The Lyons Township post office opened in 1836, the earliest record of the town by name. Another post office, Montrose Station (1857), opened inside today’s town and later closed.
2020 census: 3,513190 years
How historic is Lyons Township?
A−
More historic than 83% of U.S. towns, on its age, its old homes and the National Register.
Founding year: the first Lyons Township post office (Blevins & Helbock, CC0).
History grade
What drives Lyons Township’s History grade
On its age, its old homes and the National Register, Lyons Township is more historic than 83% of U.S. towns, #115 of 701 in Michigan. All 3 inputs are above most U.S. towns; its share of homes from before 1940 ranks highest and its National Register listings lowest.
A−
HistoryA character grade: shown, never part of Lyons 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 Lyons Township’s 2.8 sits above most of its state (71% of Michigan towns have fewer) while its 1 listings outnumber those of 51% 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 (±4.9 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 Lyons 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 Lyons Township yet. The photos, dates and memories neighbors add here are how it gets written.
Lyons Township is a civil township of Ionia County in the U.S. state of Michigan. The population was 3,513 at the 2020 census. The village of Lyons is mostly within the township. The villages of Muir and Pewamo are also within the township.
Its first post office opened in 1836. Its population held steady between the last two censuses: 3,465 in 2010, 3,513 in 2020.
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.
Every edition of the U.S. Geological Survey’s map of Lyons Township. Tap a year, or press play to watch the town change.
1978Portland North 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 Lyons Township.
On the National Register
1 historic place in Lyons Township
The country’s official list of buildings and places worth saving.
The Lyons Township post office opened in 1836, the earliest record of the town by name (U.S. post office records).
How does Lyons Township rank for history?
Lyons Township is more historic than 83% of U.S. towns, #115 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 Lyons Township?
One place: the Muir Church of Christ (listed 1983).
How old are the homes in Lyons Township?
24% of Lyons Township’s homes were built before 1940 (Census estimate, ±4.9 points), against a typical 12% for a Michigan town; the median home was built in 1971.
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 (1), 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.
