Claremont

Plat of the city of Claremont taken from the Brown County Atlas 1911

Claremont was settled mainly by newcomers from Minnesota and Michigan and was platted for a town in 1886. The completion of the St. Paul, Minneapolis and Manitoba Railroad (later the Great Northern) from North Dakota to Aberdeen provided the site. The initial buildings of the new community were moved there from Detroit, seven miles to the northwest, which had failed to receive a railroad connection. Railroad officials named the frontier town for a picturesque village in New Hampshire.

Claremont exploded with new settlers in its first year, establishing over 24 businesses. New businesses included a real estate office, an insurance office, a lawyer, and a physician. Dr. Willard E. Dinsmore arrived in 1886 and became an institution in the area. He was responsible not only for medical services, but also for the first artesian well and a water tower and city park. His office, built in 1889, still stands at the center of town across from the First State Bank building, also built that year.

A quote from the American News (1916) reads: “In the past twenty years the population of Claremont has remained at 400. While not a large town, it is a thriving and active community