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History · Viola Township

Viola Township’s post office opened in 1899, and 14% of its homes were built before 1940

Below: maps from 1889 on and the census since 1880.

1899first post office
0on the National Register
14%homes built before 1940
Add an old photoShare a memory
Photo: Art davis · CC BY-SA 4.0
Quick answers

How Viola Township began

When was Viola Township founded?

1899

The Viola Township post office opened in 1899, the earliest record of the town by name.

First census: 290 in 18802020 census: 497127 years
Founding year: the first Viola Township post office (Blevins & Helbock, CC0).The full story ↓

What stands out about Viola 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 Viola Township are in the public archives yet. The rest are in attics and albums.On the map since 18896 editions of the USGS map, 1889 to 1990. Watch Viola Township change.Boom and bustPeaked at 537 in 1890; 115 people lived here in 2020.
★ What stands out · Help out

Start Viola Township’s collection

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

Decades since 1900 with photos
00s10s20s30s40s50s60s70s80s90s
0 of 10 decades. The empty ones are waiting for someone’s album.
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On the map

Viola Township on the map, 1889 to 1990

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

Viola Township on the 1889 USGS mapViola Township on the 1891 USGS mapViola Township on the 1901 USGS mapViola Township on the 1965 USGS mapViola Township on the 1985 USGS mapViola Township on the 1990 USGS map1889Cheney 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 Viola Township.

People over time

Viola Township, census by census

010020030040050060018801900192019401960198020002020Peak: 537

Peaked at 537 in 1890; 115 people lived here in 2020.

15 censuses, 1880–2020.

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

The story

How Viola Township came to be

From Wikipedia’s history of Viola Township.

Read it all →

Viola had its start when the Englewood branch of the Santa Fe railroad was extended to that point.

The first post office at Viola was established in 1877, but the post office was called Peotone until 1899.

Text from Wikipedia, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0.

By decade

Viola Township, decade by decade

Today3 recent
ViolaHS2015ViolaHSDetailed map of2010Detailed map ofMapKSMap-doton-Viola2005KSMap-doton-Viola
Famous people

Famous people close to Viola Township

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

See all →
Derek NorrisAmerican baseball player · b. 1989
H
Henry K. BeecherAmerican medical academic · b. 1904
H
Harvey H. NiningerAmerican lay scientist · b. 1887
Ernie MaunAmerican baseball player · b. 1901
L
Lloyd BishopAmerican baseball player · b. 1890
Red BerryAmerican professional wrestler, manager · b. 1906
Stories next door

History across the town line

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

Ninnescah Township1 historic placeB−Afton TownshipIts storyDConway TownshipIts storyBErie TownshipIts storynot graded: under 1,000 residents or part of its town

Questions about Viola Township’s history

What year was Viola Township founded?

The Viola Township post office opened in 1899, 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 →
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 (3), 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.