Round Timber was founded when a cabin was built by John W. Stevens in 1874. Colonel C.C. Mills tried to settle in the area in the late 1850s or 1860s but was forced out by Native [Americans in the United States|Native American] tribes. He then returned in 1875. It was named Round Timber, for two trees that were used to build with. It moved four miles northwest and became a local trading center. Its population was 25 in 1940, 10 in 1980, eight in 1990, and only two in 2000.