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History · Rochester Township

Rochester Township’s post office opened in 1879, and 41% of its homes were built before 1940

Below: maps from 1889 on.

1879first post office
0on the National Register
41%homes built before 1940
Add an old photoShare a memory
Quick answers

How Rochester Township began

When was Rochester Township founded?

1879

The Rochester Township post office opened in 1879, the earliest record of the town by name.

2020 census: 137147 years
Founding year: the first Rochester Township post office (Blevins & Helbock, CC0).

What stands out about Rochester 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 Rochester Township are in the public archives yet. The rest are in attics and albums.On the map since 18894 editions of the USGS map, 1889 to 1985. Watch Rochester Township change.Old housesHalf of Rochester Township’s homes were built before 1946.
★ What stands out · Help out

Start Rochester Township’s collection

The first neighbors to add old photos shape how Rochester 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
On the map

Rochester Township on the map, 1889 to 1985

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

Rochester Township on the 1889 USGS mapRochester Township on the 1891 USGS mapRochester Township on the 1973 USGS mapRochester Township on the 1985 USGS map1889Anthony 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 Rochester Township.

The story so far

Rochester Township, in brief

Wikipedia doesn’t have a history of Rochester Township yet. The photos, dates and memories neighbors add here are how it gets written.

Rochester Township is a township in Kingman County, Kansas, United States. As of the 2020 census, its population was 137.

Its first post office opened in 1879. Between the 2010 and 2020 censuses its population fell from 168 to 137 (-18%).

Intro from Wikipedia. Population: U.S. Census Bureau.

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 album
Famous people

Famous people close to Rochester Township

Nobody well known was born in Rochester Township itself, so here are the best known from just nearby.

See all →
Scott WedmanAmerican basketball player · b. 1952
Jerrod NiemannAmerican musician · b. 1979
Everett SheltonAmerican football player, basketball coach, col… · b. 1898
B
Bob BlasiAmerican football coach · b. 1930
W
Wilfred ChildsAmerican basketball coach · b. 1881
Places that used to be

Places now gone and burying grounds

Gone or out of use
Happy Hollow SchoolschoolNew RochesterlocaleSunny View SchoolschoolWestportlocale
3cemeteries and burying grounds inside Rochester Township
NicholsPleasant HillSaint Johns

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.

Peters TownshipIts storynot graded: under 1,000 residents or part of its townChikaskia TownshipIts storynot graded: under 1,000 residents or part of its townTownship 1Its storynot graded: under 1,000 residents or part of its townLiberty TownshipIts storynot graded: under 1,000 residents or part of its town

Questions about Rochester Township’s history

What year was Rochester Township founded?

The Rochester Township post office opened in 1879, 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 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.