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History · Aetna Township

33% of Aetna Township’s homes were built before 1940

Below: maps from 1957 on and the census since 2000.

0on the National Register
33%homes built before 1940
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What stands out about Aetna Township’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 Aetna Township are in the public archives yet. The rest are in attics and albums.Old housesHalf of Aetna Township’s homes were built before 1958.
★ What stands out · Help out

Start Aetna Township’s collection

The first neighbors to add old photos shape how Aetna Township’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 so far

Aetna Township, in brief

Wikipedia doesn’t have a history of Aetna Township yet. The photos, dates and memories neighbors add here are how it gets written.

Aetna Township is located in Logan County, Illinois. As of the 2020 census, its population was 476 and it contained 212 housing units. Chestnut, Illinois and Bakerville, Illinois are the only communities in the township. Aetna Township most likely derives its name from Mount Etna.

Between the 2010 and 2020 censuses its population fell from 535 to 476 (-11%).

Intro from Wikipedia. Population: U.S. Census Bureau.

Timeline

Aetna Township, 1856 to 1957

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

  1. 19th century
  2. 1856Post officeThe Laenna post office opens
  3. 1872Post officeThe Laenna post office closes
  4. 1873Post officeThe Chestnut post office opens
  5. 20th century
  6. 1957On the mapFirst mapped by the U.S. Geological Survey
By decade

Aetna Township, decade by decade

Today1 recent
Aetna Township building 2026-07-182026Aetna Township building 2026-07-18
On the map

Aetna Township on the map, 1957 to 1980

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

Aetna Township on the 1957 USGS mapAetna Township on the 1980 USGS map1957Kenney sheet · 1:62,500

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

People over time

Aetna Township, census by census

010020030040050020002020Peak: 535

Between 476 and 535 people in every census since 2000.

3 censuses, 2000–2020.

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

Famous people

Famous people close to Aetna Township

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

See all →
Scott AltmanAmerican astronaut, aviator and test pilot · b. 1959
Brenda ChapmanAmerican animator, storyboard artist, and direc… · b. 1962
Terry KinneyAmerican actor · b. 1954
Brian CookAmerican basketball player · b. 1980
Edward Rell MadiganAmerican politician · b. 1936
John SchlittAmerican singer · b. 1950
Places that used to be

Lost post offices, old corners and burying grounds

Another post office, Laenna, opened and closed inside today’s town.

Laenna
1856–1872
Chestnut
1873–today
18501940today
Hamlets and corners on the map
BakervilleChestnut
3cemeteries and burying grounds inside Aetna Township
DonnanHarmonyLaenna

US Post Offices dataset (Blevins & Helbock, CC0). Places and cemeteries from the USGS Geographic Names Information System (2021).

Stories next door

History across the town line

Each neighbor’s History grade, on the same three inputs.

Tunbridge TownshipIts storynot graded: under 1,000 residents or part of its townLaenna TownshipIts storynot graded: under 1,000 residents or part of its townChester TownshipIts storynot graded: under 1,000 residents or part of its townOran TownshipIts storynot graded: under 1,000 residents or part of its town

Questions about Aetna Township’s history

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), 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.