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Rochester Hills, Michigan (55431969856)Photo: Ajay Suresh · CC BY 4.0
CHistory
History · Rochester Hills

Rochester Hills was first counted by the census in 1990, and 2 of its places are on the National Register

More historic than 26% of U.S. towns · #595 of 701 in Michigan. What drives it

Most of Rochester Hills was built recently: 3% of its homes predate 1940 and the median home dates from 1984. 2 places in town are on the National Register, among them the Meadow Brook Farms, a National Historic Landmark, and a historic district with 17 buildings. Below: maps from 1908 on and the census since 1990.

1990first census
2on the National Register
3%homes built before 1940
10famous people
Add an old photoShare a memory
Quick answers

How Rochester Hills began

When was Rochester Hills founded?

1990

Rochester Hills first appears in the census in 1990. Another post office, Avon (1842), opened inside today’s city and later closed.

First census: 61,766 in 19902020 census: 76,30036 years

How historic is Rochester Hills?

C

More historic than 26% of U.S. towns, on its age, its old homes and the National Register.

What drives the grade ↓
Founding year: the first census.The full story ↓
History grade

What drives Rochester Hills’ History grade

On its age, its old homes and the National Register, Rochester Hills is more historic than 26% of U.S. towns, #595 of 701 in Michigan. Its National Register listings hold the grade up; its age pulls it down.

C
HistoryA character grade: shown, never part of Rochester Hills’ overall grade.
Founding era1990, from the first census: founded 1945 or later, an older era than 2% of U.S. townsD−Homes built before 19403.0% of homes (±0.7) · typical MI town 11.9% · U.S. 8.4%C−National Register2 listings, 30 historic buildings, 3.9 per 10,000 residents · typical MI town 0.0 · U.S. 2.4A−
All U.S. towns we grade (21,289)Ahead of 26%
NewerOlder
Michigan towns of 2,500+ (701)Ahead of 15%

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 Rochester Hills’ 3.9 sits above most of its state (74% of Michigan towns have fewer) while its 30 historic buildings outnumber those of 82% of U.S. towns.

How sure. Graded on any two of the three inputs instead, the letter would range from D to B−. The pre-1940 share (±0.7 points) is firm at this size.

Founding year: the first census (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 Rochester Hills’ 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 Rochester Hills are in the public archives yet. The rest are in attics and albums.On the map since 19088 editions of the USGS map, 1908 to 1997. Watch Rochester Hills change.A National Historic Landmark2 places on the National Register, including Meadow Brook Farms, a National Historic Landmark.Famous sons and daughtersBrad Keselowski, Alec Martinez and 8 more were born here.
★ What stands out · Help out

Start Rochester Hills’s collection

The first neighbors to add old photos shape how Rochester Hills’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
On the map

Rochester Hills on the map, 1908 to 1997

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

Rochester Hills on the 1908 USGS mapRochester Hills on the 1936 USGS mapRochester Hills on the 1945 USGS mapRochester Hills on the 1952 USGS mapRochester Hills on the 1968 USGS mapRochester Hills on the 1973 USGS mapRochester Hills on the 1981 USGS mapRochester Hills on the 1997 USGS map1908Rochester 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 Rochester Hills.

On the National Register

2 listings protect 30 historic buildings

The country’s official list of buildings and places worth saving. One is a National Historic Landmark, the highest tier.

places listed
2
National Historic Landmark
1
Meadow Brook Farms
historic buildings protected
30
each building in a district counts
first listed
1972
Stony Creek Village Historic District
Stony Creek Village Historic DistrictMeadow Brook Farms, built 1929★
BuildingsDistricts★ landmark

Architectural styles listings

Jacobean Revival1
Greek Revival1
★ Landmark
Meadow Brook FarmsJacobean Revival · Built 1929
Stony Creek Village Historic DistrictGreek Revival

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

The story

How Rochester Hills came to be

From Wikipedia’s history of Rochester Hills.

Read it all →

Prior to European settlement, the area now known as Rochester Hills was inhabited by Native Americans, namely the Potawatomi. The Potawatomi depended on the area's abundant water sources, such as the Clinton River and Paint Creek, to grow crops, fish, and travel. They resided in the area until the 1807 Treaty of Detroit caused them, along with the Odawa, Wyandot, and Ojibwe peoples, to forcibly cede their land in Southeast Michigan.

Text from Wikipedia, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0.

Timeline

Rochester Hills, 1842 to 2012

Woven from the archive, old maps, post office records, the National Register and the people born here.

