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History · Mound Valley Township

Mound Valley Township dates to 1869, and 41% of its homes were built before 1940

Its Register listing is the Pumpkin Creek Tributary Bridge. Below: maps from 1946 on and the census since 1880.

1869founded
1on the National Register
41%homes built before 1940
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Quick answers

How Mound Valley Township began, and where its name came from

When was Mound Valley Township founded?

1869

Mound Valley Township dates its founding to 1869 (Wikipedia’s history). The census first counted it in 1880.

First census: 138 in 18802020 census: 720157 years

How did Mound Valley Township get its name?

Mound Valley Township was named from mound-like hills in the vicinity.

Founding year: Wikipedia. First post office: 1870. Name: Wikipedia, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0.The full story ↓

What stands out about Mound Valley 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 Mound Valley Township are in the public archives yet. The rest are in attics and albums.Boom and bustPeaked at 956 in 1910; 348 people lived here in 2020.Old housesHalf of Mound Valley Township’s homes were built before 1960.
★ What stands out · Help out

Start Mound Valley Township’s collection

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

Decades since 1900 with photos
00s10s20s30s40s50s60s70s80s90s
0 of 10 decades. The empty ones are waiting for someone’s album.
Share a family photoSign in to add one+10
People over time

Mound Valley Township, census by census

02004006008001,00018801900192019401960198020002020Peak: 956

Peaked at 956 in 1910; 348 people lived here in 2020.

15 censuses, 1880–2020.

U.S. Census Bureau decennial counts, from the census table on Mound Valley Township’s Wikipedia page.

The story

How Mound Valley Township came to be

From Wikipedia’s history of Mound Valley Township.

Read it all →

Mound Valley was founded in 1869. It was named from mound-like hills in the vicinity.

The first post office in Mound Valley was established in May 1870. Mound Valley was incorporated as a city in 1871. The town was a stop on the Missouri-Kansas-Texas railroad line from 1886 until the 1970s, and was also served by the Frisco Railroad and is currently served by the South Kansas and Oklahoma Railroad, which operates on the Frisco's former tracks.

Text from Wikipedia, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0.

Timeline

Mound Valley Township, 1869 to 1946

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

  1. 19th century
  2. 1869
    FoundingMound Valley Township is established
  3. 20th century
  4. 1910CensusPopulation peaks at 956
  5. 1946On the mapFirst mapped by the U.S. Geological Survey
By decade

Mound Valley Township, decade by decade

Today2 recent
Mound Valley Kansas downtown2026Mound Valley Kansas downtownMap of Labette Co, Ks, USA2005Map of Labette Co, Ks, USAMap
On the map

Mound Valley Township on the map, 1946 to 1974

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

Mound Valley Township on the 1946 USGS mapMound Valley Township on the 1974 USGS map1946Mound Valley sheet · 1:62,500

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

On the National Register

1 historic place in Mound Valley Township

The country’s official list of buildings and places worth saving.

place listed
1
National Historic Landmarks
0
none yet
historic buildings protected
1
each building in a district counts
first listed
1985
Pumpkin Creek Tributary Bridge
Pumpkin Creek Tributary Bridge
Structures
All 1 listings
Pumpkin Creek Tributary BridgeStructure · listed 1985

National Park Service, National Register of Historic Places. Photos from Wikimedia Commons, credited on each place’s page.

Places that used to be

Old corners, places now gone and burying grounds

Old hamlets and crossroads still carry their names on the map.

Hamlets and corners on the map
Penfield
Gone or out of use
Bell Mound SchoolschoolCunningham SchoolschoolEast Fairview SchoolschoolElmwood SchoolschoolEnterprise SchoolschoolExcelsior SchoolschoolGlobe SchoolschoolMount Triumph SchoolschoolSunnyside SchoolschoolWheatland Schoolschool
2cemeteries and burying grounds inside Mound Valley Township
GriffithMound Valley

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.

Canada TownshipIts storynot graded: under 1,000 residents or part of its townOsage TownshipIts storynot graded: under 1,000 residents or part of its townDrum Creek Township2 historic placesnot graded: under 1,000 residents or part of its townLiberty TownshipIts storynot graded: under 1,000 residents or part of its townMount Pleasant TownshipIts storyC+

Questions about Mound Valley Township’s history

What year was Mound Valley Township founded?

In 1869, according to Wikipedia’s history of the town. Mound Valley Township’s post office opened in 1870, and the census of 1880 counted 138 people here.

What is on the National Register in Mound Valley Township?

One place: the Pumpkin Creek Tributary Bridge (listed 1985).

Memory lane

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

Town Square →
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 Wikimedia Commons (2), the National Register of Historic Places (1), 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.