On its age, its old homes and the National Register, Park Township is more historic than 56% of U.S. towns. Its share of homes from before 1940 holds the grade up; its National Register listings pull it down.
B
HistoryA character grade: shown, never part of Park 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 Park 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 two of the three inputs, so a change in either one moves the letter more than it would with three. The pre-1940 share is a Census survey estimate (±6.8 points).
Founding year: our sources. 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 Park Township’s past
Read from the archive, the National Register and the record. The page puts what stands out first.
Lost post offices, old corners, places now gone and burying grounds
Three other post offices opened and closed inside today’s town.
Parkville
1854–1918
Moorepark
1872–1960
Mint
1890–1903
18501940today
Hamlets and corners on the map
Moore ParkParkvillePine Ridge
Gone or out of use
Mint Post Officepost officeMoorepark Post Officepost officeMoorepark StationlocaleParkville Post Officepost office
5cemeteries and burying grounds inside Park Township
Center ParkMintMoore ParkParkvilleSouth Park
US Post Offices dataset (Blevins & Helbock, CC0). Places and cemeteries from the USGS Geographic Names Information System (2021).
On the map
Park Township on the map, 1922 to 1973
Every edition of the U.S. Geological Survey’s map of Park Township. Tap a year, or press play to watch the town change.
1922Schoolcraft 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 Park Township.
The story so far
Park Township, in brief
Wikipedia doesn’t have a history of Park Township yet. The photos, dates and memories neighbors add here are how it gets written.
Park Township is a civil township of St. Joseph County in the U.S. state of Michigan. The population was 2,397 at the 2020 census. The township was originally part of Flowerfield Township and was set off as a separate township in 1838.
Between the 2010 and 2020 censuses its population fell from 2,600 to 2,397 (-8%).
Intro from Wikipedia. Population: U.S. Census Bureau.
Timeline
Park Township, 1854 to 1960
Woven from the archive, old maps, post office records, the National Register and the people born here.
Park Township is more historic than 56% 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 Park Township?
26% of Park Township’s homes were built before 1940 (Census estimate, ±6.8 points), against a typical 12% for a Michigan town; the median home was built in 1968.
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 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.
