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CHistory
History · Gibson Township

10% of Gibson Township’s homes were built before 1940

More historic than 27% of U.S. towns. What drives it

Below: 12 old photos and papers, maps from 1958 on, and the census since 1890.

0on the National Register
10%homes built before 1940
12old photos & papers
Add an old photoShare a memory
From Gibson Township’s archive · credits on each photo
Quick answers

About Gibson Township’s history

How historic is Gibson Township?

C

More historic than 27% of U.S. towns, on its age, its old homes and the National Register.

What drives the grade ↓
History grade

What drives Gibson Township’s History grade

On its age, its old homes and the National Register, Gibson Township is more historic than 27% of U.S. towns. Its share of homes from before 1940 holds the grade up; its National Register listings pull it down.

C
HistoryA character grade: shown, never part of Gibson Township’s overall grade.
Founding eraNo founding year we can rely on, so the grade uses the other two–Homes built before 194010.2% of homes (±9.2) · typical IN town 14.4% · U.S. 8.4%B−National RegisterNo listings counted · typical IN town 7.9 per 10,000 · U.S. 2.4C−
All U.S. towns we grade (21,289)Ahead of 27%
NewerOlder

Indiana towns list more on the Register than most of the country (a typical Indiana town has 7.9 per 10,000 residents, the U.S. 2.4), so Gibson Township’s 0.0 sits below most of its state (22% of Indiana towns have fewer) while its 0 listings outnumber those of 23% of U.S. towns.

How sure. Graded on two of the three inputs, so a change in either one moves the letter more than it would with three. The pre-1940 share is a Census survey estimate (±9.2 points).

Founding year: our sources. Homes: Census ACS 2020–24. National Register: National Park Service, May 2026 list; each listing counted once (boundary changes and added documentation belong to their listing), and a historic district counts its contributing buildings. How TownRatings grades history →

What stands out about Gibson Township’s past

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

A town in old photos12 old photos, postcards and papers.
★ What stands out · By decade

Gibson Township, decade by decade

2 decades in the archive, from the 1930s to the 1940s. Scroll each row; tap a photo for its story.

1930s–1940s12 items
Untitled photo, possibly related to: Gibson, Indiana. A card game is nearly always in progress in the lobby of the rail…1935Untitled photo, possibly related to: Gibson, Indiana.…Gibson, Indiana. L.R. Pierce (right) and R.E. Ewing registering at the railroad YMCA (Young Men's Chirstian Association…1942Gibson, Indiana. L.R. Pierce (right) and R.E. Ewing r…Gibson, Indiana. In the cafeteria of the railroad YMCA (Young Men's Christian Association)1943Gibson, Indiana. In the cafeteria of the railroad YMC…Gibson, Indiana. In the lobby of the railroad YMCA (Young Men's Christian Association)1943Gibson, Indiana. In the lobby of the railroad YMCA (Y…Gibson, Indiana. Lobby of the YMCA (Young Men's Christian Association) for railroad workers1943Gibson, Indiana. Lobby of the YMCA (Young Men's Chris…Gibson, Indiana. Railroad workers coming to the railroad YMCA (Young Men's Christian Association)1943Gibson, Indiana. Railroad workers coming to the railr…Gibson, Indiana. Switchman having lunch at the railroad's YMAC (Young Men's Christian Association)1943Gibson, Indiana. Switchman having lunch at the railro…Gibson, Indiana. Railroad worker coming into the railroad (YMCA) Young Men's Christian Association after a day's work o…1943Gibson, Indiana. Railroad worker coming into the rail…Gibson, Indiana. Newspaper and magazine rack at the railroad YMCA (Young Men's Christian Association)1943Gibson, Indiana. Newspaper and magazine rack at the r…Gibson, Indiana. A game of checkers at the railroad (YMCA) Young Men's Christian Association1943Gibson, Indiana. A game of checkers at the railroad (…Gibson, Indiana. A game of cards at the railroad (YMCA) Young Men's Christian Association1943Gibson, Indiana. A game of cards at the railroad (YMC…Gibson, Indiana. A game of cards at the railroad (YMCA) Young Men's Christian Association1943Gibson, Indiana. A game of cards at the railroad (YMC…
1950s–1990snothing yet
Nothing in the archives for these yearsWeddings on Main Street, storms, parades, school pictures, the old store. If it’s in your family album, it belongs here.
Add from your album
The story so far

Gibson Township, in brief

Wikipedia doesn’t have a history of Gibson Township yet. The photos, dates and memories neighbors add here are how it gets written.

