The Clinton Township post office opened in 1831, the earliest record of the town by name. Another post office, Newburg (1891), opened inside today’s town and later closed.
2020 census: 3,765195 years
How historic is Clinton Township?
A
More historic than 94% of U.S. towns, on its age, its old homes and the National Register.
Founding year: the first Clinton Township post office (Blevins & Helbock, CC0).
History grade
What drives Clinton Township’s History grade
On its age, its old homes and the National Register, Clinton Township is more historic than 94% of U.S. towns, #38 of 701 in Michigan. All 3 inputs are above most U.S. towns; its National Register listings ranks highest and its age lowest.
A
HistoryA character grade: shown, never part of Clinton 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 Clinton Township’s 72.4 sits above most of its state (92% of Michigan towns have fewer) while its 27 historic buildings outnumber those of 81% of U.S. towns.
How sure. Graded on any two of the three inputs instead, the letter would still be A. The pre-1940 share is a Census survey estimate (±7.8 points). The founding year is the first post office, not a stated founding date.
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 Clinton Township’s past
Read from the archive, the National Register and the record. The page puts what stands out first.
National Park Service, National Register of Historic Places. Photos from Wikimedia Commons, credited on each place’s page.
On the map
Clinton Township on the map, 1906 to 1975
Every edition of the U.S. Geological Survey’s map of Clinton Township. Tap a year, or press play to watch the town change.
1906Saline 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 Clinton Township.
The story so far
Clinton Township, in brief
Wikipedia doesn’t have a history of Clinton Township yet. The photos, dates and memories neighbors add here are how it gets written.
Clinton Township is a civil township of Lenawee County in the U.S. state of Michigan. The population was 3,765 at the 2020 census. The village of Clinton is located within the township. Both the village and township are named in honor of DeWitt Clinton, the governor of New York from 1817 to 1823.
Its first post office opened in 1831. Between the 2010 and 2020 censuses its population grew from 3,604 to 3,765 (+4%).
Intro from Wikipedia. Population: U.S. Census Bureau.
Timeline
Clinton Township, 1831 to 1906
Woven from the archive, old maps, post office records, the National Register and the people born here.
The Clinton Township post office opened in 1831, the earliest record of the town by name (U.S. post office records).
How does Clinton Township rank for history?
Clinton Township is more historic than 94% of U.S. towns, #38 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 Clinton Township?
One place: the Clinton Downtown Historic District (listed 2010).
How old are the homes in Clinton Township?
31% of Clinton Township’s homes were built before 1940 (Census estimate, ±7.8 points), against a typical 12% for a Michigan town; the median home was built in 1971.
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 the National Register of Historic Places (1), Wikidata and Wikipedia for famous people, 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.
