13% of Clay Township’s homes were built before 1940
More historic than 71% of U.S. towns · #190 of 701 in Michigan. What drives it
Its Register listings are the St. Clair Flats South Channel Range Lights, the Colony Tower Complex and the LeRoy Smith House. Its Register listings are the St. Clair Flats South Channel Range Lights, the Colony Tower Complex and the LeRoy Smith House. Below: 1 old photo or paper and maps from 1914 on.
On its age, its old homes and the National Register, Clay Township is more historic than 71% of U.S. towns, #190 of 701 in Michigan. All 2 inputs are above most U.S. towns; its National Register listings ranks highest and its share of homes from before 1940 lowest.
B+
HistoryA character grade: shown, never part of Clay 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 Clay Township’s 3.6 sits above most of its state (73% of Michigan towns have fewer) while its 3 listings outnumber those of 65% of U.S. towns.
How sure. Graded on two of the three inputs, so a change in either one moves the letter more than it would with three. The pre-1940 share is a Census survey estimate (±3.3 points).
Founding year: our sources. 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 Clay Township’s past
Read from the archive, the National Register and the record. The page puts what stands out first.
Every edition of the U.S. Geological Survey’s map of Clay Township. Tap a year, or press play to watch the town change.
1914Algonac sheet · 1:62,500
U.S. Geological Survey historical topographic maps (public domain), via Esri’s collection of the scans. The red ring marks the center of Clay Township.
The area was first settled by John Martin in 1805, and the area was originally referred to as Pointe du Chene (Oak Point). In 1826, the area was organized as Plainfield Township, which was named by early settler John K. Smith after his hometown of Plainfield, Vermont. A post office named Plainfield began operating here on April 5, 1826 with Smith serving as the first postmaster. In 1828, the township was reorganized and renamed after attorney and statesman Henry Clay, and the post office was later renamed Clay on December 23, 1835; Smith continued serving as postmaster. The post office was renamed Algonac on August 17, 1843. Algonac incorporated as a village within Clay Township in 1867. The village gained autonomy from the township when it incorporated as a city in 1967.
Nothing in the archives for these yearsWeddings on Main Street, storms, parades, school pictures, the old store. If it’s in your family album, it belongs here.
Clay Township is more historic than 71% of U.S. towns, #190 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.
What is on the National Register in Clay Township?
Three places: the St. Clair Flats South Channel Range Lights (listed 1990), the Colony Tower Complex (1994) and the LeRoy Smith House (1996).
How old are the homes in Clay Township?
13% of Clay Township’s homes were built before 1940 (Census estimate, ±3.3 points), against a typical 12% for a Michigan town; the median home was built in 1975.
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 (18), Wikidata (1), the National Register of Historic Places (3), Wikipedia, 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.
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