On its age, its old homes and the National Register, Olmsted Township is more historic than 22% of U.S. towns, #903 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 Olmsted 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 Olmsted 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 (±2.6 points) is firm at this size.
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 Olmsted Township’s past
Read from the archive, the National Register and the record. The page puts what stands out first.
Every edition of the U.S. Geological Survey’s map of Olmsted Township. Tap a year, or press play to watch the town change.
1902Berea 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 Olmsted Township.
After the Revolutionary War, the area that later became Olmsted Township was part of the Western Reserve, a strip of northeastern Ohio land stretching 120 miles west from the Pennsylvania border, that was claimed by Connecticut. In 1795, Connecticut sold most of that land to the Connecticut Land Company, which then divided it into townships and sold it by auction. Several bidders won the right to purchase what then was known as Township 6, Range 15, with the largest share of almost half going to Aaron Olmsted, a sea captain from East Hartford, Connecticut. However, it took years for the sales to be consummated. Olmsted died in 1806, so when the sale of his land was completed in 1807, it went to his widow and three sons, who sold parts of the land to settlers.
Olmsted Township is more historic than 22% of U.S. towns, #903 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 Olmsted Township?
7% of Olmsted Township’s homes were built before 1940 (Census estimate, ±2.6 points), against a typical 15% for an Ohio town; the median home was built in 1991.
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 (10), Wikipedia, U.S. Geological Survey historical maps 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.
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