Founding year: the first Douglass Township post office (Blevins & Helbock, CC0). Wikidata: 1869.The full story ↓
History grade
What drives Douglass Township’s History grade
On its age, its old homes and the National Register, Douglass Township is more historic than 65% of U.S. towns. Its share of homes from before 1940 holds the grade up; its age pulls it down.
B
HistoryA character grade: shown, never part of Douglass Township’s overall grade.
Kansas towns list more on the Register than most of the country (a typical Kansas town has 5.1 per 10,000 residents, the U.S. 2.4), so Douglass Township’s 15.7 sits above most of its state (74% of Kansas towns have fewer) while its 3 listings outnumber those of 65% of U.S. towns.
How sure. Graded on any two of the three inputs instead, the letter would range from B− to A−. The pre-1940 share is a Census survey estimate (±6.0 points). The founding year is the first post office, not a stated founding date; Wikidata’s 1869 falls in the same era, so the grade doesn’t depend on which one is used.
Founding year: the first post office (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 Douglass Township’s past
Read from the archive, the National Register and the record. The page puts what stands out first.
The first settlement was made at Douglass in 1869. Douglass is named for its founder, Joseph W. Douglass, a storeowner who was fatally shot at the town site in 1873 while apprehending a suspected chicken thief. Douglass was incorporated as a city of the third class in 1879.
In 1877, the Florence, El Dorado, and Walnut Valley Railroad Company built a branch line from Florence to El Dorado, in 1881 it was extended to Douglass, and later to Arkansas City. The line was leased and operated by the Atchison, Topeka and Santa Fe Railway. The line from Florence to El Dorado was abandoned in 1942. The original branch line connected Florence, Burns, De Graff, El Dorado, Augusta, Douglass, Rock, Akron, Winfield and Arkansas City.
Every edition of the U.S. Geological Survey’s map of Douglass Township. Tap a year, or press play to watch the town change.
1961Gordon 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 Douglass Township.
On the National Register
3 historic places in Douglass Township
The country’s official list of buildings and places worth saving.
The Douglass Township post office opened in 1868, the earliest record of the town by name (U.S. post office records). Wikidata gives 1869.
How does Douglass Township rank for history?
Douglass Township is more historic than 65% of U.S. towns. 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.
What is on the National Register in Douglass Township?
3 listings: 1 building and 1 structure.
How old are the homes in Douglass Township?
20% of Douglass Township’s homes were built before 1940 (Census estimate, ±6.0 points), against a typical 10% for a Kansas town; the median home was built in 1976.
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 (2), Wikidata (1), the National Register of Historic Places (2), Wikipedia, U.S. Geological Survey historical maps, U.S. Census counts (via Wikipedia) 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.
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