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C+History
History · Romulus

Romulus dates to 1826, and 2 of its places are on the National Register

More historic than 42% of U.S. towns · #433 of 701 in Michigan. What drives it

Most of Romulus was built recently: 4% of its homes predate 1940 and the median home dates from 1972. Its Register listings are the Saint Rita Apartments and the Marwood Apartments. Below: maps from 1906 on and the census since 1970.

1826founded
2on the National Register
4%homes built before 1940
6famous people
Add an old photoShare a memory
Quick answers

How Romulus began

When was Romulus founded?

1826

Romulus dates its founding to 1826 (Wikidata). The census first counted it in 1970.

First census: 22,900 in 19702020 census: 25,178200 years

How historic is Romulus?

C+

More historic than 42% of U.S. towns, on its age, its old homes and the National Register.

What drives the grade ↓
Founding year: Wikidata. First post office: 1835.The full story ↓
History grade

What drives Romulus’ History grade

On its age, its old homes and the National Register, Romulus is more historic than 42% of U.S. towns, #433 of 701 in Michigan. Its National Register listings hold the grade up; its share of homes from before 1940 pulls it down.

C+
HistoryA character grade: shown, never part of Romulus’ overall grade.
Founding eraNo founding year we can rely on, so the grade uses the other two–Homes built before 19404.2% of homes (±1.2) · typical MI town 11.9% · U.S. 8.4%CNational Register2 listings, 0.8 per 10,000 residents · typical MI town 0.0 · U.S. 2.4B
All U.S. towns we grade (21,289)Ahead of 42%
NewerOlder
Michigan towns of 2,500+ (701)Ahead of 38%

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 Romulus’ 0.8 sits above most of its state (65% of Michigan towns have fewer) while its 2 listings outnumber those of 60% 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 (±1.2 points) is firm at this size. Two sources give 1826.

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 Romulus’ 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 Romulus are in the public archives yet. The rest are in attics and albums.On the map since 19068 editions of the USGS map, 1906 to 1980. Watch Romulus change.Deep rootsEstablished in 1826: 200 years of Romulus.
★ What stands out · Help out

Start Romulus’s collection

The first neighbors to add old photos shape how Romulus’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

Romulus on the map, 1906 to 1980

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

Romulus on the 1906 USGS mapRomulus on the 1928 USGS mapRomulus on the 1936 USGS mapRomulus on the 1942 USGS mapRomulus on the 1952 USGS mapRomulus on the 1967 USGS mapRomulus on the 1973 USGS mapRomulus on the 1980 USGS map1906Romulus 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 Romulus.

Timeline

Romulus, 1826 to 1989

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

  1. 19th century
  2. 1826
    FoundingRomulus is established
  3. 1835Post officeThe Romulus post office opens
  4. 1899Post officeThe Preston post office opens
  5. 20th century
  6. 1906Post officeThe Preston post office closes
  7. 1906On the mapFirst mapped by the U.S. Geological Survey
  8. 1925BuiltMarwood Apartments is built
  9. 1933Born hereCharley Lau is born here
  10. 1956Born hereJohn Long is born here
  11. 1967Born hereTerry Mills is born here
  12. 1989Born hereDevin Searcy is born here
The story

How Romulus came to be

From Wikipedia’s history of Romulus.

Read it all →

The first white settler in Romulus was Samuel Polyne, a French Canadian, who settled on section 2 in 1826, though he left soon after the township was organized in 1835.

The first settler in the village proper (prior to the 1865 annexation of the whole village and township into one city) was Samuel McMath, who moved from New York state to the area in 1827. He improved land and planned to bring his family to settle there, but he died before he could carry out this plan.

ChaptersVillage of RomulusUnderground Railroad stopsPrestonAirliner incidentsChemical plant explosion

Text from Wikipedia, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0.

