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History · Lake Ida

Lake Ida’s history is
mostly unwritten

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

0old images & papers
0recent photos

The story so far

from Wikipedia & the U.S. Census

Lake Ida Township is a township in Norman County, Minnesota, United States. The population was 164 at the 2000 census. Lake Ida Township was organized in 1879, and derives its name from Ida Paulson, the daughter of a pioneer settler.

Between the 2010 and 2020 censuses its population fell from 160 to 137 (-14%). Half of its homes were built before 1955.

Wikipedia doesn’t have a history of Lake Ida yet — the old photos, dates and memories neighbors add here are how it gets written.

Intro from Wikipedia, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0. Population and housing: U.S. Census Bureau.

Be one of the first

Start Lake Ida’s collection

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

0 of 10 decades since 1900 have photos 📦Share a family photoSign in to add one+10

Famous people close to Lake Ida

See all 10 →
PKPaul KerseyAda · 6 miJGJakob GlerupBorup · 9 miKHKeith HansonAda · 6 miLALeif Esper AndersenBorup · 9 miLouis J. Hauge, Jr.Louis J. Hauge, Jr.Ada · 6 miWNWendell NilesTwin Valley · 6 mi
By decade

Lake Ida, 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.
📷 Add from your album
National Register of Historic Places

Nothing in Lake Ida is on the National Register yet

That’s true of most small towns. It doesn’t mean Lake Ida has no history, only that no one has written up a nomination. The closest listed place is Congregational Church of Ada in Ada, 6.2 miles away.

Lake Ida and the nearest listed places

Dashed line = Lake Ida. Tap a dot.
Congregational Church of AdaNorman County CourthouseAda Village HallMahnomen County Fairgrounds Historic DistrictMahnomen City HallMahnomen County Courthouse

Closest to Lake Ida

Congregational Church of AdaAda · Building6.2miNorman County CourthouseAda · Building6.3miAda Village HallAda · Building6.4miMahnomen County Fairgrounds Historic DistrictPembina · District19miMahnomen City HallMahnomen · Building19.4mi

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. Congregational Church of Ada’s page links to a real one.
Know an old place in Lake Ida?A mill, a schoolhouse, a cellar hole, a church: add a photo of it to Lake Ida’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
📜 McDonaldsville📜 Rockwell📜 Twin Valley📜 Wild Rice
The door’s open

Where to, neighbor?

You’re in Lake Ida, MNNorman CountyView boundary

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Boundary source: https://tigerweb.geo.census.gov/arcgis/rest/services/TIGERweb/Places_CouSub_ConCity_SubMCD/MapServer/15 · 2025-01-01
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