The Solon Township post office opened in 1870, the earliest record of the town by name. Two smaller post offices, Solon (1870) and Fouch (1893), opened inside today’s town and later closed.
2020 census: 1,562156 years
How historic is Solon Township?
C
More historic than 28% of U.S. towns, on its age, its old homes and the National Register.
Founding year: the first Solon Township post office (Blevins & Helbock, CC0).
History grade
What drives Solon Township’s History grade
On its age, its old homes and the National Register, Solon Township is more historic than 28% of U.S. towns. Its share of homes from before 1940 holds the grade up; its National Register listings pull it down.
C
HistoryA character grade: shown, never part of Solon 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 Solon 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 any two of the three inputs instead, the letter would still be C. 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 Solon 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
Two other post offices opened and closed inside today’s town.
Solon
1870–1909
Cedar
1893–today
Fouch
1893–1908
18701950today
Hamlets and corners on the map
CedarFouchSolon
Gone or out of use
Cedar Post Officepost officeFouch Post Officepost officeFouch StationlocaleSolon Post Officepost officeSolon Stationlocale
1cemetery inside Solon Township
Solon
US Post Offices dataset (Blevins & Helbock, CC0). Places and cemeteries from the USGS Geographic Names Information System (2021).
The story so far
Solon Township, in brief
Wikipedia doesn’t have a history of Solon Township yet. The photos, dates and memories neighbors add here are how it gets written.
Solon Township ( SOH-lən) is a civil township of Leelanau County in the U.S. state of Michigan. The population was 1,562 at the 2020 census. Solon Township is home to the community of Cedar.
Its first post office opened in 1870. Between the 2010 and 2020 censuses its population grew from 1,509 to 1,562 (+4%).
Intro from Wikipedia. Population: U.S. Census Bureau.
Timeline
Solon Township, 1870 to 1957
Woven from the archive, old maps, post office records, the National Register and the people born here.
Every edition of the U.S. Geological Survey’s map of Solon Township. Tap a year, or press play to watch the town change.
1957Maple City 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 Solon Township.
Famous people
Famous people close to Solon Township
Nobody well known was born in Solon Township itself, so here are the best known from just nearby.
The Solon Township post office opened in 1870, the earliest record of the town by name (U.S. post office records).
How does Solon Township rank for history?
Solon Township is more historic than 28% 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 Solon Township?
9% of Solon 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 1988.
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.
