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History · Cunningham Township

Cunningham Township’s post office opened in 1871, and 51% of its homes were built before 1940

Below: maps from 1949 on.

1871first post office
0on the National Register
51%homes built before 1940
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Quick answers

How Cunningham Township began

When was Cunningham Township founded?

1871

The Cunningham Township post office opened in 1871, the earliest record of the town by name. Two smaller post offices, Cunningham (1871) and Collinswood (1903), opened inside today’s town and later closed.

2020 census: 206155 years
Founding year: the first Cunningham Township post office (Blevins & Helbock, CC0).

What stands out about Cunningham 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 Cunningham Township are in the public archives yet. The rest are in attics and albums.Old housesHalf of Cunningham Township’s homes were built before 1938.Lost villages2 post offices opened and closed inside today’s Cunningham Township, and 1 old place names are still on the map.
★ What stands out · Help out

Start Cunningham Township’s collection

The first neighbors to add old photos shape how Cunningham 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 so far

Cunningham Township, in brief

Wikipedia doesn’t have a history of Cunningham Township yet. The photos, dates and memories neighbors add here are how it gets written.

Cunningham Township is a township in Chariton County, in the U.S. state of Missouri. Cunningham Township was established in 1840, taking the name of Dr. John F. Cunningham, a pioneer citizen.

Its first post office opened in 1871. Between the 2010 and 2020 censuses its population fell from 217 to 206 (-5%).

Intro from Wikipedia. Population: U.S. Census Bureau.

Places that used to be

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

Two other post offices opened and closed inside today’s town.

Cunningham
1871–1910
Collinswood
1903–1905
18701950today
Hamlets and corners on the map
Cunningham
Gone or out of use
CollinswoodlocaleHog Ridge SchoolschoolLocust Schoolschool
3cemeteries and burying grounds inside Cunningham Township
LakesidePurvisTaylor

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

Timeline

Cunningham Township, 1871 to 1949

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

  1. 19th century
  2. 1871Post officeThe Cunningham post office opens
  3. 20th century
  4. 1903Post officeThe Collinswood post office opens
  5. 1905Post officeThe Collinswood post office closes
  6. 1910Post officeThe Cunningham post office closes
  7. 1949On the mapFirst mapped by the U.S. Geological Survey
By decade

Cunningham Township, decade by decade

Today1 recent
2022-09-09 19 14 47 UTC minus 5 Aerial view of northwestern Chariton County, Missouri, centered on southwestern Cunning…20222022-09-09 19 14 47 UTC minus 5 Aerial view of northw…
On the map

Cunningham Township on the map, 1949 to 1979

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

Cunningham Township on the 1949 USGS mapCunningham Township on the 1950 USGS mapCunningham Township on the 1979 USGS map1949Sumner 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 Cunningham Township.

Famous people

Famous people close to Cunningham Township

Nobody well known was born in Cunningham Township itself, so here are the best known from just nearby.

See all →
John J. PershingUnited States Army general in World War I · b. 1860
J. William FulbrightAmerican politician · b. 1905
P
Paul Carpenter StandleyAmerican botanist · b. 1884
Barbara SinatraAmerican model, showgirl, and socialite; wife o… · b. 1927
Robert SimpsonAmerican hurdler and track and field coach · b. 1892
R
Roberta FulbrightAmerican journalist, newspaper editor, business… · b. 1874
Stories next door

History across the town line

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

Grand River TownshipIts storynot graded: under 1,000 residents or part of its townHurricane TownshipIts storynot graded: under 1,000 residents or part of its townYellow Creek TownshipIts storynot graded: under 1,000 residents or part of its townJefferson Township3 historic placesnot graded: under 1,000 residents or part of its townMendon TownshipIts storynot graded: under 1,000 residents or part of its townTriplett TownshipIts storynot graded: under 1,000 residents or part of its townParson Creek TownshipIts storynot graded: under 1,000 residents or part of its town

Questions about Cunningham Township’s history

What year was Cunningham Township founded?

The Cunningham Township post office opened in 1871, 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 →
Start a conversation
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 Wikimedia Commons (1), 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.