On its age, its old homes and the National Register, Monroe Township is more historic than 83% of U.S. towns, #256 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.
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HistoryA character grade: shown, never part of Monroe 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 Monroe Township’s 29.2 sits above most of its state (84% of Ohio towns have fewer) while its 8 historic buildings outnumber those of 74% 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 (±6.6 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 Monroe Township’s past
Read from the archive, the National Register and the record. The page puts what stands out first.
Center Hall SchoolschoolExcelsior SchoolschoolHastings Post Officepost officeHazel Dell SchoolschoolPleasant Hill Landing StripairportSchool Number 4schoolSchool Number 8schoolValley Hall SchoolschoolWalnut Hall Schoolschool
8cemeteries and burying grounds inside Monroe Township
HastingsMount OliveMount Zion LutheranOdd FellowsPleasant ValleySaint JohnShambaughWilliams
US Post Offices dataset (Blevins & Helbock, CC0). Places and cemeteries from the USGS Geographic Names Information System (2021).
On the map
Monroe Township on the map, 1912 to 1961
Every edition of the U.S. Geological Survey’s map of Monroe Township. Tap a year, or press play to watch the town change.
1912Perrysville 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 Monroe Township.
The story so far
Monroe Township, in brief
Wikipedia doesn’t have a history of Monroe Township yet. The photos, dates and memories neighbors add here are how it gets written.
Monroe 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 2,721 people in the township.
Its population held steady between the last two censuses: 2,723 in 2010, 2,721 in 2020.
Intro from Wikipedia. Population: U.S. Census Bureau.
From the old history books
What they wrote about Monroe Township in 1880
Passages that mention Monroe Township, cut from the printed page as they were published.
history of richland county ohio1880 · page 832Read the page →
Read the text
and purchased a farm adjacent to the village of Lucas, known as the Marks farm: in 1873, he traded this farm for the one he now owns, it being the northeast quarter of Sec. 32, in Monroe Township; he has materially improved this farm since he became the owner of it; he is regarded as a first-class farmer; Mr.
Text read by machine from the scan; it may contain errors.
History of Richland County, Ohio1880 · page 541Read the page →
Read the text
In 1819, the following names appear on the tax duplicate of Monroe Township, which aflfords positive evidence regarding its early settlements. It is presumed the list comprises nearly all the heads of the families in the township at that date.
Text read by machine from the scan; it may contain errors.
history of richland county ohio1880 · page 541Read the page →
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cleared a farm, which is now one of the finest in the township. ~ In 1819, the following names appear on the tax duplicate of Monroe Township, which affords positive evidence regarding its early settlements. It is presumed the list comprises nearly all the date.
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
Monroe Township, 1839 to 1939
Woven from the archive, old maps, post office records, the National Register and the people born here.
Monroe Township is more historic than 83% of U.S. towns, #256 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.
What is on the National Register in Monroe Township?
Two places: the Malabar Farm (listed 1973) and the George Shambaugh House (1982).
How old are the homes in Monroe Township?
17% of Monroe Township’s homes were built before 1940 (Census estimate, ±6.6 points), against a typical 15% for an Ohio town; the median home was built in 1972.
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 (5), the National Register of Historic Places (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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