From Perry Township’s archive · credits on each photo
Quick answers
How Perry Township began
When was Perry Township founded?
1819
The Perry Township post office opened in 1819, the earliest record of the town by name. Two smaller post offices, North Perry (1832) and Lane (1890), opened inside today’s town and later closed.
First census: 170 in 18802020 census: 8,862207 years
How historic is Perry Township?
B+
More historic than 68% of U.S. towns, on its age, its old homes and the National Register.
Founding year: the first Perry Township post office (Blevins & Helbock, CC0).The full story ↓
History grade
What drives Perry Township’s History grade
On its age, its old homes and the National Register, Perry Township is more historic than 68% of U.S. towns, #446 of 993 in Ohio. All 3 inputs are above most U.S. towns; its age ranks highest and its National Register listings lowest.
B+
HistoryA character grade: shown, never part of Perry 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 Perry Township’s 1.1 sits near the middle of its state (50% of Ohio towns have fewer) while its 1 listings outnumber those of 51% of U.S. towns.
How sure. Graded on any two of the three inputs instead, the letter would range from B− to B+. The pre-1940 share is a Census survey estimate (±3.1 points). The founding year is the first post office, not a stated founding date.
Founding year: the first post office (other dates in Quick answers). 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 Perry 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.
North Perry
1832–1854
Lane
1890–1900
18301930today
Hamlets and corners on the map
Camp RooseveltLaneNorth PerryPerry Mobile Homes
Gone or out of use
Lane Post Officepost officeNorth Perry Post Officepost office
2cemeteries and burying grounds inside Perry Township
Lane RoadPerry
US Post Offices dataset (Blevins & Helbock, CC0). Places and cemeteries from the USGS Geographic Names Information System (2021).
On the map
Perry Township on the map, 1905 to 1994
Every edition of the U.S. Geological Survey’s map of Perry Township. Tap a year, or press play to watch the town change.
1905Perry 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 Perry Township.
It is named in honor of Commodore Oliver Hazard Perry to commemorate his victory over the British fleet at the Battle of Lake Erie in September 1813. The battle was a turning point in the western theater during the War of 1812. Perry is known for its public schools, whose recent construction was influenced by the nearby Perry Nuclear Generating Station.
The Perry Township post office opened in 1819, the earliest record of the town by name (U.S. post office records).
How does Perry Township rank for history?
Perry Township is more historic than 68% of U.S. towns, #446 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 Perry Township?
13% of Perry Township’s homes were built before 1940 (Census estimate, ±3.1 points), against a typical 15% for an Ohio town; the median home was built in 1979.
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, Wikidata and Wikipedia for famous people, 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.