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History · Orchard

Orchard’s post office opened in 1869, and 68% of its homes were built before 1940

Below: maps from 1971 on and the census since 1880.

1869first post office
0on the National Register
68%homes built before 1940
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Photo: Billwhittaker · CC BY-SA 3.0
Quick answers

How Orchard began, and where its name came from

When was Orchard founded?

1869

The Orchard post office opened in 1869, the earliest record of the town by name.

First census: 133 in 18802020 census: 68157 years

How did Orchard get its name?

Orchard was named for Moses Orchard, a pioneer settler.

Founding year: the first Orchard post office (Blevins & Helbock, CC0). Name: Wikipedia, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0.The full story ↓

What stands out about Orchard’s past

Read from the archive, the National Register and the record. The page puts what stands out first.

A history waiting to be writtenNo old photos of Orchard are in the public archives yet. The rest are in attics and albums.Old housesHalf of Orchard’s homes were built before 1938.Boom and bustPeaked at 158 in 1930; 68 people lived here in 2020.
★ What stands out · Help out

Start Orchard’s collection

The first neighbors to add old photos shape how Orchard’s history is told.

Decades since 1900 with photos
00s10s20s30s40s50s60s70s80s90s
0 of 10 decades. The empty ones are waiting for someone’s album.
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The story

How Orchard came to be

From Wikipedia’s history of Orchard.

Read it all →

Orchard got its start in the year 1869, following construction of the Illinois Central Railroad through that territory. It was named for Moses Orchard, a pioneer settler.

The ghost town of Lithograph City, approximately two miles southwest of Orchard, was founded in the early 1900s adjacent to quarries that produced lithographic limestone. Production in these quarries peaked during World War I when access to German lithographic limestone was cut off. In 1915, Lithograph City had 15 houses, a hotel, a dance hall and a museum. After the war, use of stone blocks in lithography declined, the city was renamed Devonia, and by 1938, no trace of the town remained.

ChaptersLithograph City

Text from Wikipedia, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0.

People over time

Orchard, census by census

010018801900192019401960198020002020Peak: 158

Peaked at 158 in 1930; 68 people lived here in 2020.

12 censuses, 1880–2020.

U.S. Census Bureau decennial counts, from the census table on Orchard’s Wikipedia page.

Timeline

Orchard, 1869 to 1971

Woven from the archive, old maps, post office records, the National Register and the people born here.

  1. 19th century
  2. 1869Post officeThe Orchard post office opens
  3. 20th century
  4. 1930CensusPopulation peaks at 158
  5. 1971On the mapFirst mapped by the U.S. Geological Survey
By decade

Orchard, decade by decade

Today1 recent
IAMap-doton-Orchard2004IAMap-doton-Orchard
On the map

Orchard on the map, 1971 to 1985

Every edition of the U.S. Geological Survey’s map of Orchard. Tap a year, or press play to watch the town change.

Orchard on the 1971 USGS mapOrchard on the 1985 USGS map1971Orchard sheet · 1:24,000

U.S. Geological Survey historical topographic maps (public domain), via Esri’s collection of the scans. The red ring marks the center of Orchard.

Famous people

Famous people close to Orchard

Nobody well known was born in Orchard itself, so here are the best known from just nearby.

See all →
R
Robert James WallerAmerican writer · b. 1939
Mike JohannsAmerican politician · b. 1950
Robert CooverAmerican novelist · b. 1932
George NelsonAmerican astronaut, astronomer · b. 1950
T
Tiny SandfordAmerican actor · b. 1894
Jane ElliottAmerican schoolteacher · b. 1933

Questions about Orchard’s history

What year was Orchard founded?

The Orchard post office opened in 1869, the earliest record of the town by name (U.S. post office records).

Memory lane

What the archives can’t tell you, neighbors can.

Town Square →
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Sources

Where this page comes from

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). How TownRatings grades history →

From Wikimedia Commons (1), 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.