The Shieldsville Township post office opened in 1856, the earliest record of the town by name. Another post office, Shieldsville (1856), opened inside today’s town and later closed.
2020 census: 1,056170 years
How historic is Shieldsville Township?
C−
More historic than 24% of U.S. towns, on its age, its old homes and the National Register.
Founding year: the first Shieldsville Township post office (Blevins & Helbock, CC0).The full story ↓
History grade
What drives Shieldsville Township’s History grade
On its age, its old homes and the National Register, Shieldsville Township is more historic than 24% 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 Shieldsville 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 Shieldsville 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 C. The pre-1940 share is a Census survey estimate (±4.2 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 Shieldsville Township’s past
Read from the archive, the National Register and the record. The page puts what stands out first.
Shieldsville, named after its founder, American politician and U.S. Army officer, James Shields, was platted in 1856. It was founded around the Irish St. Patrick Catholic Church.
In the settlement's early years, land within the area was sold for $2.00 per acre with the mission of attracting Irish immigrants to settle in the area.
On July 29, 2002, The St. Patrick Church of Shieldsville was hit by lightning for the second time in its history and was severely destroyed. It was rebuilt two years later on August 1, 2004.
The Shieldsville Township post office opened in 1856, the earliest record of the town by name (U.S. post office records).
How does Shieldsville Township rank for history?
Shieldsville Township is more historic than 24% 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 Shieldsville Township?
7% of Shieldsville Township’s homes were built before 1940 (Census estimate, ±4.2 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 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.
