The story
Read it all →How Marion Township came to be
From Wikipedia’s history of Marion Township.
It was named after the former town of Marion which in turn was named after Francis Marion.
Text from Wikipedia, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0.
–Not graded
History · Marion Township
Marion Township’s post office opened in 1858, and 26% of its homes were built before 1940
4 places in town are on the National Register, among them two historic districts with 15 buildings between them. Below: maps from 1885 on.
1858first post office
4on the National Register
26%homes built before 1940
Quick answers
How Marion Township began, and where its name came from
When was Marion Township founded?
1858
The Marion Township post office opened in 1858, the earliest record of the town by name. Ten smaller post offices, Appanoose (1857), Marion (1858) and Twin Mound (1858), opened inside today’s town and later closed.
2020 census: 845168 years
How did Marion Township get its name?
Marion Township was named after the former town of Marion which in turn was named after Francis Marion.
Founding year: the first Marion Township post office (Blevins & Helbock, CC0). Name: Wikipedia, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0.The full story ↓
What stands out about Marion Township’s past
Read from the archive, the National Register and the record. The page puts what stands out first.
Lost villages10 post offices opened and closed inside today’s Marion Township, and 2 old place names are still on the map.A history waiting to be writtenNo old photos of Marion Township are in the public archives yet. The rest are in attics and albums.On the map since 18853 editions of the USGS map, 1885 to 1983. Watch Marion Township change.Landmarks on the Register4 places on the National Register.
★ What stands out · Places that used to be
Lost post offices, old corners, places now gone and burying grounds
10 other post offices opened and closed inside today’s town.
Appanoose
Marion
Twin Mound
Lapeer
Washington Creek
Alfred
Bond
Globe
Baden
Lone Star
18501940today
Hamlets and corners on the map
GlobeLone Star
Gone or out of use
BadenlocaleBrubaker SchoolschoolCentennial SchoolschoolColyer SchoolschoolEnterprise SchoolschoolGlobe SchoolschoolLapeerlocaleTwin MoundlocaleTwin Mounds SchoolschoolWeybright Schoolschool
8cemeteries and burying grounds inside Marion Township
AppanooseColyerColyerDodderRock CreekTwin MoundsUnionWashington Creek
US Post Offices dataset (Blevins & Helbock, CC0). Places and cemeteries from the USGS Geographic Names Information System (2021).
Help out
Start Marion Township’s collection
The first neighbors to add old photos shape how Marion Township’s history is told.
Decades since 1900 with photos
00s10s20s30s40s50s60s70s80s90s
0 of 10 decades. The empty ones are waiting for someone’s album.On the map
Marion Township on the map, 1885 to 1983
Every edition of the U.S. Geological Survey’s map of Marion Township. Tap a year, or press play to watch the town change.
1885Lawrence sheet · 1:125,000U.S. Geological Survey historical topographic maps (public domain), via Esri’s collection of the scans. The red ring marks the center of Marion Township.
Timeline
Marion Township, 1857 to 1903
Woven from the archive, old maps, post office records, the National Register and the people born here.
- 19th century
- 1857Post officeThe Appanoose post office opens
- 1858Post officeThe Marion post office opens
- 1858Post officeThe Twin Mound post office opens
- 1881Post officeThe Marion post office closes
- 1885
On the mapFirst mapped by the U.S. Geological Survey - 20th century
- 1902Post officeThe Appanoose post office closes
- 1903Post officeThe Twin Mound 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.
Be the first to add onePhotograph a print flat, in daylight, no flash.
Add from your albumOn the National Register
4 listings protect 15 historic buildings
The country’s official list of buildings and places worth saving.
places listed
4
National Historic Landmarks
0
none yet
historic buildings protected
15
each building in a district counts
first listed
2018
O'Sullivan, John and Anna Farmstead
DistrictsSitesStructures
All 4 listings
National Park Service, National Register of Historic Places. Photos from Wikimedia Commons, credited on each place’s page.
Famous people
See all →Famous people close to Marion Township
Nobody well known was born in Marion Township itself, so here are the best known from just nearby.
Stories next door
History across the town line
Each neighbor’s History grade, on the same three inputs.
Questions about Marion Township’s history
What year was Marion Township founded?
The Marion Township post office opened in 1858, the earliest record of the town by name (U.S. post office records).
What is on the National Register in Marion Township?
4 listings: 2 historic districts, the O'Sullivan, John and Anna Farmstead and the Sowers-Crawford Farms Historic District, with 15 contributing buildings, 1 site, and 1 structure. 15 historic buildings in all.
Memory lane
What the archives can’t tell you, neighbors can.
Start a conversation
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 the National Register of Historic Places (4), 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.