The New Haven Township post office opened in 1857, the earliest record of the town by name. Three smaller post offices, New Haven (1857), Othello (1864) and Genoa (1872), opened inside today’s town and later closed.
2020 census: 1,261169 years
How historic is New Haven Township?
C+
More historic than 40% of U.S. towns, on its age, its old homes and the National Register.
Founding year: the first New Haven Township post office (Blevins & Helbock, CC0).
History grade
What drives New Haven Township’s History grade
On its age, its old homes and the National Register, New Haven Township is more historic than 40% 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 New Haven 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 New Haven 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 (±6.9 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 New Haven 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
Three other post offices opened and closed inside today’s town.
New Haven
1857–1870
Othello
1864–1902
Genoa
1872–1905
18501940today
Hamlets and corners on the map
Genoa
Gone or out of use
Genoa Post Officepost office
2cemeteries and burying grounds inside New Haven Township
OthelloSaint Michael
US Post Offices dataset (Blevins & Helbock, CC0). Places and cemeteries from the USGS Geographic Names Information System (2021).
The story so far
New Haven Township, in brief
Wikipedia doesn’t have a history of New Haven Township yet. The photos, dates and memories neighbors add here are how it gets written.
New Haven Township is a township in Olmsted County, Minnesota, United States. The population was 1,205 at the 2000 census. New Haven Township was organized in 1858, and named after New Haven, Connecticut.
Its first post office opened in 1857. Between the 2010 and 2020 censuses its population grew from 1,184 to 1,261 (+7%).
Intro from Wikipedia. Population: U.S. Census Bureau.
Timeline
New Haven Township, 1857 to 1905
Woven from the archive, old maps, post office records, the National Register and the people born here.
The New Haven Township post office opened in 1857, the earliest record of the town by name (U.S. post office records).
How does New Haven Township rank for history?
New Haven Township is more historic than 40% 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 New Haven Township?
20% of New Haven Township’s homes were built before 1940 (Census estimate, ±6.9 points), against a typical 8.1% for a Minnesota town; the median home was built in 1982.
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 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.
