Kinderhook Township is what’s known as a fractional township, made up of just twenty-four sections. It sits along the southern edge of Branch County, right on the Indiana border. Originally, this area was part of Ovid Township. But in 1842, the residents, eager to establish their own identity, successfully petitioned for Kinderhook to become a separate township with its own civil government.

The story behind the township’s name is an interesting one. While some have believed it was named after a village in New York, that isn’t the case. The real origin dates back to the presidential campaign of Martin Van Buren. At the time, when the Legislature was considering names for the new township, many suggestions were put forward—some serious, some not. One legislator jokingly proposed “Kinderhook,” which happened to be Van Buren’s birthplace. The name struck the group as both fitting and amusing, and it was adopted unanimously.

Thus, the township’s name came about more by chance than by design—a lighthearted compromise during a heated political season that has endured ever since.