →
By decade

Bricelyn, decade by decade

Before
2000
No old photos in the archives yetWeddings on Main Street, storms, parades, school pictures, the old store. If it’s in your family album, it belongs here.
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National Register of Historic Places

Nothing in Bricelyn is on the National Register yet

That’s true of most small towns. It doesn’t mean Bricelyn has no history, only that no one has written up a nomination. The closest listed place is Walters Jail in Walters, 7.7 miles away.

How a place gets listed

1Talk to the stateEvery nomination goes through the State Historic Preservation Office. Owners, towns and historical societies can start one.
2Try a local or state list firstMany states keep their own register with a shorter form, a common first step for old barns, halls and schoolhouses.
3Write it upA nomination covers the history, photos and a map. Walters Jail’s page links to a real one.
Know an old place in Bricelyn?A mill, a schoolhouse, a cellar hole, a church: add a photo of it to Bricelyn’s story, or a memory of it.
📷 Add a photo of an old place
National Park Service, National Register of Historic Places · photos from Wikimedia Commons

Then & now

When neighbors add old photos, retakes from the same spot appear here side by side.

Stories next door

nearby towns’ history
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Boundary source: https://tigerweb.geo.census.gov/arcgis/rest/services/TIGERweb/Places_CouSub_ConCity_SubMCD/MapServer/18 · 2025-01-01