2 of Thornapple Township’s places are on the National Register
More historic than 65% of U.S. towns · #237 of 701 in Michigan. What drives it
Its Register listings are the John Carveth House and the Michigan Central Railroad Middleville Depot. Most of Thornapple Township was built recently: 10% of its homes predate 1940 and the median home dates from 1989. Below: maps from 1982 on and the census since 2000.
On its age, its old homes and the National Register, Thornapple Township is more historic than 65% of U.S. towns, #237 of 701 in Michigan. Its National Register listings hold the grade up; its share of homes from before 1940 pulls it down.
B
HistoryA character grade: shown, never part of Thornapple 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 Thornapple Township’s 4.2 sits above most of its state (74% of Michigan towns have fewer) while its 4 historic buildings outnumber those of 68% 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 is a Census survey estimate (±4.3 points).
Founding year: our sources. 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 Thornapple 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.
Middleville
1839–today
Parmalee
1878–1887
Parmelee
1887–1913
18301930today
Hamlets and corners on the map
Cider Mill Village Mobile Home CommunityMiddlevilleParmelee
Gone or out of use
Middleville StationlocaleParmelee Post Officepost officeParmelee Stationlocale
3cemeteries and burying grounds inside Thornapple Township
Mount HopeMount HopeParmalee
US Post Offices dataset (Blevins & Helbock, CC0). Places and cemeteries from the USGS Geographic Names Information System (2021).
The story so far
Thornapple Township, in brief
Wikipedia doesn’t have a history of Thornapple Township yet. The photos, dates and memories neighbors add here are how it gets written.
Thornapple Township is a civil township of Barry County in the U.S. state of Michigan. The population was 9,331 at the 2020 census. It is the most populous township in Barry County.
Between the 2010 and 2020 censuses its population grew from 7,884 to 9,331 (+18%).
Intro from Wikipedia. Population: U.S. Census Bureau.
Timeline
Thornapple Township, 1839 to 1982
Woven from the archive, old maps, post office records, the National Register and the people born here.
The U.S. Geological Survey’s map of Thornapple Township.
1982Middleville sheet · 1:24,000
U.S. Geological Survey historical topographic maps (public domain), via Esri’s collection of the scans. The red ring marks the center of Thornapple Township.
On the National Register
2 historic places in Thornapple Township
The country’s official list of buildings and places worth saving.
Thornapple Township is more historic than 65% of U.S. towns, #237 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 Thornapple Township?
Two places: the John Carveth House (listed 1992) and the Michigan Central Railroad Middleville Depot (2022).
How old are the homes in Thornapple Township?
10% of Thornapple Township’s homes were built before 1940 (Census estimate, ±4.3 points), against a typical 12% for a Michigan town; the median home was built in 1989.
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 the National Register of Historic Places (2), 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.
