The township was organized in 1837 from a piece of Jackson Township and named for Nathan Kirk, a local pioneer and the first settler in the eastern half of the county.

Arriving in 1826, Kirk erected a log cabin in section 34 on the eastern side of what was known as Twelve Mile Prairie and remained the only white resident of the area that would become Kirklin Township until 1829, when Thaddeus Panburn and Daniel Hunter came and entered his employ.

The Monon Railroad, arriving in 1883, was the first rail line to pass through the township and led to the founding of the town of Cyclone.

[5] According to the 2010 census, the township has a total area of 35.06 square miles (90.8 km2), all land.

[4] The township contains six cemeteries: Bogan, Dew, Earp, Kings Corner, McIntire, Oak Hill and Stowers.