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History · Hanover

Hanover’s post office opened in 1837, and 46% of its homes were built before 1940

1 place in town is on the National Register. Below: maps from 1948 on and the census since 1880.

1837first post office
1on the National Register
46%homes built before 1940
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Quick answers

How Hanover began

When was Hanover founded?

1837

The Hanover post office opened in 1837, the earliest record of the town by name.

First census: 300 in 18802020 census: 472189 years
Founding year: the first Hanover post office (Blevins & Helbock, CC0).

What stands out about Hanover’s past

Read from the archive, the National Register and the record. The page puts what stands out first.

A history waiting to be writtenNo old photos of Hanover are in the public archives yet. The rest are in attics and albums.Old housesHalf of Hanover’s homes were built before 1946.Deep rootsA post office since 1837: 189 years of Hanover.
★ What stands out · Help out

Start Hanover’s collection

The first neighbors to add old photos shape how Hanover’s history is told.

Decades since 1900 with photos
00s10s20s30s40s50s60s70s80s90s
0 of 10 decades. The empty ones are waiting for someone’s album.
Share a family photoSign in to add one+10
The story so far

Hanover, in brief

Wikipedia doesn’t have a history of Hanover yet. The photos, dates and memories neighbors add here are how it gets written.

Hanover is a village in Jackson County in the U.S. state of Michigan. As of the 2020 census, Hanover had a population of 472. The village is located within Hanover Township.

Its first post office opened in 1837. Between the 2010 and 2020 censuses its population grew from 441 to 472 (+7%).

Intro from Wikipedia. Population: U.S. Census Bureau.

By decade

No old photos in the archives yet

Weddings on Main Street, storms, parades, school pictures, the old store. If it’s in your family album, it belongs here.

Be the first to add onePhotograph a print flat, in daylight, no flash.
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On the map

Hanover on the map, 1948 to 1981

Every edition of the U.S. Geological Survey’s map of Hanover. Tap a year, or press play to watch the town change.

Hanover on the 1948 USGS mapHanover on the 1981 USGS map1948Spring Arbor 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 Hanover.

On the National Register

1 historic place in Hanover

The country’s official list of buildings and places worth saving.

place listed
1
National Historic Landmarks
0
none yet
historic buildings protected
21
each building in a district counts

National Park Service, National Register of Historic Places. Photos from Wikimedia Commons, credited on each place’s page.

People over time

Hanover, census by census

010020030040050018801900192019401960198020002020Peak: 513

Between 300 and 513 people in every census since 1880.

15 censuses, 1880–2020.

U.S. Census Bureau decennial counts, from the census table on Hanover’s Wikipedia page.

Famous people

Famous people close to Hanover

Nobody well known was born in Hanover itself, so here are the best known from just nearby.

See all →
Karch KiralyAmerican volleyball player and coach · b. 1960
Alfred WordenAmerican astronaut · b. 1932
Dan Coats5th Director of National Intelligence, former U… · b. 1943
Tyler OakleyAmerican YouTuber · b. 1989
Charles W. MisnerAmerican physicist · b. 1932
David Todd WilkinsonAmerican cosmologist · b. 1935

Questions about Hanover’s history

What year was Hanover founded?

The Hanover post office opened in 1837, the earliest record of the town by name (U.S. post office records).

Memory lane

What the archives can’t tell you, neighbors can.

Town Square →
Start a conversation
Sources

Where this page comes from

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). How TownRatings grades history →

From Wikidata (1), U.S. Geological Survey historical maps and U.S. Census counts (via Wikipedia). Archive images are copied here with their credits and licenses, shown on each photo’s page. Refreshed monthly.