On its age, its old homes and the National Register, Jefferson Township is more historic than 62% of U.S. towns, #517 of 993 in Ohio. Its share of homes from before 1940 holds the grade up; its National Register listings pull it down.
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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 (±6.8 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
Three other post offices opened and closed inside today’s town.
Gettysburgh
1837–1858
Brinleys Station
1860–1882
Brinley
1882–1902
18301930today
Hamlets and corners on the map
BelfastBrinleyCedar SpringsGettysburgOrangeburg
Gone or out of use
Brinley Post Officepost officeGettysburgh Post Officepost officeMcFadden Schoolschool
3cemeteries and burying grounds inside Jefferson Township
GettysburgPleasant HillSpring Lawn
US Post Offices dataset (Blevins & Helbock, CC0). Places and cemeteries from the USGS Geographic Names Information System (2021).
The story so far
Jefferson Township, in brief
Wikipedia doesn’t have a history of Jefferson Township yet. The photos, dates and memories neighbors add here are how it gets written.
Jefferson Township is one of the twelve townships of Preble County, Ohio, United States. The 2020 census found 3,226 people in the township. The Jefferson community is served by National Trail High School and the National Trail Local School district. Interstate 70 runs along the southern part of the township.
Between the 2010 and 2020 censuses its population fell from 3,309 to 3,226 (-3%).
Intro from Wikipedia. Population: U.S. Census Bureau.
Timeline
Jefferson Township, 1837 to 1960
Woven from the archive, old maps, post office records, the National Register and the people born here.
Every edition of the U.S. Geological Survey’s map of Jefferson Township. Tap a year, or press play to watch the town change.
1960New Paris sheet · 1:24,000
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.
Famous people
Famous people close to Jefferson Township
Nobody well known was born in Jefferson Township itself, so here are the best known from just nearby.
Jefferson Township is more historic than 62% of U.S. towns, #517 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?
36% of Jefferson Township’s homes were built before 1940 (Census estimate, ±6.8 points), against a typical 15% for an Ohio town; the median home was built in 1958.
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 (3), 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.
2016
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2007
