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History · Granite City Township

Granite City Township dates to 1896, and 25% of its homes were built before 1940

2 places in town are on the National Register. Below: maps from 1933 on and the census since 1900.

1896founded
2on the National Register
25%homes built before 1940
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Photo: Catching12 · CC BY 3.0
Quick answers

How Granite City Township began

When was Granite City Township founded?

1896

Granite City Township dates its founding to 1896 (Wikidata and Wikipedia’s history agree). The census first counted it in 1900.

First census: 3,122 in 19002020 census: 25,038130 years
Founding year: Wikidata; Wikipedia’s history section gives the same year. First post office: 1876.The full story ↓

What stands out about Granite City Township’s past

Read from the archive, the National Register and the record. The page puts what stands out first.

A history waiting to be writtenNo old photos of Granite City Township are in the public archives yet. The rest are in attics and albums.Boom and bustPeaked at 40,685 in 1970; 27,549 people lived here in 2020.Old housesHalf of Granite City Township’s homes were built before 1957.
★ What stands out · Help out

Start Granite City Township’s collection

The first neighbors to add old photos shape how Granite City Township’s history is told.

Decades since 1900 with photos
00s10s20s30s40s50s60s70s80s90s
0 of 10 decades. The empty ones are waiting for someone’s album.
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People over time

Granite City Township, census by census

05,00010,00015,00020,00025,00030,00035,00040,00045,0001900192019401960198020002020Peak: 40,685

Peaked at 40,685 in 1970; 27,549 people lived here in 2020.

13 censuses, 1900–2020.

U.S. Census Bureau decennial counts, from the census table on Granite City Township’s Wikipedia page.

The story

How Granite City Township came to be

From Wikipedia’s history of Granite City Township.

Read it all →

The area was settled much earlier than Granite City's official founding. In the early 19th century, settlers began to farm the rich, fertile grounds east of St. Louis. Around 1801, the area had the establishment of Six Mile Settlement, a farming area that occupied the area of present-day Granite City, 6 miles (10 km) from St. Louis. Around 1806, the National Road was to be constructed through the area, but it was not completed. By 1817, the area became known as Six Mile Prairie, to distinguish it from Six Mile Township. By 1854, the first railroad was built. In 1856, the area known as Six Mile was changed to Kinder.

ChaptersEarly settlementGranitewareCompany townEarly history2000s history

Text from Wikipedia, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0.

Timeline

Granite City Township, 1896 to 1970

Woven from the archive, old maps, post office records, the National Register and the people born here.

  1. 19th century
  2. 1896
    FoundingGranite City Township is established
  3. 20th century
  4. 1933On the mapFirst mapped by the U.S. Geological Survey
  5. 1970CensusPopulation peaks at 40,685
By decade

No old photos in the archives yet

Weddings on Main Street, storms, parades, school pictures, the old store. If it’s in your family album, it belongs here.

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On the map

Granite City Township on the map, 1933 to 1993

Every edition of the U.S. Geological Survey’s map of Granite City Township. Tap a year, or press play to watch the town change.

Granite City Township on the 1933 USGS mapGranite City Township on the 1940 USGS mapGranite City Township on the 1954 USGS mapGranite City Township on the 1968 USGS mapGranite City Township on the 1974 USGS mapGranite City Township on the 1993 USGS map1933Granite City sheet · 1:24,000

U.S. Geological Survey historical topographic maps (public domain), via Esri’s collection of the scans. The red ring marks the center of Granite City Township.

On the National Register

2 historic places in Granite City Township

The country’s official list of buildings and places worth saving.

places listed
2
National Historic Landmarks
0
none yet
historic buildings protected
4
each building in a district counts

National Park Service, National Register of Historic Places. Photos from Wikimedia Commons, credited on each place’s page.

Stories next door

History across the town line

Each neighbor’s History grade, on the same three inputs.

Nameoki TownshipIts storyC−Granite City2 historic placesB+Venice Township1 historic placeAMadisonIts storyB+Pontoon BeachIts storyD−Chouteau TownshipIts storyC−

Questions about Granite City Township’s history

What year was Granite City Township founded?

In 1896, according to Wikidata and Wikipedia’s history of the town. Granite City Township’s post office opened in 1876, and the census of 1900 counted 3,122 people here.

Memory lane

What the archives can’t tell you, neighbors can.

Town Square →
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Sources

Where this page comes from

Founding dates: Wikidata, Wikipedia, the U.S. post office records of Blevins & Helbock (CC0) and the Census. Homes by year built: Census ACS 2020–24. National Register of Historic Places: National Park Service (list of May 22, 2026). Old photos, postcards and papers: Wikimedia Commons, the Library of Congress and other public archives, credited on each item’s page. Maps: U.S. Geological Survey historical topographic maps (via Esri) and Sanborn fire-insurance maps (Library of Congress). History text and census tables: Wikipedia (CC BY-SA 4.0). Places that used to be: USGS Geographic Names Information System (2021). How TownRatings grades history →

From Wikidata (2), Wikipedia, U.S. Geological Survey historical maps and U.S. Census counts (via Wikipedia). Archive images are copied here with their credits and licenses, shown on each photo’s page. Refreshed monthly.