From Lexington Township’s archive · credits on each photo
Quick answers
How Lexington Township began
When was Lexington Township founded?
1848
The Lexington Township post office opened in 1848, the earliest record of the town by name. Another post office, Falcon (1882), opened inside today’s town and later closed.
First census: 953 in 18802020 census: 3,485178 years
How historic is Lexington Township?
A−
More historic than 84% of U.S. towns, on its age, its old homes and the National Register.
Founding year: the first Lexington Township post office (Blevins & Helbock, CC0).
History grade
What drives Lexington Township’s History grade
On its age, its old homes and the National Register, Lexington Township is more historic than 84% of U.S. towns, #105 of 701 in Michigan. All 3 inputs are above most U.S. towns; its National Register listings ranks highest and its share of homes from before 1940 lowest.
A−
HistoryA character grade: shown, never part of Lexington 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 Lexington Township’s 14.4 sits above most of its state (85% of Michigan towns have fewer) while its 5 listings outnumber those of 70% of U.S. towns.
How sure. Graded on any two of the three inputs instead, the letter would still be A−. The pre-1940 share is a Census survey estimate (±6.0 points). 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 Lexington Township’s past
Read from the archive, the National Register and the record. The page puts what stands out first.
Wikipedia doesn’t have a history of Lexington Township yet. The photos, dates and memories neighbors add here are how it gets written.
Lexington is a village in Sanilac County in the U.S. state of Michigan. As of the 2020 census, Lexington had a population of 943. The village is located within Lexington Township.
Its first post office opened in 1848. Between the 2010 and 2020 censuses its population fell from 3,658 to 3,485 (-5%).
Intro from Wikipedia. Population: U.S. Census Bureau.
By decade
Lexington Township, decade by decade
One decade in the archive so far: the 1900s. Scroll each row; tap a photo for its story.
Nothing in the archives for these yearsWeddings on Main Street, storms, parades, school pictures, the old store. If it’s in your family album, it belongs here.
Every edition of the U.S. Geological Survey’s map of Lexington Township. Tap a year, or press play to watch the town change.
1963Croswell 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 Lexington Township.
Then & now
Stand where they stood
No then-and-now pairs yet. Take a photo from the same spot as an old one and they appear here side by side.
Retake this viewCadillac House Lexington c 1900, c. 1900
Find the spot, match the angle, and add your photo. It becomes the first then-and-now pair on Lexington Township’s page.
The Lexington Township post office opened in 1848, the earliest record of the town by name (U.S. post office records).
How does Lexington Township rank for history?
Lexington Township is more historic than 84% of U.S. towns, #105 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.
What is on the National Register in Lexington Township?
5 listings: 5 buildings, among them the John L. Fead House (listed 1978, the first).
How old are the homes in Lexington Township?
17% of Lexington Township’s homes were built before 1940 (Census estimate, ±6.0 points), against a typical 12% for a Michigan town; the median home was built in 1975.
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), Wikidata (1), the National Register of Historic Places (5), U.S. Geological Survey historical maps, U.S. Census counts (via Wikipedia), 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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