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A great portion of the Villard information is resourced in MCHENRY COUNTY, Its History and Its People, 1885-1985, also North Dakota Place Names by Douglas Wick and Origins of North Dakota Place Names by Mary Ann Barnes Williams.
 Villard is Township 154 Range 76. Section 4 is believed to be the first settlement in McHenry County. In some articles Villard appears to have been a townsite at one time. It was founded in 1882 by Edmund Hackett, a politician who became the first mayor of Bismarck, It was named by Mr. Hackett for Northern Pacific Railroad President Henry Villard (1835-1900) in hopes of luring the railroad to build into the area. The post office was established on 2 June 1882 with George Hofmann as Postmaster. Richard Hewitt Copeland, the second Postmaster, started a newspaper (The Villard Leader), and later was engaged in this business in Washburn [Note: It is not clear from records if this was an undocumented settlement in McHenry County or if this is unclearly referencing the Washburn in McLean County. It is known that Mr. Copeland did not remain in McHenry County]. A population of 38 was reported in 1890 [Note: Presumably a reference to the complete Township as in 1900 the Township census showed 43, all farmers, and 282 in 1910.] When a railroad failed to reach the area, the undocumented townsite declined. After 1902 the post office was located at several sites, mostly in Falsen Township (T154 R78). It closed on 31 August 1911 with mail to Denbigh.
Digested from "MCHENRY COUNTY, Its History and Its People, 1885-1985, Page 41 (Unknown author)
Early in the spring of 1882 Edmund Hackett made a quick trip from Bismarck to the Mouse River country and drove a stake into the ground in the northwest quarter of Section 4 of what was to become Villard Township. The stake had a sign that said "Villard" in honor of Henry Villard, president of the Northern Pacific Railroad,
because Hackett hoped the Northern Pacific in their westward expansion would come through the county at that point.
George Hofmann, his wife and two small children, Herman and Thekla, settled at Villard and Mr. Hofmann was appointed postmaster there on 2 June 1882. The Hofmann's youngest child, May Hofmann Ware, who was born at Villard, later wrote of some of the stories she recalled hearing as a
child. The following is from her writings:
"It was pretty wild country in those early days - nothing but horse thieves, murderers and indians. How my folks escaped being murdered I'll never know. One half-breed said to Mama one day, "Mrs. Hofmann, we would have killed your husband long ago but because we all think so much of you is the only reason he is alive. We talked it over among ourselves but decided we would not kill your husband because we like you so much. (The reason for the hostility was Mr. Hofmann's refusal to hire them as mail carriers.)
The horse thieves were very bad at that time, so the government finally sent out soldiers to round them up. They captured quite a number and on their way back they stopped at our place to buy supplies. Mama said they heard afterwards that they had not gone very far when the prisoners tried to escape so they lined them up and shot them and buried them on the prairie."
Richard Copeland came to Villard in 1884 and taught school that winter in his cabin. His students were Albin and Fritz Winquist*, Herman and Thekla Hofmann, and Willie, Oscar and Anna Swenson. Since the county was not yet organized, this was a private school and the teacher was paid by the parents.
After the county was organized Copeland published THE VILLARD LEADER with the first issue coming out on 6 March 1886. At the same time Frank Spears published THE MOUSE RIVER ADVOCATE in Villard with his first issue coming out the same day.
A large log building was erected near the Villard post office by some of the Norwegian settlers in the area. This building was a "colony house" and served several families while each was waiting for its own homestead shack to be built. The John Larson family came to the area in June, 1883 and lived for several months in the building. Their daughter, Annette Charlotte, was born in the colony house on 4 August 1883.
While Villard never took on the proportions platted by Hackett, it did have the post office and a general store, E. C. Beck* was the shoemaker, A. Barby and John Kalve had a creamery, J. Brooten was the blacksmith, M. A. Young had a hotel and A. B. Melhouse* also had a creamery.
From the writings of Martha Espeseth Bacon we find that the other postmasters who served at Villard were Martin Young and Peter Kongslie [or Nongslie], then, she writes: "In 1902 Erick Espeseth* was appointed postmaster and the Villard post office was moved to his farm in Falsen Township. During the flood of 1904 it was moved to the
Lars Hendrickson* home and later to the Martin Bredalen* home on the prairie where it remained until the end of the flood.
Lars Hanson was the next postmaster and the post office was moved to his store near the Koto bridge. Then Lewis Larson* became postmaster when he bought the store. Herbrand T. Lee was appointed in 1909 and the post office was moved to the Lee home where it continued until the start of rural free delivery in 1912."
*= Contained in "MCHENRY COUNTY, Its History and Its People, 1885-1985
Villard Postmasters
Church and Cemetery on National Historic Places
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