Its Register listings are the Little Sable Point Light Station and the Mears, Charles, Silver Lake Boardinghouse. Most of Golden Township was built recently: 8% of its homes predate 1940 and the median home dates from 1982. Below: maps from 1931 on.
On its age, its old homes and the National Register, Golden Township is more historic than 61% of U.S. towns. Its National Register listings hold the grade up; its share of homes from before 1940 pulls it down.
B
HistoryA character grade: shown, never part of Golden 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 Golden Township’s 11.7 sits above most of its state (84% of Michigan towns have fewer) while its 2 listings outnumber those of 60% 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 (±2.5 points) is firm at this size.
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 Golden 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
Three other post offices opened and closed inside today’s town.
Golding
1866–1877
Collinsville
1872–1874
Mears
1873–today
East Golden
1874–1883
18601940today
Hamlets and corners on the map
Mears
Gone or out of use
East Golden Post Officepost officeEast Golden StationlocaleGolding Post Officepost officeMears Stationlocale
2cemeteries and burying grounds inside Golden Township
MearsRound Lake
US Post Offices dataset (Blevins & Helbock, CC0). Places and cemeteries from the USGS Geographic Names Information System (2021).
The story so far
Golden Township, in brief
Wikipedia doesn’t have a history of Golden Township yet. The photos, dates and memories neighbors add here are how it gets written.
Golden Township is a civil township of Oceana County in the U.S. state of Michigan. The population was 1,660 at the 2020 census. The township is home to the Silver Lake Sand Dunes, and is located along the shore of Lake Michigan. Golden Township was established in 1864.
Between the 2010 and 2020 censuses its population fell from 1,742 to 1,660 (-5%).
Intro from Wikipedia. Population: U.S. Census Bureau.
Timeline
Golden Township, 1866 to 1931
Woven from the archive, old maps, post office records, the National Register and the people born here.
Every edition of the U.S. Geological Survey’s map of Golden Township. Tap a year, or press play to watch the town change.
1931Hart NW sheet · 1:31,680
U.S. Geological Survey historical topographic maps (public domain), via Esri’s collection of the scans. The red ring marks the center of Golden Township.
On the National Register
2 historic places in Golden Township
The country’s official list of buildings and places worth saving.
Golden Township is more historic than 61% of U.S. towns. 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 Golden Township?
Two places: the Little Sable Point Light Station (listed 1984) and the Mears, Charles, Silver Lake Boardinghouse (1986).
How old are the homes in Golden Township?
8% of Golden Township’s homes were built before 1940 (Census estimate, ±2.5 points), against a typical 12% for a Michigan town; the median home was built in 1982.
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 (2), 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.