Gibson Township is one of thirteen townships in Washington County, Indiana, United States. As of the 2020 census, its population was 1,105 and it contained 491 housing units.

Between the 2010 and 2020 censuses its population fell from 1,176 to 1,105 (-6%).

Intro from Wikipedia. Population: U.S. Census Bureau.

Timeline

Gibson Township, 1935 to 1958

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

  1. 20th century
  2. 1935In the archiveUntitled photo, possibly related to: Gibson, Indiana. A card game is nearly always in pro…
  3. 1942In the archiveGibson, Indiana. L.R. Pierce (right) and R.E. Ewing registering at the railroad YMCA (You…
  4. 1958On the mapFirst mapped by the U.S. Geological Survey
On the map

Gibson Township on the map, 1958 to 1980

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

Gibson Township on the 1958 USGS mapGibson Township on the 1980 USGS map1958Little York 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 Gibson Township.

Then & now

Stand where they stood

No then-and-now pairs yet. Take a photo from the same spot as an old one and they appear here side by side.

Untitled photo, possibly related to: Gibson, Indiana. A card game is nearly always in progress in the lobby of the rail…
Retake this viewUntitled photo, possibly related to: Gibson, Indiana. A card game is nearly always in progress in the lobby of the rail…, 1935

Find the spot, match the angle, and add your photo. It becomes the first then-and-now pair on Gibson Township’s page.

Retake this view · +15
People over time

Gibson Township, census by census

02004006008001,0001,2001,4001,6001,8001900192019401960198020002020Peak: 1,697

Between 875 and 1,697 people in every census since 1890.

14 censuses, 1890–2020.

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

Famous people

Famous people close to Gibson Township

Nobody well known was born in Gibson Township itself, so here are the best known from just nearby.

See all →
H
Harland SandersAmerican entrepreneur (1890-1980) who founded K… · b. 1890
John HayAmerican statesman · b. 1838
Newton BoothGovernor of California · b. 1825
Erin HouchinAmerican politician · b. 1976
John PicklerAmerican politician · b. 1844
David HoggAmerican politician · b. 1886
Places that used to be

Old corners, places now gone and burying grounds

Old hamlets and crossroads still carry their names on the map.

Hamlets and corners on the map
GeorgetownGooseportPumpkin Center
Gone or out of use
Hendersons FerrycrossingMorgan AirfieldairportRuckers Ferrylocale
1cemetery inside Gibson Township
Ridlen

Places and cemeteries from the USGS Geographic Names Information System (2021).

Help out

Finish Gibson Township’s story

Most archives stop around 1920. The photos from after that are in family albums, not libraries.

Decades since 1900 with photos
00s10s20s30s40s50s60s70s80s90s
2 of 10 decades. The empty ones are waiting for someone’s album.
Retake an old viewUntitled photo, possibly related to: Gi…: stand where they stood+15Share a family photoSign in to add one+10
Stories next door

History across the town line

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

Grassy Fork TownshipIts storynot graded: under 1,000 residents or part of its townVernon TownshipIts storyC+Finley TownshipIts storyC+Franklin TownshipIts storyC+Washington Township7 historic placesAMonroe TownshipIts storynot graded: under 1,000 residents or part of its town

Questions about Gibson Township’s history

How does Gibson Township rank for history?

Gibson Township is more historic than 27% of U.S. towns. The History grade combines the town’s founding era, the share of homes built before 1940 and its National Register listings. It’s a character grade, so it isn’t part of the overall grade. How it works.

How old are the homes in Gibson Township?

10% of Gibson Township’s homes were built before 1940 (Census estimate, ±9.2 points), against a typical 14% for an Indiana town; the median home was built in 1988.

Memory lane

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

Town Square →
Start a conversation
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).

From the Library of Congress (12), 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.