  1. 19th century
  2. 1842Post officeThe Avon post office opens
  3. 1843Post officeThe Avon post office closes
  4. 20th century
  5. 1908On the mapFirst mapped by the U.S. Geological Survey
  6. 1929BuiltMeadow Brook Farms is built
  7. 1966Born hereMichelle Berube is born here
  8. 1983Born hereHaley Stevens is born here
  9. 1984Born hereBrad Keselowski is born here
  10. 1987Born hereAlec Martinez is born here
  11. 21st century
  12. 2012LandmarkMeadow Brook Farms named a National Historic Landmark
By decade

Rochester Hills, decade by decade

Today21 recent
Rochester Hills, Michigan2026Rochester Hills, MichiganJohn Dodge House2021John Dodge HouseThe Dodge Mansion at Meadowbrook2020The Dodge Mansion at MeadowbrookAutumn at Spencer Park2020Autumn at Spencer ParkBarn and additions on the campus of Oakland University2019Barn and additions on the campus of Oakland UniversityMarshall M. Fredericks's "Saints and Sinners" sculptures outside the Kresge Library at Oakland University2019Marshall M. Fredericks's "Saints and Sinners" sculptu…Marshall M. Fredericks's "Saints and Sinners" sculptures outside the Kresge Library at Oakland University2019Marshall M. Fredericks's "Saints and Sinners" sculptu…Clock tower on the campus of Oakland University2019Clock tower on the campus of Oakland UniversityAutumnal display on the campus of Oakland University2019Autumnal display on the campus of Oakland UniversityAutumnal display on the campus of Oakland University2019Autumnal display on the campus of Oakland UniversityThe Rochester Hills Public Library in Rochester, Michigan. Although there is a separate and nearby city of Rochester Hi…2019The Rochester Hills Public Library in Rochester, Mich…SaiTemple RochesterHills MI 2019 11 13 10 50 162019SaiTemple RochesterHills MI 2019 11 13 10 50 16AdamsFront2017AdamsFrontUntitled photo2016Untitled photoUntitled photo2016Untitled photo20160604- Z0A3379 - Copy201620160604- Z0A3379 - CopyStony Creek Masonic Lodge No 5 Marker2014Stony Creek Masonic Lodge No 5 MarkerMount Moriah Marker2014Mount Moriah MarkerMount Avon Cemetery Marker2014Mount Avon Cemetery MarkerYates Cider Mill main building2011Yates Cider Mill main buildingModifiedRedCavalier2003ModifiedRedCavalier
People over time

Rochester Hills, census by census

020,00040,00060,00080,00020002020Peak: 76,300

Between 61,766 and 76,300 people in every census since 1990.

4 censuses, 1990–2020.

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

Famous people

10 famous people were born in Rochester Hills

Writers, athletes, leaders and more, ranked by how widely they’re known.

See all →
Brad KeselowskiAmerican stock car racing driver · b. 1984
Alec MartinezAmerican ice hockey player · b. 1987
Haley StevensAmerican politician · b. 1983
M
Michelle BerubeAmerican actress · b. 1966
Jay Abel HubbellAmerican politician · b. 1829
A
Abby CrumptonAmerican soccer player · b. 1981
Places that used to be

Lost post offices, old corners and burying grounds

Another post office, Avon, opened and closed inside today’s town.

Hamlets and corners on the map
Yates
2cemeteries and burying grounds inside Rochester Hills
Christian Memorial EstatesOakland

US Post Offices dataset (Blevins & Helbock, CC0). Places and cemeteries from the USGS Geographic Names Information System (2021).

Stories next door

History across the town line

Each neighbor’s History grade, on the same three inputs.

Rochester4 historic placesB+Oakland Township3 historic placesB+Auburn HillsIts storyC−Shelby Township2 historic placesC+Troy2 historic placesBOrion Township3 historic placesB+

Questions about Rochester Hills’ history

What year was Rochester Hills founded?

The Rochester Hills post office opened in 1990, the earliest record of the town by name (U.S. post office records).

How does Rochester Hills rank for history?

Rochester Hills is more historic than 26% of U.S. towns, #595 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 Rochester Hills?

Two places: the Meadow Brook Farms (listed 1979) and the Stony Creek Village Historic District (1972).

How old are the homes in Rochester Hills?

3% of Rochester Hills’ homes were built before 1940 (Census estimate), against a typical 12% for a Michigan town; the median home was built in 1984.

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).

From Wikimedia Commons (14), the Library of Congress (7), the National Register of Historic Places (2), 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) 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.