Griffith dates to 1854, and 3 of its places are on the National Register
More historic than 40% of U.S. towns · #428 of 593 in Indiana. What drives it
Most of Griffith was built recently: 7% of its homes predate 1940 and the median home dates from 1965. Its Register listings are the Griffith E.J. and E. Interlocking Tower, the Griffith Grand Trunk Depot and the Griffith State Bank. Its Register listings are the Griffith E.J. and E. Interlocking Tower, the Griffith Grand Trunk Depot and the Griffith State Bank. Below: 5 old photos and papers, maps from 1900 on, and the census since 1910.
On its age, its old homes and the National Register, Griffith is more historic than 40% of U.S. towns, #428 of 593 in Indiana. Its National Register listings hold the grade up; its age pulls it down.
C+
HistoryA character grade: shown, never part of Griffith’s overall grade.
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 Griffith’s 1.8 sits near the middle of its state (48% of Indiana towns have fewer) while its 3 listings outnumber those of 65% of U.S. towns.
NoteThe founding year comes from Wikidata alone; no second source gives 1854.
How sure. Graded on any two of the three inputs instead, the letter would range from C to C+. The pre-1940 share (±2.3 points) is firm at this size.
Founding year: Wikidata (other dates in Quick answers). 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 Griffith’s past
Read from the archive, the National Register and the record. The page puts what stands out first.
The Griffith State Bank, E.J. and E. Griffith Interlocking Tower and Griffith Grand Trunk Depot are listed in the National Register of Historic Places. In 2018, citizens of Griffith voted by a margin of 98% to 2% to leave Calumet Township, in part because of the high property taxes they pay to the township, which also includes Gary, relative to the services received. The town is now part of North Township.
Passages that mention Griffith, cut from the printed page as they were published.
A standard history of Lake County, Indiana, and the Calumet region1915 · page 131Read the page →
Read the text
and shortly after the end of the latter year the great real estate "boom" commenced in the northern part of the county. It was during that lively period that Jay Dwiggius & Company, then of Chicago, founded the Town of Griffith. Factories were erected, stores and residences arose, churches and Sunday Schools were organized, and for a time in the early '90s it looked as if Griffith was to be a permanent city of some consequence. But as we all know who were in these parts during the World's Fair period, the
Text read by machine from the scan; it may contain errors.
A standard history of Lake County, Indiana, and the Calumet region1915 · page 268Read the page →
Read the text
It established a station at Ainsworth. which grew into ({uite a settlement, and passed through the railroad crossing of what afterward became Griffith. It helped to build up no town, but did what was probably better. It sent a morning milk train over its line of road, stopping at every place convenient for the farmers to receive their cans of milk.
Text read by machine from the scan; it may contain errors.
Scans and text from the Internet Archive. Books published in 1930 or earlier, which are in the public domain.
Timeline
Griffith, 1854 to 1972
Woven from the archive, old maps, post office records, the National Register and the people born here.
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.
Fire insurance maps drew every building, what it was made of and what it was used for, so insurers could price the risk of fire. Pick a year, then a sheet.
1917Sheet 1 of 1
Edition
Sheets
BrickWoodStone
Sanborn Map Company, via the Library of Congress. Editions published in 1930 or earlier, which are in the public domain.
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.
Retake this viewFour Roger Puta Photos of EJ&E Power, 1965
Find the spot, match the angle, and add your photo. It becomes the first then-and-now pair on Griffith’s page.
In 1854, according to Wikidata. the census of 1910 counted 523 people here.
How does Griffith rank for history?
Griffith is more historic than 40% of U.S. towns, #428 of 593 in Indiana. 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.
What is on the National Register in Griffith?
Three places: the Griffith E.J. and E. Interlocking Tower (listed 2003), the Griffith Grand Trunk Depot (2003) and the Griffith State Bank (2019).
How old are the homes in Griffith?
7% of Griffith’s homes were built before 1940 (Census estimate, ±2.3 points), against a typical 14% for an Indiana town; the median home was built in 1965.
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 Wikimedia Commons (20), Wikidata (2), the National Register of Historic Places (3), Wikipedia, U.S. Geological Survey historical maps, U.S. Census counts (via Wikipedia), the USGS Geographic Names Information System, Sanborn fire insurance maps (Library of Congress) and old county and town histories (Internet Archive). Archive images are copied here with their credits and licenses, shown on each photo’s page. Refreshed monthly.
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