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History · Garfield Township

16% of Garfield Township’s homes were built before 1940

Below: maps from 1889 on.

0on the National Register
16%homes built before 1940
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What stands out about Garfield 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 Garfield Township are in the public archives yet. The rest are in attics and albums.On the map since 18894 editions of the USGS map, 1889 to 1985. Watch Garfield Township change.Lost villages3 post offices opened and closed inside today’s Garfield Township, and 1 old place names are still on the map.
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Start Garfield Township’s collection

The first neighbors to add old photos shape how Garfield Township’s history is told.

Decades since 1900 with photos
00s10s20s30s40s50s60s70s80s90s
0 of 10 decades. The empty ones are waiting for someone’s album.
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On the map

Garfield Township on the map, 1889 to 1985

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

Garfield Township on the 1889 USGS mapGarfield Township on the 1891 USGS mapGarfield Township on the 1965 USGS mapGarfield Township on the 1985 USGS map1889Larned sheet · 1:125,000

U.S. Geological Survey historical topographic maps (public domain), via Esri’s collection of the scans. The red ring marks the center of Garfield Township.

Places that used to be

Lost post offices, old corners, places now gone and burying grounds

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

Belfield
1874–1887
Ryan
1878–1908
Shaffer
1892–1948
18701950today
Hamlets and corners on the map
Schaffer
Gone or out of use
BelfieldlocaleHuttonlocaleOtis-Albert Oil and Gas FieldoilfieldRyanlocale
1cemetery inside Garfield Township
Albert

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

The story so far

Garfield Township, in brief

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

Garfield Township is a township in Rush County, Kansas, United States. As of the 2020 census, its population was 112.

Between the 2010 and 2020 censuses its population grew from 103 to 112 (+9%).

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

Timeline

Garfield Township, 1874 to 1948

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

  1. 19th century
  2. 1874Post officeThe Belfield post office opens
  3. 1878Post officeThe Ryan post office opens
  4. 1887Post officeThe Belfield post office closes
  5. 1889On the mapFirst mapped by the U.S. Geological Survey
  6. 1892Post officeThe Shaffer post office opens
  7. 20th century
  8. 1908Post officeThe Ryan post office closes
  9. 1948Post officeThe Shaffer post office closes
By decade

No old photos in the archives yet

Weddings on Main Street, storms, parades, school pictures, the old store. If it’s in your family album, it belongs here.

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Stories next door

History across the town line

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

Pioneer TownshipIts storynot graded: under 1,000 residents or part of its townBanner TownshipIts storynot graded: under 1,000 residents or part of its townWalnut TownshipIts storynot graded: under 1,000 residents or part of its townClarence TownshipIts storynot graded: under 1,000 residents or part of its town

Questions about Garfield Township’s history

Memory lane

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

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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 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.