A
civil township is a widely used unit of
local government in the
United States, subordinate to a
county. The term
town is used in
New England, New York, and Wisconsin to refer to the equivalent of the civil township in these states. Specific responsibilities and the degree of vary based on each
state. Civil townships are distinct from
survey townships, but in states that have both, the boundaries often coincide and may completely geographically subdivide a county. The
U.S. Census Bureau classifies civil townships as
minor civil divisions. Currently, there are 20 states with civil townships.