Each edition grades its towns against each other only.
Below: old-book passages.
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 Richland Township’s history is told.
From Wikipedia’s history of Richland Township.
The first land registration was made by John Douglas on October 11, 1835, but Robert Jackman and family were the first to settle in the township, in 1836. The 1840 census shows only 16 families, including those of Douglas and Jackman.
Text from Wikipedia, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0.
Passages that mention Richland Township, cut from the printed page as they were published.
The village plat of Metz covers portions of sections 5 and 6 of Richland Township, and of sections 31 and 32 of York. The first settler of this village was Fayette Barron, who came here in the fall of 1836. His home was made in the limits of York Township, being the pioneer settler of that township. This was years before any thought of a village here was entertained.
Text read by machine from the scan; it may contain errors.
In the meantime he served as Trustee of Richland Township live years. In 1872 he moved to Edon, Ohio, where he engaged in general merchandising, and also conducted a steam saw and grist-mill.
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.
Nobody well known was born in Richland Township itself, so here are the best known from just nearby.
Another post office, Alvarado, opened and closed inside today’s town.
US Post Offices dataset (Blevins & Helbock, CC0). Places and cemeteries from the USGS Geographic Names Information System (2021).
Each neighbor’s History grade, on the same three inputs.
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 Wikimedia Commons (1), Wikipedia, the US Post Offices dataset (Blevins & Helbock), the USGS Geographic Names Information System 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.
2008
