Founding year: Wikidata. First post office: 1841.The full story ↓
History grade
What drives Leslie’s History grade
On its age, its old homes and the National Register, Leslie is more historic than 77% of U.S. towns. Its share of homes from before 1940 holds the grade up; its National Register listings pull it down.
A−
HistoryA character grade: shown, never part of Leslie’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 Leslie’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 B− to A. The pre-1940 share is a Census survey estimate (±8.1 points). Two sources give 1836.
Founding year: Wikidata (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 Leslie’s past
Read from the archive, the National Register and the record. The page puts what stands out first.
Fire insurance maps drew every building, what it was made of and what it was used for, so insurers could price the risk of fire. Pick a year, then a sheet.
Leslie was first settled by Elijah Woodworth in 1836, who built the first log cabin in the city. It was originally named Meekerville after a pioneer to the area, Benjamin Meeker. Jerry G. Cornell named the town after a prominent Leslie family in eastern New York, his home state. The name Leslie was adopted officially when a post office was assigned to the area in 1841. Leslie was later incorporated as a village in 1869, and as a city nearly 100 years later in 1968.
Passages that mention Leslie, cut from the printed page as they were published.
History of the early life and business interests of the village and township of Leslie, Ingham County, Michigan1914 · page 95Read the page →
Read the text
VILLAGE INCORPORATION The village of Leslie was incorporated March 30, 1869. The territory included was the south half of Section 21, the north half of Section 28, and a lot in the northeastern quarter in the southwestern quarter of Section 28. The Charter was amended April 15, 1871; April 18, 1873; March 14, 1877. The first election for village officers was held Monday, April
Text read by machine from the scan; it may contain errors.
History of the early life and business interests of the village and township of Leslie, Ingham County, Michigan1914Read the page →
Read the text
Early in March, 1836, the first log house in the village of Leslie was built by Elijah Woodworth, on Bellevue Street, near Huntoon Creek. This was followed by a second one near Five Corners, owned by Mr. Loomis; a third near the Methodist Church, by Henry Meeker, and a frame one which is now called the Dowling residence, on Bellevue street by Mr. Elmer. Friends and relatives of the then
Text read by machine from the scan; it may contain errors.
Scans and text from the Internet Archive. Books published in 1930 or earlier, which are in the public domain.
Timeline
Leslie, 1836 to 1922
Woven from the archive, old maps, post office records, the National Register and the people born here.
US Post Offices dataset (Blevins & Helbock, CC0). Places and cemeteries from the USGS Geographic Names Information System (2021).
Questions about Leslie’s history
What year was Leslie founded?
In 1836, according to Wikidata. Leslie’s post office opened in 1841, and the census of 1880 counted 1,113 people here.
How does Leslie rank for history?
Leslie is more historic than 77% 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 Leslie?
43% of Leslie’s homes were built before 1940 (Census estimate, ±8.1 points), against a typical 12% for a Michigan town; the median home was built in 1949.
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 (6), Wikipedia, Wikidata and Wikipedia for famous people, U.S. Geological Survey historical maps, U.S. Census counts (via Wikipedia), the US Post Offices dataset (Blevins & Helbock), the USGS Geographic Names Information System, Sanborn fire insurance maps (Library of Congress) and old county and town histories (Internet Archive). Archive images are copied here with their credits and licenses, shown on each photo’s page. Refreshed monthly.
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