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History · Polk Township

Half of Polk Township’s homes were built after 1979

Most of Polk Township was built recently: 6% of its homes predate 1940 and the median home dates from 1979.

0on the National Register
6%homes built before 1940
Add an old photoShare a memory
Photo: Nyttend · Public domain

What stands out about Polk Township’s past

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

Lost villages5 post offices opened and closed inside today’s Polk Township, and 2 old place names are still on the map.A history waiting to be writtenNo old photos of Polk Township are in the public archives yet. The rest are in attics and albums.
★ What stands out · Places that used to be

Lost post offices, old corners, places now gone and burying grounds

Five other post offices opened and closed inside today’s town.

Allens Creek
1874–1921
South Granger
1875–1905
Todd
1886–1911
Yellowstone
1887–1923
Chapelhill
1897–1925
18701950today
Hamlets and corners on the map
Chapel HillYellowstone
Gone or out of use
Allens Creek Post Officepost officeSouth Granger Post Officepost office
4cemeteries and burying grounds inside Polk Township
Burgoon ChurchHillenburgMitchellTodd

US Post Offices dataset (Blevins & Helbock, CC0). Places and cemeteries from the USGS Geographic Names Information System (2021).

Help out

Start Polk Township’s collection

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

Decades since 1900 with photos
00s10s20s30s40s50s60s70s80s90s
0 of 10 decades. The empty ones are waiting for someone’s album.
Share a family photoSign in to add one+10
The story

How Polk Township came to be

From Wikipedia’s history of Polk Township.

Read it all →

Polk Township was established in 1849. It was established soon after the term of its namesake, James K. Polk, had ended.

Epsilon II Archaeological Site and Kappa V Archaeological Site are listed on the National Register of Historic Places.

Text from Wikipedia, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0.

Timeline

Polk Township, 1874 to 1921

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

  1. 19th century
  2. 1874Post officeThe Allens Creek post office opens
  3. 1875Post officeThe South Granger post office opens
  4. 1886Post officeThe Todd post office opens
  5. 20th century
  6. 1905Post officeThe South Granger post office closes
  7. 1911Post officeThe Todd post office closes
  8. 1921Post officeThe Allens Creek post office closes
By decade

Polk Township, decade by decade

Today6 recent
Ice on washed-out old road in the Hoosier National Forest2012Ice on washed-out old road in the Hoosier National Fo…Allens Creek Cemetery2012Allens Creek CemeteryPentecostal Assembly of Chapel Hill2011Pentecostal Assembly of Chapel HillHillside in the Charles C. Deam Wilderness Area2011Hillside in the Charles C. Deam Wilderness AreaChapel Hill cemetery2011Chapel Hill cemeteryBurgoon Baptist Church2011Burgoon Baptist Church
Famous people

Famous people close to Polk Township

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

See all →
Dee Bradley BakerAmerican voice actor · b. 1962
David Lee RothAmerican singer · b. 1954
Meg CabotAmerican novelist and writer · b. 1967
Hoagy CarmichaelAmerican composer, pianist, singer, actor and b… · b. 1899
Marc WebbAmerican music video and film director · b. 1974
Mick FoleyAmerican professional wrestler · b. 1965
Stories next door

History across the town line

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

Clear Creek Township1 historic placeC+Salt Creek TownshipIts storynot graded: under 1,000 residents or part of its townWashington Township6 historic placesA−Pleasant Run TownshipIts storyCSalt Creek TownshipIts storyC−

Questions about Polk Township’s history

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). How TownRatings grades history →

From Wikimedia Commons (6), Wikipedia, the US Post Offices dataset (Blevins & Helbock) 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.