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History · Steuben Township

Steuben Township dates to 1834, and 38% of its homes were built before 1940

Below: maps from 1961 on and the census since 1890.

1834founded
0on the National Register
38%homes built before 1940
Add an old photoShare a memory
Photo: Huw Williams (Huwmanbeing) · Public domain
Quick answers

How Steuben Township began

When was Steuben Township founded?

1834

Steuben Township dates its founding to 1834 (Wikipedia’s history). The census first counted it in 1890.

First census: 1,027 in 18902020 census: 493192 years
Founding year: Wikipedia. First post office: 1857.The full story ↓

What stands out about Steuben 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 writtenNo old photos of Steuben Township are in the public archives yet. The rest are in attics and albums.Lost villages3 post offices opened and closed inside today’s Steuben Township, and 2 old place names are still on the map.Deep rootsEstablished in 1834: 192 years of Steuben Township.
★ What stands out · Help out

Start Steuben Township’s collection

The first neighbors to add old photos shape how Steuben 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
Places that used to be

Lost post offices, old corners and burying grounds

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

Marshfield
1857–1991
Johnsonville
1875–1907
Redwood
1878–1878
18501940today
Hamlets and corners on the map
JohnsonvilleMarshfield
2cemeteries and burying grounds inside Steuben Township
LyonsRedwood

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

Timeline

Steuben Township, 1834 to 1991

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

  1. 19th century
  2. 1834
    FoundingSteuben Township is established
  3. 1857Post officeThe Marshfield post office opens
  4. 1875Post officeThe Johnsonville post office opens
  5. 1878Post officeThe Redwood post office opens
  6. 1878Post officeThe Redwood post office closes
  7. 20th century
  8. 1907Post officeThe Johnsonville post office closes
  9. 1961On the mapFirst mapped by the U.S. Geological Survey
  10. 1991Post officeThe Marshfield post office closes
The story

How Steuben Township came to be

From Wikipedia’s history of Steuben Township.

Read it all →

The area that became Steuben Township was first settled in 1827. The township was officially created in March 1834 from a section of Pine Township ("all of Pine Township south and west of Redwood Creek") and was the seventh township to be formed. The township was named in honor of Baron Von Steuben, a Prussian soldier who fought for the Americans in the Revolutionary War.

The first settlements were in the more wooded areas near the river; it was only later that settlers realized the value of the prairie land for farming. The township grew rapidly in the 1830s and 1840s. In 1870, the population was 1068, and in 1882 the estimated taxable value in the Steuben Township was $770,905, higher than any of the other townships at that time.

Text from Wikipedia, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0.

By decade

Steuben Township, decade by decade

Today1 recent
Saint Swithuns Indiana2007Saint Swithuns Indiana
On the map

Steuben Township on the map, 1961 to 1980

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

Steuben Township on the 1961 USGS mapSteuben Township on the 1980 USGS map1961West Lebanon 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 Steuben Township.

People over time

Steuben Township, census by census

02004006008001,0001900192019401960198020002020Peak: 1,027

Between 427 and 1,027 people in every census since 1890.

14 censuses, 1890–2020.

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

Famous people

Famous people close to Steuben Township

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

See all →
Ned LukeAmerican actor · b. 1958
Jerry Van DykeAmerican actor and comedian · b. 1931
Joseph R. TannerWelsh-American astronaut · b. 1950
Helen MorganAmerican jazz singer and actress · b. 1900
Morris AnkrumAmerican actor · b. 1896
John T. MyersAmerican politician · b. 1927
Stories next door

History across the town line

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

Pike TownshipIts storyC+Kent TownshipIts storynot graded: under 1,000 residents or part of its townJordan TownshipIts storynot graded: under 1,000 residents or part of its townTroy Township6 historic placesA+

Questions about Steuben Township’s history

What year was Steuben Township founded?

In 1834, according to Wikipedia’s history of the town. Steuben Township’s post office opened in 1857, and the census of 1890 counted 1,027 people here.

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 (1), 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.