On its age, its old homes and the National Register, Jefferson Township is more historic than 83% of U.S. towns, #269 of 993 in Ohio. All 2 inputs are above most U.S. towns; its National Register listings ranks highest and its share of homes from before 1940 lowest.
A−
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 10.1 sits above most of its state (74% of Ohio towns have fewer) while its 5 listings outnumber those of 70% 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 (±6.4 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.
Bangor
1837–1849
Bangorville
1887–1901
18301930today
Hamlets and corners on the map
BangorvilleClearfork Mobile Home ParkGatton RockLockhart
Gone or out of use
Bangor Post Officepost officeCenter Grove SchoolschoolForest SchoolschoolHoney Creek SchoolschoolPleasant Hill SchoolschoolRed Brush SchoolschoolSchool Number 7schoolSchool Number 8school
4cemeteries and burying grounds inside Jefferson Township
ConleyGarberLutheranSalem
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, 1915 to 1974
Every edition of the U.S. Geological Survey’s map of Jefferson Township. Tap a year, or press play to watch the town change.
1915Shauck 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.
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 eighteen townships of Richland County, Ohio, United States. It is a part of the Mansfield Metropolitan Statistical Area. The 2020 census found 4,905 people in the township.
Its population held steady between the last two censuses: 4,851 in 2010, 4,905 in 2020.
Intro from Wikipedia. Population: U.S. Census Bureau.
From the old history books
What they wrote about Jefferson Township in 1880
Passages that mention Jefferson Township, cut from the printed page as they were published.
history of richland county ohio1880 · page 432Read the page →
Read the text
The house was furnished in 1836, and used for services about eighteen years. This was the first church erected in the Jefferson Township of 1880. In April, 1854, the building committee was authorized to sell the old house, and in the same month a resolution was passed to build a new house 40x55, 16-feet story, in the clear, with a lobby of 9 feet. In May, Judge
Text read by machine from the scan; it may contain errors.
History of Richland County, Ohio1880 · page 552Read the page →
Read the text
Michael Shuey. The first house was built jointly by the Lutherans and Reformed, about the year 1825. In 1838, the Salem Lutheran Church was erected in Jefferson Township, and the societies were divided. The two branches remaining fell into bitter contentions, and the house was not well cared for. In 1846, an Evangelical society was organized,
Text read by machine from the scan; it may contain errors.
history of richland county ohio1880 · page 552Read the page →
Read the text
Michael Shuey. The first house was built jointly by the Lutherans and Reformed, about the year 1825. In 1838, the Salem Lutheran Church was erected in Jefferson Township, and the societies were divided. The two branches remaining fell into bitter contentions, and the house was not well cared for. In 1846, an Evangelical society was organized,
Text read by machine from the scan; it may contain errors.
Scans and text from the Internet Archive. Books published in 1930 or earlier, which are in the public domain.
Timeline
Jefferson Township, 1837 to 1915
Woven from the archive, old maps, post office records, the National Register and the people born here.
Jefferson Township is more historic than 83% of U.S. towns, #269 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?
20% of Jefferson Township’s homes were built before 1940 (Census estimate, ±6.4 points), against a typical 15% for an Ohio town; the median home was built in 1975.
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 (4), the Library of Congress (2), U.S. Geological Survey historical maps, the US Post Offices dataset (Blevins & Helbock), the USGS Geographic Names Information System and old county and town histories (Internet Archive). Archive images are copied here with their credits and licenses, shown on each photo’s page. Refreshed monthly.
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