More historic than 45% of U.S. towns · #404 of 701 in Michigan. What drives it
Most of Roseville was built recently: 7% of its homes predate 1940 and the median home dates from 1961. Below: 10 old photos and papers, maps from 1936 on, and the census since 1930.
Founding year: Wikidata. First post office: 1844.The full story ↓
History grade
What drives Roseville’s History grade
On its age, its old homes and the National Register, Roseville is more historic than 45% of U.S. towns, #404 of 701 in Michigan. Its age holds the grade up; its National Register listings pull it down.
B−
HistoryA character grade: shown, never part of Roseville’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 Roseville’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 any two of the three inputs instead, the letter would range from C− to B. The pre-1940 share (±1.2 points) is firm at this size. Two sources give 1840.
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 Roseville’s past
Read from the archive, the National Register and the record. The page puts what stands out first.
The first permanent post office in the area was established in 1840 by William Rose who named it "Roseville" in honor of his father Dennison Rose, a veteran of the War of 1812.
The village of Roseville was incorporated in 1926, and the municipal building was constructed in 1929 at Gratiot Avenue and Meier Road. This replaced the Erin Township Building that was built near the corner of 11 Mile Road and Gratiot in 1886. The 1929 building housed administrative offices as well as the police and fire departments until the 1960s, when separate police and fire stations were constructed. City offices remained in the building until 1974.
Passages that mention Roseville, cut from the printed page as they were published.
History of Macomb County, Michigan, containing ... biographical sketches, portraits of prominent men and early settlers1882Read the page →
Read the text
Roseville is a village of 400 inhabitants, in Erin Township, Macomb County, four and a half miles south of Frazer, on the Grand Trunk Railway, three miles from Lake St. Clair, nineteen miles above Detroit and ten south of Mt. Clemens. The place contains six chiu'ches— one Catholic, thi-ee Lutheran, MetJiodist and Presln-terian — and several schools. Fruit, grain, hay and potatoes ai'e the exports. Gustave Schuchard is Postmaster.
Text read by machine from the scan; it may contain errors.
History of Macomb County, Michigan, containing an account of its settlement, growth, development and resources...churches, schools and societies1882 · page 895Read the page →
Read the text
Roseville is a village of 400 inhabitants, in Erin Township, Macomb County, four and a half miles south of Frazer, on the Grand Trunk Railway, three miles from Lake St. Clair, nineteen miles above Detroit and ten south of Mt. Clemens. The place contains six churches— one Catholic, three Lutheran, Methodist and Presbyterian — and several schools. Fruit, grain, hay and potatoes are the exports. Gustave Schuchard is Postmaster.
Text read by machine from the scan; it may contain errors.
Scans and text from the Internet Archive. Books published in 1930 or earlier, which are in the public domain.
By decade
Roseville, decade by decade
One decade in the archive so far: the 1980s. 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.
In 1840, according to Wikidata. Roseville’s post office opened in 1844, and the census of 1930 counted 6,836 people here.
How does Roseville rank for history?
Roseville is more historic than 45% of U.S. towns, #404 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.
How old are the homes in Roseville?
7% of Roseville’s homes were built before 1940 (Census estimate, ±1.2 points), against a typical 12% for a Michigan town; the median home was built in 1961.
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 (20), 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), the USGS Geographic Names Information System and old county and town histories (Internet Archive). Archive images are copied here with their credits and licenses, shown on each photo’s page. Refreshed monthly.
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