On its age, its old homes and the National Register, Wilmington Township is more historic than 96% of U.S. towns, #47 of 593 in Indiana. All 2 inputs are above most U.S. towns; its share of homes from before 1940 ranks highest and its National Register listings lowest.
A+
HistoryA character grade: shown, never part of Wilmington 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 Wilmington Township’s 74.5 sits above most of its state (79% of Indiana towns have fewer) while its 30 historic buildings outnumber those of 82% 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 (±7.1 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 Wilmington Township’s past
Read from the archive, the National Register and the record. The page puts what stands out first.
Lost post offices, old corners and burying grounds
Two other post offices opened and closed inside today’s town.
Moore's Station
1875–1882
Moore
1882–1909
18701950today
Hamlets and corners on the map
Moore
2cemeteries and burying grounds inside Wilmington Township
KraftKrontz
US Post Offices dataset (Blevins & Helbock, CC0). Places and cemeteries from the USGS Geographic Names Information System (2021).
The story so far
Wilmington Township, in brief
Wikipedia doesn’t have a history of Wilmington Township yet. The photos, dates and memories neighbors add here are how it gets written.
Wilmington Township is one of fifteen townships in DeKalb County, Indiana. As of the 2020 census, its population was 3,995 (down from 4,128 at the 2010 census) and it contained 1,600 housing units.
Between the 2010 and 2020 censuses its population fell from 4,128 to 3,995 (-3%).
Intro from Wikipedia. Population: U.S. Census Bureau.
From the old history books
What they wrote about Wilmington Township in 1885
Passages that mention Wilmington Township, cut from the printed page as they were published.
sisted of Peter Fair, Samuel Widney and A. F. Beechcr, who "ordered that the congressional township 34 north, range 14 east be, and it is hereby, organized as a civil township to be known by the name of Wilmington Township." They also directed "that Byron Bunnel be appointed Supervisor for the road district No. 1, comprising the whole of Wilmington Township, and all the hands residing in said township shall be allotted to the same district." In March, 1838, fractional township 34
Text read by machine from the scan; it may contain errors.
Wilmington Township lies in the east central portion of the county, and is bounded as follows: on the north by Franklin Township, on the east by Stafford, on the south by Concord, and on the west by Union. It is crossed east and west by the air-line of the Michigan Southern Railroad, and northeast and southwest by the Wabash, St. Louis cV Pacific, the two roads meeting at Butler in the northeastern part. Agriculturally ii is about second-class land, yet portions are excellent, especially
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
Wilmington Township, 1875 to 1958
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 Wilmington Township. Tap a year, or press play to watch the town change.
1958Butler West 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 Wilmington Township.
On the National Register
1 listing protects 30 historic buildings
The country’s official list of buildings and places worth saving.
place listed
1
National Historic Landmarks
0
none yet
historic buildings protected
30
each building in a district counts
National Park Service, National Register of Historic Places. Photos from Wikimedia Commons, credited on each place’s page.
Famous people
Famous people close to Wilmington Township
Nobody well known was born in Wilmington Township itself, so here are the best known from just nearby.
Wilmington Township is more historic than 96% of U.S. towns, #47 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 Wilmington Township?
35% of Wilmington Township’s homes were built before 1940 (Census estimate, ±7.1 points), against a typical 14% for an Indiana town; the median home was built in 1962.
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 U.S. Geological Survey historical maps, 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.
