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–Not graded
History · Empire

Empire’s post office opened in 1886, and 37% of its homes were built before 1940

Below: maps from 1937 on and the census since 1890.

1886first post office
0on the National Register
37%homes built before 1940
1famous people
Add an old photoShare a memory
Photo: Roseohioresident · CC BY-SA 4.0
Quick answers

How Empire began

When was Empire founded?

1886

The Empire post office opened in 1886, the earliest record of the town by name. Three smaller post offices, Elliottsville (1833), McCoys Station (1863) and McCoy (1882), opened inside today’s town and later closed.

First census: 441 in 18902020 census: 232140 years
Founding year: the first Empire post office (Blevins & Helbock, CC0).The full story ↓

What stands out about Empire’s past

Read from the archive, the National Register and the record. The page puts what stands out first.

A history waiting to be writtenNo old photos of Empire are in the public archives yet. The rest are in attics and albums.Lost villages3 post offices opened and closed inside today’s Empire.Boom and bustPeaked at 703 in 1930; 232 people lived here in 2020.Old housesHalf of Empire’s homes were built before 1946.
★ What stands out · Help out

Start Empire’s collection

The first neighbors to add old photos shape how Empire’s history is told.

Decades since 1900 with photos
00s10s20s30s40s50s60s70s80s90s
0 of 10 decades. The empty ones are waiting for someone’s album.
Share a family photoSign in to add one+10
Places that used to be

Lost post offices

Empire’s post office has been open since 1886. Three other post offices opened and closed inside today’s town.

Elliottsville
1833–1874
McCoys Station
1863–1882
McCoy
1882–1886
Empire
1886–today
18301930today

US Post Offices dataset (Blevins & Helbock, CC0). Places and cemeteries from the USGS Geographic Names Information System (2021).

People over time

Empire, census by census

01002003004005006007001900192019401960198020002020Peak: 703

Peaked at 703 in 1930; 232 people lived here in 2020.

14 censuses, 1890–2020.

U.S. Census Bureau decennial counts, from the census table on Empire’s Wikipedia page.

The story

How Empire came to be

From Wikipedia’s history of Empire.

Read it all →

Empire has been known by several names over the years, including Shanghai, McCoy's Station, Olive City, and Empire. A post office called Empire has been in operation since 1886. Empire was incorporated as a village in 1897.

Text from Wikipedia, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0.

Timeline

Empire, 1833 to 1937

Woven from the archive, old maps, post office records, the National Register and the people born here.

  1. 19th century
  2. 1833Post officeThe Elliottsville post office opens
  3. 1863Post officeThe McCoys Station post office opens
  4. 1874Post officeThe Elliottsville post office closes
  5. 1882Post officeThe McCoys Station post office closes
  6. 1882Post officeThe McCoy post office opens
  7. 1886Post officeThe McCoy post office closes
  8. 20th century
  9. 1930CensusPopulation peaks at 703
  10. 1936Born hereDon Sutherin is born here
  11. 1937On the mapFirst mapped by the U.S. Geological Survey
By decade

Empire, decade by decade

Today3 recent
Ohio SR 7 nb entering Stratton from Empire, May 20242024Ohio SR 7 nb entering Stratton from Empire, May 2024Empire, Ohio Post Office2016Empire, Ohio Post OfficeEmpire, Ohio Municipal Building2016Empire, Ohio Municipal Building
On the map

Empire on the map, 1937 to 1986

Every edition of the U.S. Geological Survey’s map of Empire. Tap a year, or press play to watch the town change.

Empire on the 1937 USGS mapEmpire on the 1944 USGS mapEmpire on the 1986 USGS map1937Wellsville 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 Empire.

Stories next door

History across the town line

Each neighbor’s History grade, on the same three inputs.

StrattonIts storynot graded: under 1,000 residents or part of its town

Questions about Empire’s history

What year was Empire founded?

The Empire post office opened in 1886, the earliest record of the town by name (U.S. post office records).

Memory lane

What the archives can’t tell you, neighbors can.

Town Square →
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). How TownRatings grades history →

From Wikimedia Commons (3), 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) 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.