Courtland Township was named after the township, which was organized in the same year.
More on the name
The community was given its own post office named Courtland from January 30, 1841 to November 10, 1860. Another post office named Courtland Center was in operation from October 24, 1856 until February 15, 1901.
How historic is Courtland Township?
C−
More historic than 23% of U.S. towns, on its age, its old homes and the National Register.
On its age, its old homes and the National Register, Courtland Township is more historic than 23% of U.S. towns, #616 of 701 in Michigan. Its share of homes from before 1940 holds the grade up; its National Register listings pull it down.
C−
HistoryA character grade: shown, never part of Courtland 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 Courtland 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 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 (±3.8 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 Courtland Township’s past
Read from the archive, the National Register and the record. The page puts what stands out first.
Lost post offices, old corners, places now gone and burying grounds
Five other post offices opened and closed inside today’s town.
Cortland
1841–1860
Cortland Centre
1856–1893
Evans
1888–1920
Sheffield
1891–1906
Cortland Center
1893–1901
18401930today
Hamlets and corners on the map
EvansSheffield
Gone or out of use
Cortland Center Post Officepost officeCortland Post Officepost officeEvans Post Officepost officeEvans StationlocaleSheffield Post Officepost officeSheffield Stationlocale
1cemetery inside Courtland Township
Courtland
US Post Offices dataset (Blevins & Helbock, CC0). Places and cemeteries from the USGS Geographic Names Information System (2021).
Help out
Start Courtland Township’s collection
The first neighbors to add old photos shape how Courtland Township’s history is told.
Decades since 1900 with photos
00s10s20s30s40s50s60s70s80s90s
0 of 10 decades. The empty ones are waiting for someone’s album.
The first settler in the area was Barton Johnson in 1838. He settled the community of Evans along a railway station on the early Toledo, Saginaw and Muskegon Railway. Johnson and Alexander Dean settled the community of Courtland Center in 1839. It was named after the township, which was organized in the same year. The community was given its own post office named Courtland from January 30, 1841 to November 10, 1860. Another post office named Courtland Center was in operation from October 24, 1856 until February 15, 1901. The community of Sheffield was also a station on the Toledo, Saginaw & Muskegon Railroad that was established in 1888. Sheffield had its own post office from March 6, 1891 until April 30, 1906.
Every edition of the U.S. Geological Survey’s map of Courtland Township. Tap a year, or press play to watch the town change.
1972Evans 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 Courtland Township.
Famous people
Famous people close to Courtland Township
Nobody well known was born in Courtland Township itself, so here are the best known from just nearby.
Courtland Township is more historic than 23% of U.S. towns, #616 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 Courtland Township?
7% of Courtland Township’s homes were built before 1940 (Census estimate, ±3.8 points), against a typical 12% for a Michigan town; the median home was built in 1998.
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 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.
