The Wells Township post office opened in 1884, the earliest record of the town by name. Two smaller post offices, Wells (1884) and Newhall (1898), opened inside today’s town and later closed.
2020 census: 4,876142 years
How historic is Wells Township?
C
More historic than 27% of U.S. towns, on its age, its old homes and the National Register.
Founding year: the first Wells Township post office (Blevins & Helbock, CC0).
History grade
What drives Wells Township’s History grade
On its age, its old homes and the National Register, Wells Township is more historic than 27% of U.S. towns, #591 of 701 in Michigan. 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 Wells 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 Wells 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 (±4.3 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 Wells Township’s past
Read from the archive, the National Register and the record. The page puts what stands out first.
Bichler QuarrymineGroos StationlocaleNorth Escabana Post Officepost office
2cemeteries and burying grounds inside Wells Township
Flat RockGarden of Rest
US Post Offices dataset (Blevins & Helbock, CC0). Places and cemeteries from the USGS Geographic Names Information System (2021).
The story so far
Wells Township, in brief
Wikipedia doesn’t have a history of Wells Township yet. The photos, dates and memories neighbors add here are how it gets written.
Wells Township is a civil township of Delta County in the U.S. state of Michigan. The population was 4,876 at the 2020 census, slightly down from 4,885 at the 2010 census.
Its first post office opened in 1884. Its population held steady between the last two censuses: 4,885 in 2010, 4,876 in 2020.
Intro from Wikipedia. Population: U.S. Census Bureau.
Timeline
Wells Township, 1884 to 1932
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 Wells Township. Tap a year, or press play to watch the town change.
1932Gladstone SW sheet · 1:31,680
U.S. Geological Survey historical topographic maps (public domain), via Esri’s collection of the scans. The red ring marks the center of Wells Township.
Stories next door
History across the town line
Each neighbor’s History grade, on the same three inputs.
The Wells Township post office opened in 1884, the earliest record of the town by name (U.S. post office records).
How does Wells Township rank for history?
Wells Township is more historic than 27% of U.S. towns, #591 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 Wells Township?
8% of Wells 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 1972.
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.
