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History · Wilton Township

Wilton Township’s post office opened in 1856, and 43% of its homes were built before 1940

Below: maps from 1967 on.

1856first post office
0on the National Register
43%homes built before 1940
3famous people
Add an old photoShare a memory
Quick answers

How Wilton Township began

When was Wilton Township founded?

1856

The Wilton Township post office opened in 1856, the earliest record of the town by name. Another post office, Wilton (1856), opened inside today’s town and later closed.

2020 census: 381170 years
Founding year: the first Wilton Township post office (Blevins & Helbock, CC0).The full story ↓

What stands out about Wilton Township’s past

Read from the archive, the National Register and the record. The page puts what stands out first.

A history waiting to be writtenNo old photos of Wilton Township are in the public archives yet. The rest are in attics and albums.Old housesHalf of Wilton Township’s homes were built before 1959.
★ What stands out · Help out

Start Wilton Township’s collection

The first neighbors to add old photos shape how Wilton Township’s history is told.

Decades since 1900 with photos
00s10s20s30s40s50s60s70s80s90s
0 of 10 decades. The empty ones are waiting for someone’s album.
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The story

How Wilton Township came to be

From Wikipedia’s history of Wilton Township.

Read it all →

Wilton Township was organized in 1858, and named after its largest settlement, Wilton, Minnesota.

Text from Wikipedia, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0.

Timeline

Wilton Township, 1856 to 1967

Woven from the archive, old maps, post office records, the National Register and the people born here.

  1. 19th century
  2. 1856Post officeThe Wilton post office opens
  3. 1865Born herePhilo Hall is born here
  4. 1881Post officeThe Wilton post office closes
  5. 1885Born hereHenry M. Gallagher is born here
  6. 1887Born hereFrank T. Gallagher is born here
  7. 20th century
  8. 1967On the mapFirst mapped by the U.S. Geological Survey
By decade

No old photos in the archives yet

Weddings on Main Street, storms, parades, school pictures, the old store. If it’s in your family album, it belongs here.

Be the first to add onePhotograph a print flat, in daylight, no flash.
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On the map

Wilton Township on the map, 1967 to 1985

Every edition of the U.S. Geological Survey’s map of Wilton Township. Tap a year, or press play to watch the town change.

Wilton Township on the 1967 USGS mapWilton Township on the 1985 USGS map1967Otisco 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 Wilton Township.

Famous people

3 famous people were born in Wilton Township

Writers, athletes, leaders and more, ranked by how widely they’re known.

See all →
Philo HallAmerican politician · b. 1865
F
Frank T. GallagherAmerican judge · b. 1887
H
Henry M. GallagherAmerican judge · b. 1885
Places that used to be

Lost post offices, old corners, places now gone and burying grounds

Another post office, Wilton, opened and closed inside today’s town.

Hamlets and corners on the map
Wilton
Gone or out of use
Wilton Post Officepost office
1cemetery inside Wilton Township
Wilton

US Post Offices dataset (Blevins & Helbock, CC0). Places and cemeteries from the USGS Geographic Names Information System (2021).

Stories next door

History across the town line

Each neighbor’s History grade, on the same three inputs.

Otisco Township1 historic placenot graded: under 1,000 residents or part of its townSt. Mary TownshipIts storynot graded: under 1,000 residents or part of its townByron TownshipIts storynot graded: under 1,000 residents or part of its townFreedom TownshipIts storynot graded: under 1,000 residents or part of its town

Questions about Wilton Township’s history

What year was Wilton Township founded?

The Wilton Township post office opened in 1856, the earliest record of the town by name (U.S. post office records).

Memory lane

What the archives can’t tell you, neighbors can.

Town Square →
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Sources

Where this page comes from

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). How TownRatings grades history →

From Wikipedia, Wikidata and Wikipedia for famous people, 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.