On its age, its old homes and the National Register, Lexington Township is more historic than 53% of U.S. towns. Its National Register listings hold the grade up; its share of homes from before 1940 pulls it down.
B−
HistoryA character grade: shown, never part of Lexington 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 Lexington Township’s 8.0 sits near the middle of its state (58% of Kansas towns have fewer) while its 1 listings outnumber those of 51% 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 (±8.4 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 Lexington Township’s past
Read from the archive, the National Register and the record. The page puts what stands out first.
After the closure of the Sunflower Army Ammunition Plant in 1992, plans for potential development of the 15.5 square mile lot (the largest single tract of land in the Kansas City Metropolitan Area, and the largest single urban redevelopment site in the United States) began to make rounds around locals, plans for an Oz Entertainment amusement park consumed seven futile years, after which the land was transferred to the Sunflower Redevelopment Group in 2005. At that time, about 3,700 acres were transferred clean, but much of that land was targeted for open space, buffer and parkland. Another plan that was set to open in 2002 was the newly announced Kansas Speedway and Kansas City Wizards stadiums. Recently, a master use plan has been adopted by the cities of Olathe, De Soto, the State of Kansas and Sunflower. The master plan calls for high density housing, major commercial zoning, a "down…
Every edition of the U.S. Geological Survey’s map of Lexington Township. Tap a year, or press play to watch the town change.
1951De Soto 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 Lexington Township.
On the National Register
1 historic place in Lexington Township
The country’s official list of buildings and places worth saving.
Lexington Township is more historic than 53% 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 Lexington Township?
One place: the Louis & Rachel Hammer Barn (listed 2022).
How old are the homes in Lexington Township?
11% of Lexington Township’s homes were built before 1940 (Census estimate, ±8.4 points), against a typical 10% for a Kansas town; the median home was built in 1987.
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 the National Register of Historic Places (1), Wikipedia, U.S. Geological Survey historical maps 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.
