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Oberlin skylinePhoto: Jake Robinson · Public domain
–Not graded
History · Oberlin Township

Oberlin Township dates to 1872

Below: 4 old photos and papers, maps from 1951 on, and the census since 1890.

1872founded
0on the National Register
0.0%homes built before 1940
4old photos & papers
Add an old photoShare a memory
From Oberlin Township’s archive · credits on each photo
Quick answers

How Oberlin Township began, and where its name came from

When was Oberlin Township founded?

1872

Oberlin Township dates its founding to 1872 (Wikidata). The census first counted it in 1890.

First census: 976 in 18902020 census: 81154 years

How did Oberlin Township get its name?

Oberlin Township was named after Oberlin, Ohio.

Founding year: Wikidata. First post office: 1880. Name: Wikipedia, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0.The full story ↓

What stands out about Oberlin 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 writtenOnly 4 old photos are in the public archives. The rest are in attics and albums.Boom and bustPeaked at 2,387 in 1980; 1,644 people lived here in 2020.
★ What stands out · Help out

Start Oberlin Township’s collection

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

Decades since 1900 with photos
00s10s20s30s40s50s60s70s80s90s
2 of 10 decades. The empty ones are waiting for someone’s album.
Retake an old viewThe Only Remianing Sod School House, in…: stand where they stood+15Share a family photoSign in to add one+10
People over time

Oberlin Township, census by census

05001,0001,5002,0002,5001900192019401960198020002020Peak: 2,387

Peaked at 2,387 in 1980; 1,644 people lived here in 2020.

14 censuses, 1890–2020.

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

The story

How Oberlin Township came to be

From Wikipedia’s history of Oberlin Township.

Read it all →

Oberlin was platted in 1878. It was named after Oberlin, Ohio. Its first post office was established in April, 1878, and the city was incorporated in 1885.

On September 30, 1878, Northern Cheyenne, fleeing from Indian Territory to their homes in the north during the Northern Cheyenne Exodus, attacked homesteaders near Oberlin, then a tiny hamlet. The raid's victims are commemorated in the "Last Indian Raid in Kansas" room of the Decatur County Museum, and by a monument in the town cemetery.

On April 29, 1942, an extremely violent tornado swept away three farms south of Oberlin, killing 15 people. Oberlin was spared from direct hit, as it passed 1 mi (1.6 km) east of city. This tornado was retrospectively rated F5 on the Fujita scale.

Text from Wikipedia, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0.

Timeline

Oberlin Township, 1872 to 1980

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

  1. 19th century
  2. 1872
    FoundingOberlin Township is established
  3. 1880Post officeThe Hooker post office opens
  4. 20th century
  5. 1907Post officeThe Hooker post office closes
  6. 1908In the archiveThe Only Remianing Sod School House, in Decatur County, Kansas
  7. 1917In the archiveKansas - Oberlin through Republican River
  8. 1951On the mapFirst mapped by the U.S. Geological Survey
  9. 1980CensusPopulation peaks at 2,387
By decade

Oberlin Township, decade by decade

2 decades in the archive, from the 1900s to the 1910s. Scroll each row; tap a photo for its story.

1900s–1910s4 items
The Only Remianing Sod School House, in Decatur County, Kansas1908The Only Remianing Sod School House, in Decatur Count…The only remaining sod school house in Decatur County, Kansas1908The only remaining sod school house in Decatur County…Kansas - Oberlin through Republican River1917Kansas - Oberlin through Republican RiverKansas - Oberlin through Republican River1917Kansas - Oberlin through Republican River
1920s–1990snothing yet
Nothing in the archives for these yearsWeddings on Main Street, storms, parades, school pictures, the old store. If it’s in your family album, it belongs here.
Add from your album
Today4 recent
FEMA - 27447 - Photograph by Liz Roll taken on 01-13-2007 in Kansas2007FEMA - 27447 - Photograph by Liz Roll taken on 01-13-…FEMA - 27446 - Photograph by Liz Roll taken on 01-14-2007 in Kansas2007FEMA - 27446 - Photograph by Liz Roll taken on 01-14-…FEMA - 27444 - Photograph by Liz Roll taken on 01-14-2007 in Kansas2007FEMA - 27444 - Photograph by Liz Roll taken on 01-14-…Oberlin skyline2001Oberlin skyline
On the map

Oberlin Township on the map, 1951 to 1965

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

Oberlin Township on the 1951 USGS mapOberlin Township on the 1965 USGS map1951Oberlin 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 Oberlin Township.

Then & now

Stand where they stood

No then-and-now pairs yet. Take a photo from the same spot as an old one and they appear here side by side.

The Only Remianing Sod School House, in Decatur County, Kansas
Retake this viewThe Only Remianing Sod School House, in Decatur County, Kansas, 1908

Find the spot, match the angle, and add your photo. It becomes the first then-and-now pair on Oberlin Township’s page.

Retake this view · +15
Places that used to be

Lost post offices and places now gone

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

Gone or out of use
Addleman SchoolschoolHookerlocalePollnow Oil Fieldoilfield

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.

Summit TownshipIts storynot graded: under 1,000 residents or part of its townSappa TownshipIts storynot graded: under 1,000 residents or part of its townOberlin1 historic placeBLiberty TownshipIts storynot graded: under 1,000 residents or part of its town

Questions about Oberlin Township’s history

What year was Oberlin Township founded?

In 1872, according to Wikidata. Oberlin Township’s post office opened in 1880, and the census of 1890 counted 976 people here.

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 (8), Wikidata (1), Wikipedia, U.S. Geological Survey historical maps, U.S. Census counts (via Wikipedia), 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.