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Michigan at Main, AlvordtonPhoto: Nyttend · Public domain
–Not graded
History · Alvordton

Alvordton’s post office opened in 1881, and 55% of its homes were built before 1940

Below: 1 old photo or paper from 1894 on and old-book passages.

1881first post office
0on the National Register
55%homes built before 1940
1old photo or paper
Add an old photoShare a memory
Photo: Nyttend · Public domain
Quick answers

How Alvordton began

When was Alvordton founded?

1881

The Alvordton post office opened in 1881, the earliest record of the town by name.

2020 census: 200145 years
Founding year: the first Alvordton post office (Blevins & Helbock, CC0).The full story ↓

What stands out about Alvordton’s past

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

A history waiting to be writtenOnly 1 old photo is in the public archives. The rest are in attics and albums.Old housesHalf of Alvordton’s homes were built before 1938.
★ What stands out · Help out

Start Alvordton’s collection

The first neighbors to add old photos shape how Alvordton’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 Alvordton came to be

From Wikipedia’s history of Alvordton.

Read it all →

Alvordton had its start when the railroad was extended to that point. Alvordton was platted in 1881 by Henry D. Alvord, and named for him. A post office has been in operation at Alvordton since 1881. The community incorporated as a village in 1891. Municipal status continued until 2007, when voters overwhelmingly approved a measure to disincorporate. In 2010, the U.S. Census Bureau listed Alvordton as a census-designated place.

Text from Wikipedia, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0.

From the old history books

What they wrote about Alvordton in 1920

Passages that mention Alvordton, cut from the printed page as they were published.

ment as a helper to a blacksmith in the Peninsular Car Works at Adrian. He was later employed as a section hand on the Wabash Railroad for three and one-half years at Adrian, and was then transferred to Alvordton, Ohio, as section foreman. However, he only remained there three months and went to De…
A standard history of Williams County, Ohio1920 · page 364Read the page →
Read the text

ment as a helper to a blacksmith in the Peninsular Car Works at Adrian. He was later employed as a section hand on the Wabash Railroad for three and one-half years at Adrian, and was then transferred to Alvordton, Ohio, as section foreman. However, he only remained there three months and went to Detroit in 1888, where he se

Text read by machine from the scan; it may contain errors.

Scans and text from the Internet Archive. Books published in 1930 or earlier, which are in the public domain.

By decade

Alvordton, decade by decade

One decade in the archive so far: the 1890s. Scroll each row; tap a photo for its story.

1890s1 item
Atlas of Williams County, Ohio - from county records, plats and surveys1894Atlas of Williams County, Ohio - from county records,…Map
1900s–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
Today5 recent
Mill Creek Township hall2015Mill Creek Township hallMichigan at Main2015Michigan at MainAlvordton post office 435012015Alvordton post office 43501Detailed map of2008Detailed map ofMapOHMap-doton-Alvordton2004OHMap-doton-Alvordton

Questions about Alvordton’s history

What year was Alvordton founded?

The Alvordton post office opened in 1881, the earliest record of the town by name (U.S. post office records).

Memory lane

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

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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 Wikimedia Commons (6), Wikipedia and old county and town histories (Internet Archive). Archive images are copied here with their credits and licenses, shown on each photo’s page. Refreshed monthly.