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History · Wells Township

Wells Township’s post office opened in 1878, and 87% of its homes were built before 1940

Below: maps from 1889 on.

1878first post office
0on the National Register
87%homes built before 1940
Add an old photoShare a memory
Quick answers

How Wells Township began

When was Wells Township founded?

1878

The Wells Township post office opened in 1878, the earliest record of the town by name. Two smaller post offices, Merrimac (1859) and Wells (1878), opened inside today’s town and later closed.

2020 census: 97148 years
Founding year: the first Wells Township post office (Blevins & Helbock, CC0).

What stands out about Wells 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 Wells 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 1983. Watch Wells Township change.Old housesHalf of Wells Township’s homes were built before 1938.Lost villages2 post offices opened and closed inside today’s Wells Township.
★ What stands out · Help out

Start Wells Township’s collection

The first neighbors to add old photos shape how Wells 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

Wells Township on the map, 1889 to 1983

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

Wells Township on the 1889 USGS mapWells Township on the 1894 USGS mapWells Township on the 1968 USGS mapWells Township on the 1983 USGS map1889Marysville 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 Wells Township.

The story so far

Wells Township, in brief

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

Wells Township is a township in Marshall County, Kansas, United States.

Its first post office opened in 1878. Between the 2010 and 2020 censuses its population fell from 120 to 97 (-19%).

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

Timeline

Wells Township, 1859 to 1889

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

  1. 19th century
  2. 1859Post officeThe Merrimac post office opens
  3. 1862Post officeThe Merrimac post office closes
  4. 1878Post officeThe Wells post office opens
  5. 1884Post officeThe Wells post office closes
  6. 1889On 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.
Add from your album
Famous people

Famous people close to Wells Township

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

See all →
MoondogAmerican composer · b. 1916
Michael McClureAmerican writer · b. 1932
R
Ralph Nelson ElliottAmerican accountant · b. 1871
Kenneth W. DamUnited States Deputy Secretary of the U.S. Trea… · b. 1932
Brian DuensingMajor League Baseball pitcher · b. 1983
K
Kendra WeckerAmerican basketball player · b. 1982
Places that used to be

Lost post offices, places now gone and burying grounds

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

Merrimac
1859–1862
Wells
1878–1884
18501940today
Gone or out of use
MerrimaclocalePleasant Valley Schoolschool
2cemeteries and burying grounds inside Wells Township
EdinboroughWells

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.

Center TownshipIts storynot graded: under 1,000 residents or part of its townBigelow TownshipIts storynot graded: under 1,000 residents or part of its townVermillion Township4 historic placesnot graded: under 1,000 residents or part of its townBlue Rapids City Township1 historic placenot graded: under 1,000 residents or part of its town

Questions about Wells Township’s history

What year was Wells Township founded?

The Wells Township post office opened in 1878, 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.