Founding year: Wikidata; Wikipedia’s history section gives the same year. First post office: 1853.The full story ↓
History grade
What drives Ansonia’s History grade
On its age, its old homes and the National Register, Ansonia is more historic than 66% of U.S. towns. Its share of homes from before 1940 holds the grade up; its National Register listings pull it down.
B+
HistoryA character grade: shown, never part of Ansonia’s overall grade.
Ohio towns list about as much on the Register as the country (a typical Ohio town has 2.9 per 10,000 residents, the U.S. 2.4), so Ansonia’s 0.0 sits below most of its state (23% of Ohio 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 A−. The pre-1940 share is a Census survey estimate (±8.3 points). Two sources give 1845.
Founding year: Wikidata (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 Ansonia’s past
Read from the archive, the National Register and the record. The page puts what stands out first.
Fire insurance maps drew every building, what it was made of and what it was used for, so insurers could price the risk of fire. Pick a year, then a sheet.
Ansonia was founded in 1845 under the name of "Dallas." The village initially grew slowly; significant expansion only came after the coming of a railroad in 1852. Because dense swamps hindered settlement in the vicinity, woodland was plentiful, and Ansonia became a center of manufacturing for hardwood products. In 1873, the residents replaced their old school with a substantial two-story building at the cost of ten thousand dollars; this building was the first home of Ansonia High School, which was founded in that year. In turn, this building was demolished and a replacement erected in 1903. Another prominent structure in the village was a mausoleum; built of marble in 1911, it was the first mausoleum in Darke County.
Passages that mention Ansonia, cut from the printed page as they were published.
The history of Darke County, Ohio, containing a history of the county1880 · page 402Read the page →
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east from Union City, on the Cleveland, Columbus, Cincinnati & Indianapolis Kailroad and is distant therefrom ten and four-tenths miles. The distance west from Versailles to Dallas is nine and eight-tenths miles. It was laid out in 1845, and incorporated in 1867. Ansonia is the name of the post office. Main street runs north and south, with Olive, Elm and Pearl parallel to it on the west. Cross, Canal. Weller and High streets run east and west, intersecting the first-named at right angles The town is symmetrical in its outlines and divisions, and conforms to the cardinal points of "the compass, so that the stranger is not perplexed, as at
Text read by machine from the scan; it may contain errors.
The history of Darke County, Ohio, containing a history of the county1880 · page 405Read the page →
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L. Wiltse, 1874, two years, salary $710 ; R. D. Oldfield, 1876, one year, salary $725 ; J. R. Colgan, 1877, three years, salary $750. The above do not include airy rents, as there is a good parsonage. In 1875, the name of the charge was changed to Ansonia — the name of the railroad and the post office. In 1873, a church was dedicated at a cost of $3,200. It is a model brick structure, 36x55 feet, with a fine bell. The existence of this house is due. as in most other cases, to the untiring energy of a few. Among these, we name W. E. Hooven, M. D., H. W. Fry, N. D.
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A Biographical history of Darke County, Ohio1900 · page 373Read the page →
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He lived in Brown township during the pioneer epoch in its history, when the village of Ansonia was known as the hamlet of Dallas and contained only about eight houses, part of which were built of logs.
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A Biographical history of Darke County, Ohio1900 · page 682Read the page →
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of his neighbors. Many of the roads of the county were not then laid out. and the routes to Fort Greenville were indicated by blazed saplings. The town of Ansonia was known as Dallas, and Piqua was but a small village, to which Mr. Marvel would haul his wheat to market, returning on the following day. During the war of • 1812 he
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.
Byrds Mobile Home ParkEastwood Mobile Home Estates
1cemetery inside Ansonia
Beeler
US Post Offices dataset (Blevins & Helbock, CC0). Places and cemeteries from the USGS Geographic Names Information System (2021).
Questions about Ansonia’s history
What year was Ansonia founded?
In 1845, according to Wikidata and Wikipedia’s history of the town. Ansonia’s post office opened in 1853, and the census of 1880 counted 542 people here.
How does Ansonia rank for history?
Ansonia is more historic than 66% 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 Ansonia?
25% of Ansonia’s homes were built before 1940 (Census estimate, ±8.3 points), against a typical 15% for an Ohio town; the median home was built in 1959.
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 Wikimedia Commons (4), Wikipedia, U.S. Geological Survey historical maps, U.S. Census counts (via Wikipedia), the US Post Offices dataset (Blevins & Helbock), the USGS Geographic Names Information System, Sanborn fire insurance maps (Library of Congress) 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.
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