The Burr Oak Township post office opened in 1837, the earliest record of the town by name. Wikidata gives 1851. Two smaller post offices, Lock's Station (1852) and Findley (1889), opened inside today’s town and later closed.
First census: 666 in 18602020 census: 2,639189 years
How historic is Burr Oak Township?
B+
More historic than 70% of U.S. towns, on its age, its old homes and the National Register.
Founding year: the first Burr Oak Township post office (Blevins & Helbock, CC0). Wikidata: 1851.The full story ↓
History grade
What drives Burr Oak Township’s History grade
On its age, its old homes and the National Register, Burr Oak Township is more historic than 70% of U.S. towns, #205 of 701 in Michigan. Its share of homes from before 1940 holds the grade up; its National Register listings pull it down.
B+
HistoryA character grade: shown, never part of Burr Oak Township’s overall grade.
Few Michigan towns list much on the Register (a typical Michigan town has 0.0 per 10,000 residents, the U.S. 2.4), so Burr Oak Township’s 0.0 sits below most of its state (32% of Michigan towns have fewer) while its 0 listings outnumber those of 23% of U.S. towns.
How sure. Graded on any two of the three inputs instead, the letter would range from B− to A. The pre-1940 share is a Census survey estimate (±6.3 points). The founding year is the first post office, not a stated founding date; Wikidata gives 1851.
Founding year: the first post office (other dates in Quick answers). Homes: Census ACS 2020–24. National Register: National Park Service, May 2026 list; each listing counted once (boundary changes and added documentation belong to their listing), and a historic district counts its contributing buildings. How TownRatings grades history →
What stands out about Burr Oak Township’s past
Read from the archive, the National Register and the record. The page puts what stands out first.
The area, in southeastern St. Joseph County, was first settled in 1835. The first post office was built in 1837. The village was platted in 1851. In 1852, land for a railroad station was donated by William Lock, on the condition that the town be renamed "Lock's Station," which it was. Five years later, however, by popular demand the town assumed its original name, and was officially incorporated into a village in 1859.
Every edition of the U.S. Geological Survey’s map of Burr Oak Township. Tap a year, or press play to watch the town change.
1961Burr Oak sheet · 1:24,000
U.S. Geological Survey historical topographic maps (public domain), via Esri’s collection of the scans. The red ring marks the center of Burr Oak Township.
People over time
Burr Oak Township, census by census
Between 589 and 882 people in every census since 1860.
17 censuses, 1860–2020.
U.S. Census Bureau decennial counts, from the census table on Burr Oak Township’s Wikipedia page.
Stories next door
History across the town line
Each neighbor’s History grade, on the same three inputs.
The Burr Oak Township post office opened in 1837, the earliest record of the town by name (U.S. post office records). Wikidata gives 1851.
How does Burr Oak Township rank for history?
Burr Oak Township is more historic than 70% of U.S. towns, #205 of 701 in Michigan. The History grade combines the town’s founding era, the share of homes built before 1940 and its National Register listings. It’s a character grade, so it isn’t part of the overall grade. How it works.
How old are the homes in Burr Oak Township?
27% of Burr Oak Township’s homes were built before 1940 (Census estimate, ±6.3 points), against a typical 12% for a Michigan town; the median home was built in 1972.
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).
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.
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