Each edition grades its towns against each other only.
The Harvel Township post office opened in 1871, the earliest record of the town by name. Wikidata gives 1873.
Harvel Township was named for John Harvel, a distinguished Civil War veteran who resided in the area.
Read from the archive, the National Register and the record. The page puts what stands out first.
The first neighbors to add old photos shape how Harvel Township’s history is told.
Peaked at 396 in 1910; 178 people lived here in 2020.
14 censuses, 1890–2020.
U.S. Census Bureau decennial counts, from the census table on Harvel Township’s Wikipedia page.
From Wikipedia’s history of Harvel Township.
Harvel was incorporated as a village on January 14, 1873. It was named for John Harvel, a distinguished Civil War veteran who resided in the area. The first settlers of the area were of German, French, and English extraction, and came to Harvel primarily from the eastern region of the United States.
Text from Wikipedia, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0.
Weddings on Main Street, storms, parades, school pictures, the old store. If it’s in your family album, it belongs here.
Every edition of the U.S. Geological Survey’s map of Harvel Township. Tap a year, or press play to watch the town change.
U.S. Geological Survey historical topographic maps (public domain), via Esri’s collection of the scans. The red ring marks the center of Harvel Township.
Places and cemeteries from the USGS Geographic Names Information System (2021).
Each neighbor’s History grade, on the same three inputs.
The Harvel Township post office opened in 1871, the earliest record of the town by name (U.S. post office records). Wikidata gives 1873.
What the archives can’t tell you, neighbors can.
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 Wikipedia, U.S. Geological Survey historical maps, U.S. Census counts (via Wikipedia) and the USGS Geographic Names Information System. Archive images are copied here with their credits and licenses, shown on each photo’s page. Refreshed monthly.
