Half of Jefferson Township’s homes were built after 2004
More historic than 18% of U.S. towns · #926 of 993 in Ohio. What drives it
Most of Jefferson Township was built recently: 5% of its homes predate 1940 and the median home dates from 2004. Below: 6 old photos and papers, maps from 1902 on, and the census since 1850.
On its age, its old homes and the National Register, Jefferson Township is more historic than 18% of U.S. towns, #926 of 993 in Ohio. 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 Jefferson 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 Jefferson 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 (±4.0 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 Jefferson 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.
Ovid
1832–1904
Havens Corners
1879–1884
18301930today
Hamlets and corners on the map
Asbury HeightsBlacklickBlacklick RidgeColts NeckEstates At FieldstoneFieldstoneHavens CornersHavenswoodJefferson EstatesJefferson MeadowsKitzmiller CrossingMorrison FarmsOaklandOvidParkwoodPinecrestRoyal ElmStepping StoneThe Woods At Havens RunVillas At Hawks CrestWillow Brook Crossing
Gone or out of use
Havens Corners Post Officepost officeLyttle AirportairportOvid Post Officepost office
5cemeteries and burying grounds inside Jefferson Township
AyersDagueHavensHeadleyJefferson
US Post Offices dataset (Blevins & Helbock, CC0). Places and cemeteries from the USGS Geographic Names Information System (2021).
On the map
Jefferson Township on the map, 1902 to 1982
Every edition of the U.S. Geological Survey’s map of Jefferson Township. Tap a year, or press play to watch the town change.
1902Westerville 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 Jefferson Township.
Jefferson was officially founded by Gideon Granger, U.S. Postmaster General during Thomas Jefferson's administration, in 1803. He envisioned the new settlement as a "Philadelphia of the West," and early plans for the village were based upon the layout of that city. A cabin was erected by Granger's agent in 1804, but the settlement's first permanent residents arrived only in 1805: the Samuel Wilson family. Wilson, misled by land agents, moved to Ohio in late autumn expecting to find a thriving city on Granger's land. Instead, he found a wilderness, broken only by trees emblazoned with Philadelphian street names, marking where future streets would be built. Wilson himself died after two weeks of herculean effort to prepare for the winter, but his family stayed on as the first citizens of Jefferson. In 1811, Jefferson was made the county seat of Ashtabula County.
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.
Jefferson Township is more historic than 18% of U.S. towns, #926 of 993 in Ohio. 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 Jefferson Township?
5% of Jefferson Township’s homes were built before 1940 (Census estimate, ±4.0 points), against a typical 15% for an Ohio town; the median home was built in 2004.
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 (6), Wikipedia, 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.
1907
1907
1907
1907
1908