On its age, its old homes and the National Register, Bethlehem Township is more historic than 19% of U.S. towns. 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 Bethlehem Township’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 Bethlehem Township’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 two of the three inputs, so a change in either one moves the letter more than it would with three. The pre-1940 share is a Census survey estimate (±5.1 points).
Founding year: our sources. 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 Bethlehem Township’s past
Read from the archive, the National Register and the record. The page puts what stands out first.
Lost post offices, old corners, places now gone and burying grounds
Two other post offices opened and closed inside today’s town.
Metham
1889–1912
Bowman
1893–1907
18801950today
Hamlets and corners on the map
MethamRandleWhite Womans Town
Gone or out of use
Bantum SchoolschoolMetham Post Officepost officeSchool Number 1schoolSchool Number 3schoolSchool Number 5schoolSchool Number 7schoolSoggy Hill Schoolschool
1cemetery inside Bethlehem Township
Prairie Chapel
US Post Offices dataset (Blevins & Helbock, CC0). Places and cemeteries from the USGS Geographic Names Information System (2021).
On the map
Bethlehem Township on the map, 1913 to 1994
Every edition of the U.S. Geological Survey’s map of Bethlehem Township. Tap a year, or press play to watch the town change.
1913Coshocton 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 Bethlehem Township.
The story so far
Bethlehem Township, in brief
Wikipedia doesn’t have a history of Bethlehem Township yet. The photos, dates and memories neighbors add here are how it gets written.
Bethlehem Township is one of the twenty-two townships of Coshocton County, Ohio, United States. As of the 2020 census the population was 1,054.
Between the 2010 and 2020 censuses its population fell from 1,123 to 1,054 (-6%).
Intro from Wikipedia. Population: U.S. Census Bureau.
Timeline
Bethlehem Township, 1889 to 1913
Woven from the archive, old maps, post office records, the National Register and the people born here.
Bethlehem Township is more historic than 19% 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 Bethlehem Township?
6% of Bethlehem Township’s homes were built before 1940 (Census estimate, ±5.1 points), against a typical 15% for an Ohio town; the median home was built in 1977.
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), 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.