By decade

Romulus, decade by decade

Today30 recent
Zmart, 13034 South Huron River Drive2011Zmart, 13034 South Huron River DriveZYNP building, 30610 Ecorse Road2011ZYNP building, 30610 Ecorse RoadWater tower at former Kelsey-Hayes plant, 38844 Huron River Drive2011Water tower at former Kelsey-Hayes plant, 38844 Huron…VFW Post 9658, 39270 West Huron River Drive2011VFW Post 9658, 39270 West Huron River DriveSuper Y Market, 7130 Middlebelt Road2011Super Y Market, 7130 Middlebelt RoadSpartan delivery truck2011Spartan delivery truckShiloh Christian Church, 30055 Ecorse Road2011Shiloh Christian Church, 30055 Ecorse RoadSaturn Electronics2011Saturn ElectronicsRomulus Senior High School Michigan2011Romulus Senior High School MichiganRomulus Fire Station No. 4, 28777 Eureka Road2011Romulus Fire Station No. 4, 28777 Eureka RoadRomulus Fire Station No. 2, 7221 Middlebelt Road2011Romulus Fire Station No. 2, 7221 Middlebelt RoadRomulus Community High-Middle School2011Romulus Community High-Middle SchoolResidential Crucifix, 37000 Eureka Road2011Residential Crucifix, 37000 Eureka RoadRKA Petroleum Companies Headquarters Building2011RKA Petroleum Companies Headquarters BuildingMorris Homestead historical marker, 13925 Huron River Drive South2011Morris Homestead historical marker, 13925 Huron River…Morris Homestead historic site, 13925 Huron River Drive South2011Morris Homestead historic site, 13925 Huron River Dri…Merril-Morris House2011Merril-Morris HouseMary Ann Banks Memorial Park2011Mary Ann Banks Memorial ParkMamma Rosa Food, 30881 Ecorse Road2011Mamma Rosa Food, 30881 Ecorse RoadHuron River Drive at Ozga Road intersection2011Huron River Drive at Ozga Road intersectionHorses in yard, 14068 Huron River Drive South2011Horses in yard, 14068 Huron River Drive SouthEntrance to Gateway Golf Club, 33290 Gateway Drive2011Entrance to Gateway Golf Club, 33290 Gateway DriveConcentra urgent care medical center2011Concentra urgent care medical centerBudweiser beverage delivery truck2011Budweiser beverage delivery truckBlue Sky Ice Cream ^ Hamburgers, 15155 Huron River Drive2011Blue Sky Ice Cream ^ Hamburgers, 15155 Huron River Dr…Ball Road Tabernacle, 7007 Ball Road2011Ball Road Tabernacle, 7007 Ball RoadUnivar Detroit-Romulus Distribution Facility2010Univar Detroit-Romulus Distribution FacilityRomulus-MI-01s2010Romulus-MI-01sRomulus Community Schools Administrative offices2010Romulus Community Schools Administrative officesGeneral Motors Romulus Engine plant entrance2010General Motors Romulus Engine plant entrance
On the National Register

2 historic places in Romulus

The country’s official list of buildings and places worth saving.

places listed
2
National Historic Landmarks
0
none yet
historic buildings protected
2
each building in a district counts
first listed
2017
Saint Rita Apartments
Saint Rita ApartmentsMarwood Apartments, built 1925
Buildings
Saint Rita ApartmentsBuilding
Marwood ApartmentsBuilt 1925

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

People over time

Romulus, census by census

05,00010,00015,00020,00025,000198020002020Peak: 25,178

Between 22,897 and 25,178 people in every census since 1970.

6 censuses, 1970–2020.

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

Famous people

6 famous people were born in Romulus

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

See all →
John LongAmerican basketball player · b. 1956
Terry MillsAmerican basketball player · b. 1967
Devin SearcyAmerican basketball player · b. 1989
C
Charley LauAmerican baseball player and coach · b. 1933
J
Julius LongAmerican boxer · b. 1977
F
Frank SackaBaseball player · b. 1924
Places that used to be

Lost post offices, old corners, places now gone and burying grounds

Romulus’s post office has been open since 1835. Another post office, Preston, opened and closed inside today’s town.

Romulus
1835–today
Preston
1899–1906
18301930today
Hamlets and corners on the map
Sunnyside
Gone or out of use
Preston Post Officepost officeRomulus Army Air Fieldmilitary
1cemetery inside Romulus
Romulus Memorial

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.

TaylorIts storyC+WayneIts storyCHuron Township1 historic placeBVan Buren TownshipIts storyC+

Questions about Romulus’ history

What year was Romulus founded?

In 1826, according to Wikidata. Romulus’ post office opened in 1835, and the census of 1970 counted 22,900 people here.

How does Romulus rank for history?

Romulus is more historic than 42% of U.S. towns, #433 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 Romulus?

Two places: the Saint Rita Apartments (listed 2017) and the Marwood Apartments (2019).

How old are the homes in Romulus?

4% of Romulus’ homes were built before 1940 (Census estimate, ±1.2 points), against a typical 12% for a Michigan town; the median home was built in 1972.

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 (30), 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.