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History · Washington Township

57% of Washington Township’s homes were built before 1940

Below: maps from 1962 on.

0on the National Register
57%homes built before 1940
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What stands out about Washington 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 Washington Township are in the public archives yet. The rest are in attics and albums.Old housesHalf of Washington Township’s homes were built before 1938.
★ What stands out · Help out

Start Washington Township’s collection

The first neighbors to add old photos shape how Washington 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 so far

Washington Township, in brief

Wikipedia doesn’t have a history of Washington Township yet. The photos, dates and memories neighbors add here are how it gets written.

Washington Township is one of four townships in Blackford County, Indiana. As of the 2020 census, its population was 803 (down from 873 at 2010) and it contained 364 housing units. County Commissioners named the township after George Washington in 1833, and it was part of Jay County. In 1838, Washington Township became part of the newly organized Blackford County.

Between the 2010 and 2020 censuses its population fell from 873 to 803 (-8%).

Intro from Wikipedia. Population: U.S. Census Bureau.

Timeline

Washington Township, 1881 to 1962

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

  1. 19th century
  2. 1881Post officeThe Roll post office opens
  3. 20th century
  4. 1955Post officeThe Roll post office closes
  5. 1962On the mapFirst mapped by the U.S. Geological Survey
By decade

Washington Township, decade by decade

Today1 recent
Map highlighting2007Map highlightingMap
On the map

Washington Township on the map in 1962

The U.S. Geological Survey’s map of Washington Township.

Washington Township on the 1962 USGS map1962Roll 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 Washington Township.

Famous people

Famous people close to Washington Township

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

See all →
T
Thomas Francis, Jr.American physician, virologist, and epidemiolog… · b. 1900
J
Jim Paxson, Sr.American basketball player · b. 1932
Joseph Warren FordneyAmerican politician · b. 1853
L
Leo Aloysius PursleyCatholic bishop · b. 1902
V
Victor Joseph ReedCatholic bishop · b. 1905
I
Ife HolmesAmerican basketball player · b. 1905
Places that used to be

Lost post offices, old corners and burying grounds

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

Hamlets and corners on the map
Roll
6cemeteries and burying grounds inside Washington Township
BalsleyCenterLefflerMillsShieldsStoll

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

Stories next door

History across the town line

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

Licking Township3 historic placesAHarrison Township1 historic placeA−Monroe Township1 historic placeB+Jackson TownshipIts storynot graded: under 1,000 residents or part of its town

Questions about Washington Township’s history

Memory lane

What the archives can’t tell you, neighbors can.

Town Square →
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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), U.S. Geological Survey historical maps, 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.