After the Revolutionary War, the area that later became Olmsted Township was part of the Western Reserve, a strip of northeastern Ohio land stretching 120 miles west from the Pennsylvania border, that was claimed by Connecticut.

Several bidders won the right to purchase what then was known as Township 6, Range 15, with the largest share of almost half going to Aaron Olmsted, a sea captain from East Hartford, Connecticut.

In 1857, the village doubled in size when it annexed Plum Creek, the unincorporated hamlet to the north.

[9] In 1927, Westview (also known as West View) was incorporated as a village from the southeastern portion of Olmsted Township.

Railroad tracks, originally built in 1853 and now owned by Norfolk Southern, cut east-west through the township.

The township is governed by a three-member board of trustees, who are elected in November of odd-numbered years to a four-year term beginning on the following January 1.

As of 2022, the board was composed of Riley A. Alton, Jeanene Kress, and Lisa Zver and the fiscal officer was Brian Gillette.