The story
Read it all →How Brookfield Center came to be
From Wikipedia’s history of Brookfield Center.
Brookfield Center was platted in 1806, with land for the central green set aside.
Text from Wikipedia, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0.
AHistory
History · Brookfield Center
Brookfield Center dates to 1806, and 23% of its homes were built before 1940
More historic than 91% of U.S. towns. What drives it
1 place in town is on the National Register. Below: maps from 1906 on.
1806founded
1on the National Register
23%homes built before 1940
Quick answers
How Brookfield Center began
When was Brookfield Center founded?
1806
Brookfield Center dates its founding to 1806 (Wikipedia’s history).
2020 census: 1,141220 years
How historic is Brookfield Center?
A
What drives the grade ↓More historic than 91% of U.S. towns, on its age, its old homes and the National Register.
Founding year: Wikipedia.The full story ↓
History grade
What drives Brookfield Center’s History grade
On its age, its old homes and the National Register, Brookfield Center is more historic than 91% of U.S. towns. All 3 inputs are above most U.S. towns; its National Register listings ranks highest and its age lowest.
A
HistoryA character grade: shown, never part of Brookfield Center’s overall grade.
Founding era1806, from Wikipedia: founded 1776–1849, an older era than 75% of U.S. townsA−Homes built before 194023.4% of homes (±26.4) · typical OH town 14.5% · U.S. 8.4%A−National Register1 listing, 11 historic buildings, 90.5 per 10,000 residents · typical OH town 2.9 · U.S. 2.4A−
All U.S. towns we grade (21,289)Ahead of 91%
NewerOlder
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 Brookfield Center’s 90.5 sits above most of its state (92% of Ohio towns have fewer) while its 11 historic buildings outnumber those of 76% of U.S. towns.
NoteThe founding year comes from Wikipedia alone; no second source gives 1806.
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 (±26.4 points).
Founding year: Wikipedia (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 Brookfield Center’s past
Read from the archive, the National Register and the record. The page puts what stands out first.
★ What stands out · Help out
Start Brookfield Center’s collection
The first neighbors to add old photos shape how Brookfield Center’s history is told.
Decades since 1900 with photos
00s10s20s30s40s50s60s70s80s90s
0 of 10 decades. The empty ones are waiting for someone’s album.By decade
No old photos in the archives yet
Weddings on Main Street, storms, parades, school pictures, the old store. If it’s in your family album, it belongs here.
Be the first to add onePhotograph a print flat, in daylight, no flash.
Add from your albumOn the map
Brookfield Center on the map, 1906 to 1994
Every edition of the U.S. Geological Survey’s map of Brookfield Center. Tap a year, or press play to watch the town change.
1906Youngstown sheet · 1:62,500U.S. Geological Survey historical topographic maps (public domain), via Esri’s collection of the scans. The red ring marks the center of Brookfield Center.
On the National Register
1 listing protects 11 historic buildings
The country’s official list of buildings and places worth saving.
place listed
1
National Historic Landmarks
0
none yet
historic buildings protected
11
each building in a district counts
National Park Service, National Register of Historic Places. Photos from Wikimedia Commons, credited on each place’s page.
Stories next door
History across the town line
Each neighbor’s History grade, on the same three inputs.
Questions about Brookfield Center’s history
What year was Brookfield Center founded?
In 1806, according to Wikipedia’s history of the town.
How does Brookfield Center rank for history?
Brookfield Center is more historic than 91% 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 Brookfield Center?
23% of Brookfield Center’s homes were built before 1940 (Census estimate, ±26.4 points), against a typical 15% for an Ohio town; the median home was built in 1960.
Memory lane
What the archives can’t tell you, neighbors can.
Start a conversation
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).
From Wikipedia and U.S. Geological Survey historical maps. Archive images are copied here with their credits and licenses, shown on each photo’s page. Refreshed monthly.