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AHistory
History · Rochester Township

Rochester Township dates to 1835, and 28% of its homes were built before 1940

More historic than 92% of U.S. towns · #129 of 593 in Indiana. What drives it

4 places in town are on the National Register. Below: 1 old photo or paper, maps from 1962 on, and the census since 1850.

1835founded
4on the National Register
28%homes built before 1940
1old photo or paper
Add an old photoShare a memory
Quick answers

How Rochester Township began

When was Rochester Township founded?

1835

Rochester Township dates its founding to 1835 (Wikidata and Wikipedia’s history agree). The census first counted it in 1850.

First census: 283 in 18502020 census: 10,201191 years

How historic is Rochester Township?

A

More historic than 92% of U.S. towns, on its age, its old homes and the National Register.

What drives the grade ↓
Founding year: Wikidata; Wikipedia’s history section gives the same year. First post office: 1836.The full story ↓
History grade

What drives Rochester Township’s History grade

On its age, its old homes and the National Register, Rochester Township is more historic than 92% of U.S. towns, #129 of 593 in Indiana. All 3 inputs are above most U.S. towns; its share of homes from before 1940 ranks highest and its age lowest.

A
HistoryA character grade: shown, never part of Rochester Township’s overall grade.
Founding era1835, from Wikidata: founded 1776–1849, an older era than 75% of U.S. townsA−Homes built before 194028.0% of homes (±4.8) · typical IN town 14.4% · U.S. 8.4%A−National Register4 listings, 46 historic buildings, 45.4 per 10,000 residents · typical IN town 7.9 · U.S. 2.4A−
All U.S. towns we grade (21,289)Ahead of 92%
NewerOlder
Indiana towns of 2,500+ (593)Ahead of 78%

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 Rochester Township’s 45.4 sits above most of its state (74% of Indiana towns have fewer) while its 46 historic buildings outnumber those of 84% of U.S. towns.

How sure. Graded on any two of the three inputs instead, the letter would range from A− to A. The pre-1940 share is a Census survey estimate (±4.8 points). Two sources give 1835.

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 Rochester Township’s past

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

A history waiting to be writtenOnly 1 old photo is in the public archives. The rest are in attics and albums.Lost villages1 post office opened and closed inside today’s Rochester Township, and 4 old place names are still on the map.Deep rootsEstablished in 1835: 191 years of Rochester Township.Landmarks on the Register4 places on the National Register.
★ What stands out · Help out

Start Rochester Township’s collection

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

Decades since 1900 with photos
00s10s20s30s40s50s60s70s80s90s
1 of 10 decades. The empty ones are waiting for someone’s album.
Retake an old viewMarcia Quick as Gene Stratton-Porter, 1…: stand where they stood+15Share a family photoSign in to add one+10
Places that used to be

Lost post offices, old corners and burying grounds

Another post office, Green Oak, opened and closed inside today’s town.

Hamlets and corners on the map
Big HillGreen OakMount ZionPershing
3cemeteries and burying grounds inside Rochester Township
AntiochMount ZionOld Shelton

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

Timeline

Rochester Township, 1835 to 1994

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

  1. 19th century
  2. 1835
    FoundingRochester Township is established
  3. 1853Post officeThe Green Oak post office opens
  4. 20th century
  5. 1901Post officeThe Green Oak post office closes
  6. 1962On the mapFirst mapped by the U.S. Geological Survey
  7. 1994In the archiveMarcia Quick as Gene Stratton-Porter, 1994 photo by Larry Gard
The story

How Rochester Township came to be

From Wikipedia’s history of Rochester Township.

Read it all →

Rochester was laid out in 1835. The founder Alexander Chamberlain named it for his former hometown of Rochester, New York. The Rochester post office was established in 1836.

The Lyman M. Brackett House, Fulton County Courthouse, Rochester Downtown Historic District, and John W. Smith House are listed on the National Register of Historic Places. The formerly listed Germany Bridge was located nearby. The Wideman-Gerig Round Barn is in use at the Round Barn Golf Club in Rochester.

In 1967, the most complete known specimen of the extinct bear Arctodus was found in a cornfield near Rochester.

Text from Wikipedia, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0.

