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History · Walnut Township

The history of Walnut Township

Below: maps from 1894 on and the census since 1880.

0on the National Register
0.0%homes built before 1940
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What stands out about Walnut 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 Walnut Township are in the public archives yet. The rest are in attics and albums.On the map since 18943 editions of the USGS map, 1894 to 1985. Watch Walnut Township change.Boom and bustPeaked at 650 in 1920; 187 people lived here in 2020.Lost villages2 post offices opened and closed inside today’s Walnut Township, and 2 old place names are still on the map.
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Start Walnut Township’s collection

The first neighbors to add old photos shape how Walnut 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

Walnut Township on the map, 1894 to 1985

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

Walnut Township on the 1894 USGS mapWalnut Township on the 1969 USGS mapWalnut Township on the 1985 USGS map1894Mankato 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 Walnut Township.

People over time

Walnut Township, census by census

010020030040050060070018801900192019401960198020002020Peak: 650

Peaked at 650 in 1920; 187 people lived here in 2020.

15 censuses, 1880–2020.

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

The story

How Walnut Township came to be

From Wikipedia’s history of Walnut Township.

Read it all →

Walnut was originally called Glenwood, and under the latter name laid out in 1871. In 1874, it was renamed Walnut after the Little Walnut Creek, on which it is located.

The first post office at Walnut was established in April 1873. Prior to April 1877, the post office's name was officially called Walnut Station. Walnut was served by both the Missouri-Kansas-Texas Railroad, and the Atchison, Topeka & Santa Fe Railroad.

Text from Wikipedia, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0.

Timeline

Walnut Township, 1875 to 1959

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

  1. 19th century
  2. 1875Post officeThe Quaker Point post office opens
  3. 1878Post officeThe Quaker Point post office closes
  4. 1878Post officeThe Northbranch post office opens
  5. 1894On the mapFirst mapped by the U.S. Geological Survey
  6. 20th century
  7. 1920CensusPopulation peaks at 650
  8. 1959Post officeThe Northbranch post office closes
By decade

Walnut Township, decade by decade

Today1 recent
KSMap-doton-Walnut2004KSMap-doton-Walnut
Places that used to be

Lost post offices, old corners and burying grounds

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

Quaker Point
1875–1878
Northbranch
1878–1959
18701950today
Hamlets and corners on the map
NorthbranchWesley Center
1cemetery inside Walnut Township
Northbranch Friends

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.

Burr Oak Township3 historic placesnot graded: under 1,000 residents or part of its townHighland TownshipIts storynot graded: under 1,000 residents or part of its townHarrison TownshipIts storynot graded: under 1,000 residents or part of its town

Questions about Walnut Township’s history

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 Wikimedia Commons (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.