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StephensonMichiganDowntown1US41Photo: Royalbroil · CC BY-SA 3.0
–Not graded
History · Stephenson Township

32% of Stephenson Township’s homes were built before 1940

Below: maps from 1963 on and the census since 1880.

0on the National Register
32%homes built before 1940
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Photo: Royalbroil · CC BY-SA 3.0

What stands out about Stephenson Township’s 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 Stephenson Township are in the public archives yet. The rest are in attics and albums.
★ What stands out · Help out

Start Stephenson Township’s collection

The first neighbors to add old photos shape how Stephenson Township’s history is told.

Decades since 1900 with photos
00s10s20s30s40s50s60s70s80s90s
0 of 10 decades. The empty ones are waiting for someone’s album.
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The story

How Stephenson Township came to be

From Wikipedia’s history of Stephenson Township.

Read it all →

A Chicago and North Western Railway station was established at the community in 1872. On July 13, 1874, a post office was opened here under the name of "Wacedah", with Alva F. Burnham as its postmaster. The post office was renamed after local leader Samuel M. Stephenson on January 10, 1876. After representing the community in the Michigan Legislature as both a representative and senator Stephenson would serve the community so named for him (and the remainder of what was then 12th district) in the United States Congress from 1889 to 1896. Stephenson incorporated as a village in 1898.

Text from Wikipedia, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0.

By decade

Stephenson Township, decade by decade

Today6 recent
Stephenson welcome sign- south entry2024Stephenson welcome sign- south entryPioneer Grange Hall No. 13082019Pioneer Grange Hall No. 1308StephensonMichiganWelcomeSignUS412010StephensonMichiganWelcomeSignUS41StephensonMichiganSignUS412010StephensonMichiganSignUS41StephensonMichiganDowntown2US412010StephensonMichiganDowntown2US41StephensonMichiganDowntown1US412010StephensonMichiganDowntown1US41
On the map

Stephenson Township on the map, 1963 to 1982

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

Stephenson Township on the 1963 USGS mapStephenson Township on the 1982 USGS map1963Stephenson 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 Stephenson Township.

People over time

Stephenson Township, census by census

02004006008001,00018801900192019401960198020002020Peak: 967

Between 180 and 967 people in every census since 1880.

15 censuses, 1880–2020.

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

Places that used to be

Old corners and burying grounds

Old hamlets and crossroads still carry their names on the map.

Hamlets and corners on the map
Palestine
4cemeteries and burying grounds inside Stephenson Township
Bethlehem CovenantDanishNorth StephensonStephenson

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.

Daggett TownshipIts storynot graded: under 1,000 residents or part of its townIngallston TownshipIts storynot graded: under 1,000 residents or part of its townLake TownshipIts storynot graded: under 1,000 residents or part of its townMellen TownshipIts storyC

Questions about Stephenson Township’s history

Memory lane

What the archives can’t tell you, neighbors can.

Town Square →
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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). How TownRatings grades history →

From Wikimedia Commons (6), Wikipedia, U.S. Geological Survey historical maps, U.S. Census counts (via Wikipedia) 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.