By decade

Rochester Township, decade by decade

One decade in the archive so far: the 1990s. Scroll each row; tap a photo for its story.

1990s1 item
Marcia Quick as Gene Stratton-Porter, 1994 photo by Larry Gard1994Marcia Quick as Gene Stratton-Porter, 1994 photo by L…
Today29 recent
Untitled photo2020Untitled photoUntitled photo2020Untitled photoUntitled photo2020Untitled photoUntitled photo2020Untitled photoUntitled photo2020Untitled photoUntitled photo2018Untitled photoRochester Motel 28-12-14 0902018Rochester Motel 28-12-14 090Rochester Motel 28-12-14 0892018Rochester Motel 28-12-14 089Rochester 28-12-14 0632018Rochester 28-12-14 063Presbyterian Church 18-12-14 0602018Presbyterian Church 18-12-14 060Mason Hall 18-12-14 0922018Mason Hall 18-12-14 092Faith Outreach Center 28-12-14 0252018Faith Outreach Center 28-12-14 025Seventh Street facades 2017-05-17 1032017Seventh Street facades 2017-05-17 103Boone Grove, Indiana, August 19, 1889 - Postal Cover2015Boone Grove, Indiana, August 19, 1889 - Postal CoverRochester Township, IN, USA2013Rochester Township, IN, USARochester Township, IN, USA - panoramio (4)2013Rochester Township, IN, USA - panoramio (4)Rochester Township, IN, USA - panoramio (3)2013Rochester Township, IN, USA - panoramio (3)Rochester Township, IN, USA - panoramio (2)2013Rochester Township, IN, USA - panoramio (2)Rochester Township, IN, USA - panoramio (1)2013Rochester Township, IN, USA - panoramio (1)Richland Township, IN, USA - panoramio (3)2013Richland Township, IN, USA - panoramio (3)Richland Township, IN, USA - panoramio (2)2013Richland Township, IN, USA - panoramio (2)Richland Township, IN, USA - panoramio (1)2013Richland Township, IN, USA - panoramio (1)Fulton, IN, USA2013Fulton, IN, USAFulton, IN, USA - panoramio (4)2013Fulton, IN, USA - panoramio (4)Fulton, IN, USA - panoramio (2)2013Fulton, IN, USA - panoramio (2)Fulton, IN, USA - panoramio (1)2013Fulton, IN, USA - panoramio (1)John W. Smith House2012John W. Smith HouseRochester Community High School2011Rochester Community High School2010 Census Urban Cluster Reference Map for20102010 Census Urban Cluster Reference Map forBook
On the map

Rochester Township on the map, 1962 to 1992

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

Rochester Township on the 1962 USGS mapRochester Township on the 1980 USGS mapRochester Township on the 1992 USGS map1962Rochester 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 Rochester Township.

On the National Register

4 listings protect 46 historic buildings

The country’s official list of buildings and places worth saving.

places listed
4
National Historic Landmarks
0
none yet
historic buildings protected
46
each building in a district counts

National Park Service, National Register of Historic Places. Photos from Wikimedia Commons, credited on each place’s page.

People over time

Rochester Township, census by census

05001,0001,5002,0002,5003,0003,5004,0004,5005,0005,5006,0006,5007,0001850190019502000Peak: 6,414

Between 283 and 6,414 people in every census since 1850.

18 censuses, 1850–2020.

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

Stories next door

History across the town line

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

Richland Township1 historic placeALiberty TownshipIts storyB−Henry Township3 historic placesA+Newcastle Township1 historic placeB+Aubbeenaubbee TownshipIts storyCUnion TownshipIts storyB

Questions about Rochester Township’s history

What year was Rochester Township founded?

In 1835, according to Wikidata and Wikipedia’s history of the town. Rochester Township’s post office opened in 1836, and the census of 1850 counted 283 people here.

How does Rochester Township rank for history?

Rochester Township is more historic than 92% of U.S. towns, #129 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.

How old are the homes in Rochester Township?

28% of Rochester Township’s homes were built before 1940 (Census estimate, ±4.8 points), against a typical 14% for an Indiana town; the median home was built in 1967.

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 Wikimedia Commons (30), Wikipedia, U.S. Geological Survey historical maps, U.S. Census counts (via 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.