The Greenbush Township post office opened in 1870, the earliest record of the town by name. Three smaller post offices, Greenbush (1870), Roy (1886) and Perfection (1917), opened inside today’s town and later closed.
2020 census: 1,270156 years
How historic is Greenbush Township?
C−
More historic than 22% of U.S. towns, on its age, its old homes and the National Register.
Founding year: the first Greenbush Township post office (Blevins & Helbock, CC0).The full story ↓
History grade
What drives Greenbush Township’s History grade
On its age, its old homes and the National Register, Greenbush Township is more historic than 22% of U.S. towns. Its age holds the grade up; its National Register listings pull it down.
C−
HistoryA character grade: shown, never part of Greenbush 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 Greenbush 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 C− to C. The pre-1940 share (±2.6 points) is firm at this size. 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 Greenbush Township’s past
Read from the archive, the National Register and the record. The page puts what stands out first.
The area was first settled as early as 1848, when Crosier Davidson of Detroit moved here and built a fishery and cooperage along the shores of Lake Huron. At the time, it became one of the county's first settlements, and the area was referred to as the Sliding Banks of the Au Sable River. Alcona County was only organized eight years earlier and was being administered by Michilimackinac County to the north. At the time, the settlement was part of Harrisville Township, which occupied the entirety of Alcona County. The area contained numerous unexplored pine resources, and lumber companies surveyed the area in order to purchase inexpensive government land for development.
Every edition of the U.S. Geological Survey’s map of Greenbush Township. Tap a year, or press play to watch the town change.
1959Harrisville 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 Greenbush Township.
Famous people
Famous people close to Greenbush Township
Nobody well known was born in Greenbush Township itself, so here are the best known from just nearby.
The Greenbush Township post office opened in 1870, the earliest record of the town by name (U.S. post office records).
How does Greenbush Township rank for history?
Greenbush Township is more historic than 22% 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.
How old are the homes in Greenbush Township?
5% of Greenbush Township’s homes were built before 1940 (Census estimate, ±2.6 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 (5), 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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