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History · Willow Vale

Willow Vale’s history is
mostly unwritten

The public archives hold no old photos of Willow Vale. 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

Willow Vale Township is a civil township in Bottineau County in the U.S. state of North Dakota. As of the 2010 census, its population was 26.

Between the 2010 and 2020 censuses its population grew from 26 to 32 (+23%).

Wikipedia doesn’t have a history of Willow Vale 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 Willow Vale’s collection

The first neighbors to add old photos shape how Willow Vale’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 Willow Vale

See all 12 →
Tom RappTom RappBottineau · 11 miRonald PaulsonRonald PaulsonBottineau · 11 miDKDuane KluehBottineau · 11 miGDGary DahlBottineau · 11 miRed BastienRed BastienBottineau · 11 miRyan KraftRyan KraftBottineau · 11 mi
By decade

Willow Vale, 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 Willow Vale is on the National Register yet

That’s true of most small towns. It doesn’t mean Willow Vale has no history, only that no one has written up a nomination. The closest listed place is Main, North Dakota School of Forestry, Old in Bottineau, 11.2 miles away.

Willow Vale and the nearest listed places

Dashed line = Willow Vale. Tap a dot.
Main, North Dakota School of Forestry, OldOle Crogen Farm DistrictLower Souris National Wildlife Refuge Airplane HangarElliott BridgeMcHenry County CourthouseSwedish Zion Lutheran Church

Closest to Willow Vale

Main, North Dakota School of Forestry, OldBottineau · Building11.2miOle Crogen Farm DistrictPickering · District16.1miLower Souris National Wildlife Refuge Airplane HangarMeadow · Structure17.5miElliott BridgeTowner · Structure19.1miMcHenry County CourthouseTowner · Building23.6mi

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. Main, North Dakota School of Forestry, Old’s page links to a real one.
Know an old place in Willow Vale?A mill, a schoolhouse, a cellar hole, a church: add a photo of it to Willow Vale’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
📜 Oak Creek📜 Amity📜 Willow City📜 Gardena
The coffee’s on

Where to, neighbor?

You’re in Willow Vale, NDBottineau 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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