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History · Washington Township

58% of Washington Township’s homes were built before 1940

Below: 7 old photos and papers and maps from 1948 on.

0on the National Register
58%homes built before 1940
7old photos & papers
Add an old photoShare a memory
From Washington Township’s archive · credits on each photo

What stands out about Washington Township’s past

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

Old housesHalf of Washington Township’s homes were built before 1938.Lost villages2 post offices opened and closed inside today’s Washington Township, and 1 old place names are still on the map.
★ What stands out · The story so far

Washington Township, in brief

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

Washington Township is a township in Harrison County, Missouri, United States. At the 2020 census, its population was 101. Washington Township was established in March, 1856 and the name is likely derived similar to that of Washington Center.

Between the 2010 and 2020 censuses its population fell from 112 to 101 (-10%).

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

Places that used to be

Lost post offices, old corners and places now gone

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

Amos
1873–1878
Washington Centre
1878–1904
18701950today
Hamlets and corners on the map
Washington Center
Gone or out of use
Moore SchoolschoolMount Olive Number Two ChurchchurchMuddy Valley SchoolschoolNosseman SchoolschoolSolomon SchoolschoolWashington Center Schoolschool

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

Timeline

Washington Township, 1873 to 1948

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

  1. 19th century
  2. 1873Post officeThe Amos post office opens
  3. 1878Post officeThe Amos post office closes
  4. 1878Post officeThe Washington Centre post office opens
  5. 20th century
  6. 1904Post officeThe Washington Centre post office closes
  7. 1908In the archiveWashington Mo. looking south
  8. 1910In the archiveGroup of Young Girls Working in Peerless Box Co
  9. 1948On the mapFirst mapped by the U.S. Geological Survey
By decade

Washington Township, decade by decade

2 decades in the archive, from the 1900s to the 1910s. Scroll each row; tap a photo for its story.

1900s5 items
Washington Mo. looking south1908Washington Mo. looking southWashington Mo. looking west1908Washington Mo. looking westWashington Mo. looking east1908Washington Mo. looking east5th St. residences19085th St. residencesCedar St. residences1908Cedar St. residences
1910s2 items
Group of Young Girls Working in Peerless Box Co1910Group of Young Girls Working in Peerless Box CoGroup of Workers in Peerless Box Co1910Group of Workers in Peerless Box Co
1920s–1990snothing yet
Nothing in the archives for these yearsWeddings on Main Street, storms, parades, school pictures, the old store. If it’s in your family album, it belongs here.
Add from your album
On the map

Washington Township on the map, 1948 to 1984

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

Washington Township on the 1948 USGS mapWashington Township on the 1984 USGS map1948Bethany sheet · 1:62,500

U.S. Geological Survey historical topographic maps (public domain), via Esri’s collection of the scans. The red ring marks the center of Washington Township.

Then & now

Stand where they stood

No then-and-now pairs yet. Take a photo from the same spot as an old one and they appear here side by side.

Washington Mo. looking south
Retake this viewWashington Mo. looking south, 1908

Find the spot, match the angle, and add your photo. It becomes the first then-and-now pair on Washington Township’s page.

Retake this view · +15
Famous people

Famous people close to Washington Township

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

See all →
Frank BucklesUnited States Army soldier and centenarian · b. 1901
Beulah PoynterAmerican actor, writer and playwright · b. 1883
F
Frank E. LucasAmerican politician · b. 1876
B
Bryce WaltonAmerican writer · b. 1918
J
John TwistScreenwriter · b. 1898
Phil S. GibsonAmerican judge · b. 1888
Help out

Finish Washington Township’s story

Most archives stop around 1920. The photos from after that are in family albums, not libraries.

Decades since 1900 with photos
00s10s20s30s40s50s60s70s80s90s
2 of 10 decades. The empty ones are waiting for someone’s album.
Retake an old viewWashington Mo. looking south: stand where they stood+15Share a family photoSign in to add one+10
Stories next door

History across the town line

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

Union TownshipIts storynot graded: under 1,000 residents or part of its townDallas TownshipIts storynot graded: under 1,000 residents or part of its townLincoln TownshipIts storynot graded: under 1,000 residents or part of its town

Questions about Washington Township’s history

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 the Library of Congress (7), 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.