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A−History
History · Poland Township

Poland Township dates to 1802, and 11% of its homes were built before 1940

More historic than 81% of U.S. towns · #296 of 993 in Ohio. What drives it

5 places in town are on the National Register. Below: 3 old photos and papers, maps from 1906 on, and the census since 1850.

1802founded
5on the National Register
11%homes built before 1940
3old photos & papers
Add an old photoShare a memory
From Poland Township’s archive · credits on each photo
Quick answers

How Poland Township began

When was Poland Township founded?

1802

Poland Township dates its founding to 1802 (Wikidata). The census first counted it in 1850.

First census: 583 in 18502020 census: 14,664224 years

How historic is Poland Township?

A−

More historic than 81% of U.S. towns, on its age, its old homes and the National Register.

What drives the grade ↓
Founding year: Wikidata. First post office: 1804.The full story ↓
History grade

What drives Poland Township’s History grade

On its age, its old homes and the National Register, Poland Township is more historic than 81% of U.S. towns, #296 of 993 in Ohio. All 3 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 Poland Township’s overall grade.
Founding era1802, from Wikidata: founded 1776–1849, an older era than 75% of U.S. townsA−Homes built before 194011.4% of homes (±2.3) · typical OH town 14.5% · U.S. 8.4%B−National Register5 listings, 32 historic buildings, 22.0 per 10,000 residents · typical OH town 2.9 · U.S. 2.4A−
All U.S. towns we grade (21,289)Ahead of 81%
NewerOlder
Ohio towns of 2,500+ (993)Ahead of 70%

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 Poland Township’s 22.0 sits above most of its state (82% of Ohio towns have fewer) while its 32 historic buildings outnumber those of 82% of U.S. towns.

How sure. Graded on any two of the three inputs instead, the letter would range from B+ to A. The pre-1940 share (±2.3 points) is firm at this size. Two sources give 1802.

Founding year: Wikidata (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 Poland Township’s past

Read from the archive, the National Register and the record. The page puts what stands out first.

A history waiting to be writtenOnly 3 old photos are in the public archives. The rest are in attics and albums.Shrank, then grewLost a third of its people between 1850 and 1910, then grew 6-fold.On the map since 19064 editions of the USGS map, 1906 to 1970. Watch Poland Township change.Deep rootsEstablished in 1802: 224 years of Poland Township.
★ What stands out · Help out

Start Poland Township’s collection

The first neighbors to add old photos shape how Poland Township’s history is told.

Decades since 1900 with photos
00s10s20s30s40s50s60s70s80s90s
0 of 10 decades. The empty ones are waiting for someone’s album.
Date a photo2 archive items have no date. Guess the decade.+2Retake an old viewOld Stone Tavern in: stand where they stood+15Share a family photoSign in to add one+10
People over time

Poland Township, census by census

05001,0001,5002,0002,5003,0001850190019502000583 in 1850Low: 367

Lost a third of its people between 1850 and 1910, then grew 6-fold.

17 censuses, 1850–2020.

U.S. Census Bureau decennial counts, from the census table on Poland Township’s Wikipedia page.

On the map

Poland Township on the map, 1906 to 1970

Every edition of the U.S. Geological Survey’s map of Poland Township. Tap a year, or press play to watch the town change.

Poland Township on the 1906 USGS mapPoland Township on the 1951 USGS mapPoland Township on the 1963 USGS mapPoland Township on the 1970 USGS map1906Youngstown 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 Poland Township.

The story

How Poland Township came to be

From Wikipedia’s history of Poland Township.

Read it all →

In 1796, Poland Township was surveyed and registered as township 1, range 1 of the Connecticut Western Reserve of the Connecticut Land Company. Turhand Kirtland was a member of a group of surveyors led by Moses Cleaveland, and is considered to have founded the community of Poland in 1798. The earliest settlers primarily originated from Connecticut and Pennsylvania. An early grist mill was built on the Yellow Creek in 1802 by Jonathan Fowler, whose family was the first to settle in the village.

Text from Wikipedia, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0.

