Half of Van Buren Township’s homes were built after 1992
More historic than 11% of U.S. towns · #580 of 593 in Indiana. What drives it
Most of Van Buren Township was built recently: 2% of its homes predate 1940 and the median home dates from 1992. Below: maps from 1950 on and the census since 1890.
On its age, its old homes and the National Register, Van Buren Township is more historic than 11% of U.S. towns, #580 of 593 in Indiana. Its National Register listings hold the grade up; its share of homes from before 1940 pulls it down.
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HistoryA character grade: shown, never part of Van Buren Township’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 Van Buren Township’s 0.0 sits below most of its state (22% of Indiana towns have fewer) while its 0 listings outnumber those of 23% of U.S. towns.
How sure. Graded on two of the three inputs, so a change in either one moves the letter more than it would with three. The pre-1940 share is a Census survey estimate (±3.3 points).
Founding year: our sources. 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 Van Buren Township’s past
Read from the archive, the National Register and the record. The page puts what stands out first.
Van Buren Township was organized in September 1841; the last township to be formed in Daviess County, it was created in response to a petition circulated among residents of parts of Barr and Madison townships, praying to be set off as a separate township. In the first years of settlement, present-day Van Buren Township attracted few pioneers; most individuals in the area were trappers or hunters, and permanent settlement only began in the late 1820s.
Passages that mention Van Buren Township, cut from the printed page as they were published.
History of Knox and Daviess County, Indiana1886 · page 706Read the page →
Read the text
A pretty village of perhaps 200 inhabitants, called Ragleeville, is situated near the center of Van Buren Township. It has a church, schoolhouse, several stores, a flouring-mill and a brass band. It was laid out under the name of Stanford, June 21, 1837, by Ozias Crooke, and consists of forty-eight lots. The first settler in the vicinity was Asbury Sims, in 1832. Ozias Crooke was the first school teacher, and also the first merchant.
Text read by machine from the scan; it may contain errors.
History of Knox and Daviess County, Indiana1886 · page 709Read the page →
Read the text
Smiley is a postoffice in Van Buren Township, and Farlen, a postoffice in Madison Township, that are of very recent date. Farlen has two or three dwellings and a Baptist Church. W. N.
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
Van Buren Township, 1849 to 2020
Woven from the archive, old maps, post office records, the National Register and the people born here.
Every edition of the U.S. Geological Survey’s map of Van Buren Township. Tap a year, or press play to watch the town change.
1950Odon 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 Van Buren Township.
Famous people
Famous people close to Van Buren Township
Nobody well known was born in Van Buren Township itself, so here are the best known from just nearby.
Van Buren Township is more historic than 11% of U.S. towns, #580 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 Van Buren Township?
2% of Van Buren Township’s homes were built before 1940 (Census estimate, ±3.3 points), against a typical 14% for an Indiana town; the median home was built in 1992.
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 Wikipedia, U.S. Geological Survey historical maps, U.S. Census counts (via 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.
