Founding year: Wikidata. First post office: 1823.The full story ↓
History grade
What drives Bellville’s History grade
On its age, its old homes and the National Register, Bellville is more historic than 90% of U.S. towns. All 3 inputs are above most U.S. towns; its share of homes from before 1940 ranks highest and its age lowest.
A
HistoryA character grade: shown, never part of Bellville’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 Bellville’s 24.0 sits above most of its state (82% of Ohio towns have fewer) while its 5 listings outnumber those of 70% of U.S. towns.
How sure. Graded on any two of the three inputs instead, the letter would range from A− to A. The pre-1940 share is a Census survey estimate (±7.3 points). Two sources give 1808.
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 Bellville’s past
Read from the archive, the National Register and the record. The page puts what stands out first.
The first settlers, James McCluer, and Jonathan Oldfield, came to Bellville in 1808. They made their way from what it now known as Fredericktown by a path made from a tornado. McCluer gained ownership of the land and along with Oldfield he built the first cabin in Bellville on what is now known as Ankneytown Road. Even though they were the first settlers to the town and McCluer owned the land, Robert Bell was the actual founder of the village. Other early settlers included Thomas and Bridget O'Leary.
Passages that mention Bellville, cut from the printed page as they were published.
history of richland county ohio1880 · page 804Read the page →
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Railroad asa brakeman, and in three months became a baggage-master, and in three years a conductor: he was agent four years at the station of Bellville, and in 1862 and 1863, he embarked in the manufacture of rakes, and again did the station business some time; he again went on the road as conductor, and ran the first passenger train out of Chicago on the Baltimore & In 1876, he and his son opened a hardware store in
Text read by machine from the scan; it may contain errors.
history of richland county ohio1880 · page 430Read the page →
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In 1843-44, when it became certain that Richland County would be divided, the leading citizens of Bellville petitioned largely for the erection of a county out of the southern part of Richland and the northern part of Knox, making Bellville the county seat; it is needless to say without success. The first fair in the county was held in Bellville in 1850. The
Text read by machine from the scan; it may contain errors.
History of Richland County, Ohio1880 · page 804Read the page →
Read the text
Railroad as a brakeman, and in three months became a baggage-master, and in three years a conductor ; he was agent four years at the station of Bellville, and in 1862 and 1863, he embarked in the manufacture of rakes, and again did the station business some time ; he again went on the road as conductor, and ran the first passenger train out of Chicago on the Baltimore & Ohio Railroad ; he retired from the road April 1, 1878.
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
Bellville, decade by decade
One decade in the archive so far: the 1930s. Scroll each row; tap a photo for its story.
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.
In 1808, according to Wikidata. Bellville’s post office opened in 1823, and the census of 1870 counted 720 people here.
How does Bellville rank for history?
Bellville is more historic than 90% 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.
What is on the National Register in Bellville?
5 listings: 4 buildings and 1 structure.
How old are the homes in Bellville?
26% of Bellville’s homes were built before 1940 (Census estimate, ±7.3 points), against a typical 15% for an Ohio town; the median home was built in 1966.
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), Wikidata (1), the National Register of Historic Places (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 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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