Timeline

Poland Township, 1802 to 1970

Woven from the archive, old maps, post office records, the National Register and the people born here.

  1. 19th century
  2. 1802
    FoundingPoland Township is established
  3. 1852Post officeThe Poland Centre post office opens
  4. 1858Post officeThe Poland Centre post office closes
  5. 1861In the archiveOld Stone Tavern in
  6. 20th century
  7. 1906On the mapFirst mapped by the U.S. Geological Survey
  8. 1970CensusPopulation peaks at 3,097
By decade

Poland Township, decade by decade

One decade in the archive so far: the 1860s. Scroll each row; tap a photo for its story.

1860s1 item
Old Stone Tavern in1861Old Stone Tavern in
Date unknown2 to date
White Bowstring Arch Truss Bridge, Spanning Yellow Creek at Cemetery Drive (Riverside Drive)Date?White Bowstring Arch Truss Bridge, Spanning Yellow Cr…Main Street Parker Pony Truss Bridge, Main Street (Route 170) spanning Yellow CreekDate?Main Street Parker Pony Truss Bridge, Main Street (Ro…
Today6 recent
Poland seminary (3)2023Poland seminary (3)Poland, Ohio Library2018Poland, Ohio LibraryMap of Mahoning County Ohio Highlighting Poland Village2015Map of Mahoning County Ohio Highlighting Poland Villa…MapRiverside and Main in2014Riverside and Main inPoland post office 445142014Poland post office 44514OHMap-doton-Poland2004OHMap-doton-Poland
Then & now

Stand where they stood

No then-and-now pairs yet. Take a photo from the same spot as an old one and they appear here side by side.

Old Stone Tavern in
Retake this viewOld Stone Tavern in, 1861

Find the spot, match the angle, and add your photo. It becomes the first then-and-now pair on Poland Township’s page.

Retake this view · +15
On the National Register

5 listings protect 32 historic buildings

The country’s official list of buildings and places worth saving.

places listed
5
National Historic Landmarks
0
none yet
historic buildings protected
32
each building in a district counts
first listed
1984
Lake Hamilton Dam
Lake Hamilton DamPoland Center School
BuildingsStructures

Architectural styles listings

Greek Revival1
Lake Hamilton DamStructure
Poland Center SchoolGreek Revival

National Park Service, National Register of Historic Places. Photos from Wikimedia Commons, credited on each place’s page.

Places that used to be

Lost post offices, old corners, places now gone and burying grounds

Another post office, Poland Centre, opened and closed inside today’s town.

Hamlets and corners on the map
Poland CenterSmith Corners
Gone or out of use
Bessemer QuarrymineKansas SchoolschoolPoland Center SchoolschoolPoland Centre Post Officepost office
3cemeteries and burying grounds inside Poland Township
Holy RosaryLowellvillePoland Center

US Post Offices dataset (Blevins & Helbock, CC0). Places and cemeteries from the USGS Geographic Names Information System (2021).

Stories next door

History across the town line

Each neighbor’s History grade, on the same three inputs.

StruthersIts storyBBoardman Township5 historic placesA−Poland3 historic placesALowellville1 historic placenot graded: under 1,000 residents or part of its townSpringfield TownshipIts storyCCoitsville Township1 historic placeA−

Questions about Poland Township’s history

What year was Poland Township founded?

In 1802, according to Wikidata. Poland Township’s post office opened in 1804, and the census of 1850 counted 583 people here.

How does Poland Township rank for history?

Poland Township is more historic than 81% of U.S. towns, #296 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 Poland Township?

5 listings: 1 building and 1 structure. 32 historic buildings in all.

How old are the homes in Poland Township?

11% of Poland Township’s homes were built before 1940 (Census estimate, ±2.3 points), against a typical 15% for an Ohio town; the median home was built in 1967.

Memory lane

What the archives can’t tell you, neighbors can.

Town Square →
Start a conversation
Sources

Where this page comes from

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 (7), the Library of Congress (2), Wikidata (2), the National Register of Historic Places (2), Wikipedia, 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.