
Originally
called Wells, the Southern Pacific Railroad changed the name so
it wouldn't be confused with Wells, Nevada. Carter's General Store
was also the local post office. This picture was taken of the
main street of Wells showing Carter's General Store. John Carter
was the town's postmaster for 47 years.

Wellsdale had a church, blacksmith, grain warehouse and the Mayflower Club which served as the town's social center. Wellsdale soon became a shipping center of NE Benton Co.
Wells
school was founded as Gingles School sometime before 1850. At
one time,
Wellsdale school district #1 had 100 students and a 2 year high
school.
For months before Pearl Harbor, Army Egineers had surveyed the area, then December 8,1941, the Army announced it would build a new camp to train 4 divisions of soldiers for overseas duty. Farmers, Wellsdale residents and the Wells School had beeen warned that the Army might be taking over their land, but nobody was quite ready for what happened. An Army officer came to school one morning and told the teachers to move out by that same afternoon. Students were quickly sent to near by districts as bulldozers tore up barns and fences for burning. In a matter of days, Wellsdale was only a memory. A single old oak tree just north of the showbirds display at E.E. Wilson Wildlife Area is the only memory remaining of Wellsdale.