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History · Shirley Township

Shirley Township’s post office opened in 1869, and 54% of its homes were built before 1940

Below: maps from 1893 on.

1869first post office
0on the National Register
54%homes built before 1940
Add an old photoShare a memory
Quick answers

How Shirley Township began

When was Shirley Township founded?

1869

The Shirley Township post office opened in 1869, the earliest record of the town by name. Five smaller post offices, Elk Creek (1864), Elm Creek (1868) and Shirley (1869), opened inside today’s town and later closed.

2020 census: 150157 years
Founding year: the first Shirley Township post office (Blevins & Helbock, CC0).

What stands out about Shirley Township’s past

Read from the archive, the National Register and the record. The page puts what stands out first.

Lost villages5 post offices opened and closed inside today’s Shirley Township, and 2 old place names are still on the map.A history waiting to be writtenNo old photos of Shirley Township are in the public archives yet. The rest are in attics and albums.On the map since 18933 editions of the USGS map, 1893 to 1985. Watch Shirley Township change.Old housesHalf of Shirley Township’s homes were built before 1938.
★ What stands out · Places that used to be

Lost post offices, old corners and burying grounds

Five other post offices opened and closed inside today’s town.

Elk Creek
1864–1868
Elm Creek
1868–1869
Shirley
1869–1878
Ames
1878–1989
Saint Joseph
1878–1901
18601940today
Hamlets and corners on the map
AmesSaint Joseph
4cemeteries and burying grounds inside Shirley Township
Cedar HillFrench PresbyterianPleasant ViewSaint Joseph

US Post Offices dataset (Blevins & Helbock, CC0). Places and cemeteries from the USGS Geographic Names Information System (2021).

Help out

Start Shirley Township’s collection

The first neighbors to add old photos shape how Shirley 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

Shirley Township on the map, 1893 to 1985

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

Shirley Township on the 1893 USGS mapShirley Township on the 1965 USGS mapShirley Township on the 1985 USGS map1893Washington 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 Shirley Township.

The story so far

Shirley Township, in brief

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

Its first post office opened in 1869. Between the 2010 and 2020 censuses its population grew from 147 to 150 (+2%).

Timeline

Shirley Township, 1864 to 1893

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

  1. 19th century
  2. 1864Post officeThe Elk Creek post office opens
  3. 1868Post officeThe Elk Creek post office closes
  4. 1868Post officeThe Elm Creek post office opens
  5. 1869Post officeThe Elm Creek post office closes
  6. 1869Post officeThe Shirley post office opens
  7. 1878Post officeThe Shirley post office closes
  8. 1893On the mapFirst mapped by the U.S. Geological Survey
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.
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Stories next door

History across the town line

Each neighbor’s History grade, on the same three inputs.

Elk Township2 historic placesnot graded: under 1,000 residents or part of its townNelson TownshipIts storynot graded: under 1,000 residents or part of its townColfax TownshipIts storynot graded: under 1,000 residents or part of its townLawrence Township2 historic placesnot graded: under 1,000 residents or part of its town

Questions about Shirley Township’s history

What year was Shirley Township founded?

The Shirley Township post office opened in 1869, 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, 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.