A history of Good Thunder,
then and now
Postcards, papers and photographs of Good Thunder from public archives, woven together by decade. Neighbors fill in the gaps.
The story
from WikipediaRead it all ↗Originally, this area was a part of the Winnebago Reservation from 1855 to 1859. John Graham established a hotel in what is now the town in 1870. When the railroad arrived in Minnesota, the town began as an agricultural commerce center.
Good Thunder was platted in April 1871, and named for a Winnebago chief (who was also known as Wakuntchapinka). Chief Good Thunder was well known to the early white towns people, and he had converted to Christianity.
Text from Wikipedia, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0.
Timeline
built from the dates on the items belowFinish Good Thunder’s story
Most archives stop around 1920. The photos from after that are in family albums, not libraries.
1 of 10 decades since 1900 have photos 🔁Retake an old viewJohn Frederich Hilke with his pri…, c. 1888: stand where they stood+15 📦Share a family photoSign in to add one+10Good Thunder, decade by decade
1990s
Nothing in Good Thunder is on the National Register yet
That’s true of most small towns. It doesn’t mean Good Thunder has no history, only that no one has written up a nomination. The closest listed place is Zieglers Ford Bridge in Decoria, 4.1 miles away.
Good Thunder and the nearest listed places
How a place gets listed
Then & now
No then-and-now pairs yet. Take a photo from the same spot as Emelia Ulrich Hilke with two teams of horses, Good Thunder, Minnesota - DPLA - 01613746553d51528333dfb6dc28e2b2 (c. 1880) and it appears here side by side.
🔁 Retake this view · +15Stories next door
nearby towns’ historyFrom Wikimedia Commons (6). Images are copied here with their credits and licenses, shown on each photo’s page. Refreshed monthly.