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History · Independence Township

1 of Independence Township’s places is on the National Register

Its Register listing is the Waernicke-Hille House And Store. Most of Independence Township was built recently: 6% of its homes predate 1940 and the median home dates from 1990. Below: maps from 1906 on.

1on the National Register
6%homes built before 1940
Add an old photoShare a memory

What stands out about Independence Township’s past

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

Lost villages6 post offices opened and closed inside today’s Independence Township, and 5 old place names are still on the map.A history waiting to be writtenNo old photos of Independence Township are in the public archives yet. The rest are in attics and albums.On the map since 19066 editions of the USGS map, 1906 to 2002. Watch Independence Township change.
★ What stands out · Places that used to be

Lost post offices, old corners and burying grounds

Six other post offices opened and closed inside today’s town.

Ostend
1842–1864
Wade
1864–1956
Archers Fork
1874–1949
Deucher
1885–1950
Leith
1891–1942
Shay
1899–1950
18401930today
Hamlets and corners on the map
Archers ForkDeucherLeithShayWade
9cemeteries and burying grounds inside Independence Township
BowersockChapmanGermanHearnHuffmanIndependence ChapelMount Hope ChurchPoint Pleasant ChurchTaylor

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

Help out

Start Independence Township’s collection

The first neighbors to add old photos shape how Independence Township’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
On the map

Independence Township on the map, 1906 to 2002

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

Independence Township on the 1906 USGS mapIndependence Township on the 1924 USGS mapIndependence Township on the 1975 USGS mapIndependence Township on the 1989 USGS mapIndependence Township on the 1994 USGS mapIndependence Township on the 2002 USGS map1906St Marys 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 Independence Township.

The story so far

Independence Township, in brief

Wikipedia doesn’t have a history of Independence Township yet. The photos, dates and memories neighbors add here are how it gets written.

Independence Township is one of the twenty-two townships of Washington County, Ohio, United States. The 2020 census found 315 people in the township.

Between the 2010 and 2020 censuses its population fell from 348 to 315 (-9%).

Intro from Wikipedia. Population: U.S. Census Bureau.

Timeline

Independence Township, 1842 to 1956

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

  1. 19th century
  2. 1842Post officeThe Ostend post office opens
  3. 1864Post officeThe Ostend post office closes
  4. 1864Post officeThe Wade post office opens
  5. 1874Post officeThe Archers Fork post office opens
  6. 20th century
  7. 1906On the mapFirst mapped by the U.S. Geological Survey
  8. 1949Post officeThe Archers Fork post office closes
  9. 1956Post officeThe Wade post office closes
By decade

Independence Township, decade by decade

Today10 recent
Suspension footbridge over Archers Fork in Independence Township, Washington County, Ohio, 2015-04-27 (5499)2015Suspension footbridge over Archers Fork in Independen…Suspension footbridge over Archers Fork in Independence Township, Washington County, Ohio, 2015-04-27 (5494)2015Suspension footbridge over Archers Fork in Independen…Low-water bridge across Archers Fork in Independence Township, Washington County, Ohio, 2015-04-29 (5512)2015Low-water bridge across Archers Fork in Independence …Low-water bridge across Archers Fork in Independence Township, Washington County, Ohio, 2015-04-29 (5502)2015Low-water bridge across Archers Fork in Independence …Archers Fork viewed from Oxbow Lane in Independence Township, Washington County, Ohio, 2015-04-29 (5510)2015Archers Fork viewed from Oxbow Lane in Independence T…Archers Fork viewed from Oxbow Lane in Independence Township, Washington County, Ohio, 2015-04-29 (5509)2015Archers Fork viewed from Oxbow Lane in Independence T…Archers Fork viewed from Oxbow Lane in Independence Township, Washington County, Ohio, 2015-04-29 (5504)2015Archers Fork viewed from Oxbow Lane in Independence T…Map of Washington County Ohio Highlighting Independence Township2015Map of Washington County Ohio Highlighting Independen…MapWaernicke-Hille House and Store2014Waernicke-Hille House and StoreIndependence Township offices in Archer's Fork2014Independence Township offices in Archer's Fork
On the National Register

1 historic place in Independence Township

The country’s official list of buildings and places worth saving.

place listed
1
National Historic Landmarks
0
none yet
historic buildings protected
5
each building in a district counts
first listed
1979
Waernicke-Hille House And Store
Waernicke-Hille House And Store
Buildings
Waernicke-Hille House And StoreBuilding

National Park Service, National Register of Historic Places. Photos from Wikimedia Commons, credited on each place’s page.

Famous people

Famous people close to Independence Township

Nobody well known was born in Independence Township itself, so here are the best known from just nearby.

See all →
Cleveland Monroe BaileyAmerican politician · b. 1886
Bill BollingAmerican politician · b. 1957
Herbert Stephenson BoremanUnited States federal judge · b. 1897
B
Billy ReynoldsAmerican football player · b. 1931
Dick HoblitzelAmerican baseball player · b. 1888
F
Frank BarronAmerican baseball player · b. 1890
Stories next door

History across the town line

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

Grandview TownshipIts storyBLawrence Township2 historic placesnot graded: under 1,000 residents or part of its townLudlow Township1 historic placenot graded: under 1,000 residents or part of its townNewport Township2 historic placesA−

Questions about Independence Township’s history

What is on the National Register in Independence Township?

One place: the Waernicke-Hille House And Store (listed 1979).

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 (10), the National Register of Historic Places (1), 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.