The Wakeman Township post office opened in 1832, the earliest record of the town by name. Another post office, Sherman (1825), opened inside today’s town and later closed.
First census: 452 in 19302020 census: 2,761194 years
How historic is Wakeman Township?
B
More historic than 61% of U.S. towns, on its age, its old homes and the National Register.
Founding year: the first Wakeman Township post office (Blevins & Helbock, CC0).The full story ↓
History grade
What drives Wakeman Township’s History grade
On its age, its old homes and the National Register, Wakeman Township is more historic than 61% of U.S. towns, #524 of 993 in Ohio. Its age holds the grade up; its National Register listings pull it down.
B
HistoryA character grade: shown, never part of Wakeman 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 Wakeman 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 any two of the three inputs instead, the letter would range from C+ to A−. The pre-1940 share is a Census survey estimate (±6.9 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 Wakeman 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 Wakeman Township. Tap a year, or press play to watch the town change.
1908New London 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 Wakeman Township.
Timeline
Wakeman Township, 1825 to 1908
Woven from the archive, old maps, post office records, the National Register and the people born here.
According to Underground Railroad historian Wilbur H. Siebert, "Leverett B. Hill, of Wakeman, Ohio, assisted 103 [freedom seekers] on their way to Canada during the year 1852."
Rev. Dr. Charles C. Creegan was born in Ohio and was ordained in 1874. He was pastor of a congregational church in Wakeman, Ohio for five years. He went on to do missionary work and served as president of Fargo College.
A type of sandstone identified as Wakeman Buff or spider web sandstone was once quarried in Wakeman. A quarry operated by the Cleveland Stone Company in northern Wakeman between 1877 and circa late 1910s or early 1920s was also known for quarrying Berea Sandstone.
The Wakeman Township post office opened in 1832, the earliest record of the town by name (U.S. post office records).
How does Wakeman Township rank for history?
Wakeman Township is more historic than 61% of U.S. towns, #524 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 Wakeman Township?
21% of Wakeman Township’s homes were built before 1940 (Census estimate, ±6.9 points), against a typical 15% for an Ohio town; the median home was built in 1978.
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), 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.
2022
2015
2013
2004
