The Cannon City Township post office opened in 1855, the earliest record of the town by name. Another post office, Cannon City (1855), opened inside today’s town and later closed.
2020 census: 1,226171 years
How historic is Cannon City Township?
C+
More historic than 44% of U.S. towns, on its age, its old homes and the National Register.
Founding year: the first Cannon City Township post office (Blevins & Helbock, CC0).
History grade
What drives Cannon City Township’s History grade
On its age, its old homes and the National Register, Cannon City Township is more historic than 44% 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 Cannon City Township’s overall grade.
Minnesota towns list about as much on the Register as the country (a typical Minnesota town has 2.1 per 10,000 residents, the U.S. 2.4), so Cannon City Township’s 0.0 sits below most of its state (23% of Minnesota 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 is a Census survey estimate (±5.8 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 Cannon City Township’s past
Read from the archive, the National Register and the record. The page puts what stands out first.
Wikipedia doesn’t have a history of Cannon City Township yet. The photos, dates and memories neighbors add here are how it gets written.
Cannon City is an unincorporated community in Cannon City Township, Rice County, Minnesota, United States, five miles northeast of Faribault. The community is located at the junction of Rice County Road 20 (Cannon City Boulevard) and Crystal Lake Trail. Cannon City was platted in 1855, and named after the nearby Cannon River. The community of Cannon City was the model for Metropolisville in the novel The Mystery of Metropolisville by Edward Eggleston.
Its first post office opened in 1855. Its population held steady between the last two censuses: 1,215 in 2010, 1,226 in 2020.
Intro from Wikipedia. Population: U.S. Census Bureau.
Timeline
Cannon City Township, 1855 to 1960
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 Cannon City Township. Tap a year, or press play to watch the town change.
1960Cannon City 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 Cannon City Township.
Famous people
Famous people close to Cannon City Township
Nobody well known was born in Cannon City Township itself, so here are the best known from just nearby.
The Cannon City Township post office opened in 1855, the earliest record of the town by name (U.S. post office records).
How does Cannon City Township rank for history?
Cannon City Township is more historic than 44% 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 Cannon City Township?
25% of Cannon City Township’s homes were built before 1940 (Census estimate, ±5.8 points), against a typical 8.1% for a Minnesota town; the median home was built in 1977.
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.
