Founding year: Wikipedia. First post office: 1823.The full story ↓
History grade
What drives Rockford’s History grade
On its age, its old homes and the National Register, Rockford is more historic than 68% of U.S. towns. Its share of homes from before 1940 holds the grade up; its National Register listings pull it down.
B+
HistoryA character grade: shown, never part of Rockford’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 Rockford’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.
NoteThe founding year comes from Wikipedia alone; no second source gives 1815.
How sure. Graded on any two of the three inputs instead, the letter would range from C+ to A. The pre-1940 share is a Census survey estimate (±6.6 points).
Founding year: Wikipedia (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 Rockford’s past
Read from the archive, the National Register and the record. The page puts what stands out first.
Fire insurance maps drew every building, what it was made of and what it was used for, so insurers could price the risk of fire. Pick a year, then a sheet.
Prior to European colonisation, the high ground adjacent to St. Marys River at Rockford was used as a camping ground and village site for Native American tribes. Artefacts including weapons and tools have been found on the site.
Early traders, trappers and adventurers used the St. Marys River as a thoroughfare, and frequented trails along the banks of the river. Most notable of these is the Piqua-Fort Wayne Trail linking the Great Lakes to the Ohio River, which crossed to the north bank at Rockford.
Passages that mention Rockford, cut from the printed page as they were published.
History of Mercer County, Ohio1907 · page 149Read the page →
Read the text
The Farmers & Savings Bank Company, of Rockford, was incorporated under the State banking laws on August i, 1904, being the result of a merger of the Farmers’ Banking Company, of Rockford, of which D. IT. Robinson was president and Frank E. Robinson, cashier, and the Rockford Savings Bank, of which Cornelius Smith was president and J. S. Riley, cashier. The officers and directors of the present company elected upon its organization have since continued in office and are as follows : D. H. Robinson, president ; Cornelius Smith, vice-president; J. S. Riley, cashier; J. C. Van Fleet, assist-
Text read by machine from the scan; it may contain errors.
History of Mercer County, Ohio1907 · page 139Read the page →
Read the text
Grants of land near the present village of Rockford were made to several of these Indians. Among these was a grant of one section of land on the banks of tbe St. Mary's River, at Shane’s Crossing (now Rockford) to Anthony Shane; six sections of land on the north side of the St. Mary s River, above the reservation of Shane, to Louis Godfrey ; one section on the north side of
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
Rockford, 1815 to 1949
Woven from the archive, old maps, post office records, the National Register and the people born here.
Nothing in the archives for these yearsWeddings on Main Street, storms, parades, school pictures, the old store. If it’s in your family album, it belongs here.
Between 887 and 1,245 people in every census since 1890.
14 censuses, 1890–2020.
U.S. Census Bureau decennial counts, from the census table on Rockford’s Wikipedia page.
Places that used to be
Lost post offices and old corners
Rockford’s post office has been open since 1890. Another post office, Shanes Crossing, opened and closed inside today’s town.
Shanes Crossing
1823–1890
Rockford
1890–today
18201920today
Hamlets and corners on the map
Meyers Mobile Home Park
US Post Offices dataset (Blevins & Helbock, CC0). Places and cemeteries from the USGS Geographic Names Information System (2021).
Questions about Rockford’s history
What year was Rockford founded?
In 1815, according to Wikipedia’s history of the town. Rockford’s post office opened in 1823, and the census of 1890 counted 993 people here.
How does Rockford rank for history?
Rockford is more historic than 68% of U.S. towns. 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 Rockford?
29% of Rockford’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 1962.
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), 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), the USGS Geographic Names Information System, Sanborn fire insurance maps (Library of Congress) 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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