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History · Jefferson Township

Jefferson Township’s post office opened in 1878, and 89% of its homes were built before 1940

Below: maps from 1892 on.

1878first post office
0on the National Register
89%homes built before 1940
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Quick answers

How Jefferson Township began

When was Jefferson Township founded?

1878

The Jefferson Township post office opened in 1878, the earliest record of the town by name. Another post office, Jefferson (1878), opened inside today’s town and later closed.

2020 census: 83148 years
Founding year: the first Jefferson Township post office (Blevins & Helbock, CC0).The full story ↓

What stands out about Jefferson 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 Jefferson Township are in the public archives yet. The rest are in attics and albums.On the map since 18923 editions of the USGS map, 1892 to 1985. Watch Jefferson Township change.Old housesHalf of Jefferson Township’s homes were built before 1938.
★ What stands out · Help out

Start Jefferson Township’s collection

The first neighbors to add old photos shape how Jefferson 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

Jefferson Township on the map, 1892 to 1985

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

Jefferson Township on the 1892 USGS mapJefferson Township on the 1966 USGS mapJefferson Township on the 1985 USGS map1892Concordia 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 Jefferson Township.

The story

How Jefferson Township came to be

From Wikipedia’s history of Jefferson Township.

Read it all →

Jefferson Township was organized in 1872. It was organized from part of Farmington Township.

Text from Wikipedia, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0.

Timeline

Jefferson Township, 1878 to 1892

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

  1. 19th century
  2. 1878Post officeThe Jefferson post office opens
  3. 1883Post officeThe Jefferson post office closes
  4. 1892On the mapFirst mapped by the U.S. Geological Survey
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.

Be the first to add onePhotograph a print flat, in daylight, no flash.
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Places that used to be

Lost post offices, places now gone and burying grounds

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

Gone or out of use
Pachta Farm Airportairport
1cemetery inside Jefferson Township
Pleasant Hill

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.

Belleville Township2 historic placesnot graded: under 1,000 residents or part of its townGrant TownshipIts storynot graded: under 1,000 residents or part of its townFairview TownshipIts storynot graded: under 1,000 residents or part of its townRichland Township1 historic placenot graded: under 1,000 residents or part of its town

Questions about Jefferson Township’s history

What year was Jefferson Township founded?

The Jefferson Township post office opened in 1878, the earliest record of the town by name (U.S. post office records).

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 Wikipedia, 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.