Founding year: the first Archbold post office (Blevins & Helbock, CC0). Wikidata: 1866.The full story ↓
History grade
What drives Archbold’s History grade
On its age, its old homes and the National Register, Archbold is more historic than 38% of U.S. towns, #771 of 993 in Ohio. Its share of homes from before 1940 holds the grade up; its National Register listings pull it down.
C+
HistoryA character grade: shown, never part of Archbold’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 Archbold’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 B−. The pre-1940 share is a Census survey estimate (±4.8 points). The founding year is the first post office, not a stated founding date; Wikidata’s 1866 falls in the same era, so the grade doesn’t depend on which one is used.
Founding year: the first post office (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 Archbold’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.
Archbold was founded in 1855 when the railroad was extended to that point. The village was probably named for John Archbald, a railroad promoter, though another tradition is that the name is an amalgamation of Arch and Bald, two other railroad officials. A post office called Archbold has been in operation since 1855.
It was designated a Tree City USA by the National Arbor Day Foundation in 1983.
Passages that mention Archbold, cut from the printed page as they were published.
A Standard History of Fulton County, Ohio1920 · page 113Read the page →
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Joun Muwnror, one of the leading citizens of Archbold, Fulton county, Ohio, is partner in the firm of Humphrevs and Munroe, the Archbold Milling and Elevator Company, and has been one of the enterprising public workers and business leaders in Archbold for many years. He is connected with the management of many financial and industrial corporations of Fulton county, including the Peoples State Bank of Archbold, of which he is a director, the E. F. Hansen (Elevator) Company, of Wauseon, and
Text read by machine from the scan; it may contain errors.
A standard history of Fulton County, Ohio, an authentic narrative of the past, with an extended survey of modern developments in the progress of town and county1920 · page 301Read the page →
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Cemetery Unfortunately the cemetery records have not been kept, and it is not possible therefore to review its history. It has been stated that the cemetery now in the guardianship of Archbold civic authorities was established in 1872. There is only one record in the early minutes of the council of Archbold, said record, of May 12, 1875, referring to the completion of “a contract with Joseph Smith, for land for a burial grcmnd,” the notation stating that the clerk had given “an order on
Text read by machine from the scan; it may contain errors.
A standard history of Fulton County, Ohio, an authentic narrative of the past, with an extended survey of modern developments in the progress of town and county1920 · page 243Read the page →
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Catholic Church, in Fulton county, were in the early days of settlement visited by missionary priests, who came from Cincinnati. There were more Catholics in German Township than in any other township, and the records consequently centre in Archbold, which was the first of the Fulton county towns to have a resident pastor. That occurred in 1875, prior to which the small groups of Catholics throughout the territory constituted missions, visited periodically by mission priests; and it was the duty of the resident pastor at Archbold to
Text read by machine from the scan; it may contain errors.
A Standard History of Fulton County, Ohio1920 · page 219Read the page →
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Grorce C. Roepe, senior partner of the Archbold firm of Roedel and Short, clothiers, haberdashers, and shoe merchants, has been among the leading business people of Archbold, Fulton county, for many years. His father was a successful merchant in Archbold throughout practically the whole of his business life and the family generally is of good repute in that section of Fulton county.
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.
Timeline
Archbold, 1855 to 1998
Woven from the archive, old maps, post office records, the National Register and the people born here.
Grew from 373 people in 1870 to 4,516 in 2020, more than tenfold.
16 censuses, 1870–2020.
U.S. Census Bureau decennial counts, from the census table on Archbold’s Wikipedia page.
Places that used to be
Old corners and burying grounds
Archbold’s post office has been open since 1855.
Hamlets and corners on the map
Colony Meadows Trailer CourtFox Chase
2cemeteries and burying grounds inside Archbold
ArchboldReform
US Post Offices dataset (Blevins & Helbock, CC0). Places and cemeteries from the USGS Geographic Names Information System (2021).
Questions about Archbold’s history
What year was Archbold founded?
The Archbold post office opened in 1855, the earliest record of the town by name (U.S. post office records). Wikidata gives 1866.
How does Archbold rank for history?
Archbold is more historic than 38% of U.S. towns, #771 of 993 in Ohio. 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 Archbold?
19% of Archbold’s homes were built before 1940 (Census estimate, ±4.8 points), against a typical 15% for an Ohio town; the median home was built in 1971.
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 (5), Wikipedia, Wikidata and Wikipedia for famous people, 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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