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A−History
History · Aledo

Aledo dates to 1855, and 31% of its homes were built before 1940

More historic than 84% of U.S. towns · #148 of 768 in Illinois. What drives it

3 places in town are on the National Register, among them a historic district with 75 buildings. Below: 40 old photos and papers, maps from 1885 on, and the census since 1860.

1855founded
3on the National Register
31%homes built before 1940
40old photos & papers
10famous people
Add an old photoShare a memory
From Aledo’s archive · credits on each photo
Quick answers

How Aledo began

When was Aledo founded?

1855

Aledo dates its founding to 1855 (Wikidata). The census first counted it in 1860.

First census: 563 in 18602020 census: 3,633171 years

How historic is Aledo?

A−

More historic than 84% of U.S. towns, on its age, its old homes and the National Register.

What drives the grade ↓
Founding year: Wikidata. First post office: 1856.The full story ↓
History grade

What drives Aledo’s History grade

On its age, its old homes and the National Register, Aledo is more historic than 84% of U.S. towns, #148 of 768 in Illinois. Its National Register listings hold the grade up; its age pulls it down.

A−
HistoryA character grade: shown, never part of Aledo’s overall grade.
Founding era1855, from Wikidata: founded 1850–1899, an older era than 37% of U.S. townsC+Homes built before 194030.9% of homes (±6.2) · typical IL town 10.6% · U.S. 8.4%ANational Register3 listings, 77 historic buildings, 210 per 10,000 residents · typical IL town 0.5 · U.S. 2.4A
All U.S. towns we grade (21,289)Ahead of 84%
NewerOlder
Illinois towns of 2,500+ (768)Ahead of 81%

Few Illinois towns list much on the Register (a typical Illinois town has 0.5 per 10,000 residents, the U.S. 2.4), so Aledo’s 210 sits above most of its state (96% of Illinois towns have fewer) while its 77 historic buildings outnumber those of 88% of U.S. towns.

How sure. Graded on any two of the three inputs instead, the letter would range from B to A+. The pre-1940 share is a Census survey estimate (±6.2 points). Two sources give 1855.

Founding year: Wikidata (other dates in Quick answers). Homes: Census ACS 2020–24. National Register: National Park Service, May 2026 list; each listing counted once (boundary changes and added documentation belong to their listing), and a historic district counts its contributing buildings. How TownRatings grades history →

What stands out about Aledo’s past

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

A town in old photos40 old photos, postcards and papers.A historic districtThe Downtown Aledo Historic District takes in 75 historic buildings.Mapped building by building5 fire insurance maps, 1885 to 1913, drew every building in Aledo.Old housesHalf of Aledo’s homes were built before 1958.
★ What stands out · By decade

Aledo, decade by decade

One decade in the archive so far: the 1930s. Scroll each row; tap a photo for its story.

1930s40 items
Sign pasted on building1936Sign pasted on buildingUnloading hogs at the stockyards1936Unloading hogs at the stockyardsAuctioneer at country auction near Aledo, Illinois1936Auctioneer at country auction near Aledo, IllinoisFarmer handpicking corn near Aledo, Mercer County, Illinois1936Farmer handpicking corn near Aledo, Mercer County, Il…Clerk at country auction sale near Aledo, Illinois1936Clerk at country auction sale near Aledo, IllinoisSmalltown volunteer fire department at work. Aledo, Illinois1936Smalltown volunteer fire department at work. Aledo, I…A fire in a residence1936A fire in a residenceScene at country auction near Aledo, Mercer County, Illinois1936Scene at country auction near Aledo, Mercer County, I…Types of farmers at country auction near Aledo, Illinois1936Types of farmers at country auction near Aledo, Illin…Stockyard attendants herding hogs into pens at stockyards1936Stockyard attendants herding hogs into pens at stocky…Farmers sawing wood for fuel in timber near Aledo, Illinois1936Farmers sawing wood for fuel in timber near Aledo, Il…Farmers sawing wood for fuel in timber near Aledo, Illinois1936Farmers sawing wood for fuel in timber near Aledo, Il…Farmers on front of lunch shed, country auction1936Farmers on front of lunch shed, country auctionUntitled photo, possibly related to: Sign pasted on building1936Untitled photo, possibly related to: Sign pasted on b…Type of stock farmer at weighing-in room, stockyards1936Type of stock farmer at weighing-in room, stockyardsThe weighmaster, his assistant and customers, weighing-in room1936The weighmaster, his assistant and customers, weighin…Clerks and clients at the weighing-in room, stockyards1936Clerks and clients at the weighing-in room, stockyardsFarmers in shed at country auction near Aledo, Mercer County, Illinois1936Farmers in shed at country auction near Aledo, Mercer…Farmers at country auction near Aledo, Mercer County, Illinois. Note harness1936Farmers at country auction near Aledo, Mercer County,…A farmer at a country auction near Aledo, Mercer County, Illinois1936A farmer at a country auction near Aledo, Mercer Coun…A farmer at a country auction near Aledo, Mercer County, Illinois1936A farmer at a country auction near Aledo, Mercer Coun…Parading a mule to be auctioned at country auction near Aledo, Illinois1936Parading a mule to be auctioned at country auction ne…Farmers in front of lunch shed, country auction1936Farmers in front of lunch shed, country auctionUntitled photo, possibly related to: Farmer handpicking corn near Aledo, Mercer County, Illinois1936Untitled photo, possibly related to: Farmer handpicki…Untitled photo, possibly related to: Farmer handpicking corn near Aledo, Mercer County, Illinois1936Untitled photo, possibly related to: Farmer handpicki…Street scene. Aledo, Illinois1937Street scene. Aledo, IllinoisSows on scales. Aledo, Illinois stockyards1937Sows on scales. Aledo, Illinois stockyardsAttendants at the stockyard1937Attendants at the stockyardCattle being unloaded from a truck. Aledo, Illinois1937Cattle being unloaded from a truck. Aledo, IllinoisCattle and attendants in the stockyards at Aledo, Illinois1937Cattle and attendants in the stockyards at Aledo, Ill…Fence posts outside the sales pavilion at Aledo, Illinois1937Fence posts outside the sales pavilion at Aledo, Illi…Scene on a farm near Aledo. Mercer County, Illinois1937Scene on a farm near Aledo. Mercer County, IllinoisThe weighing in room at the stockyards1937The weighing in room at the stockyardsCattle being driven to the weighing scales. Aledo stockyards, Illinois1937Cattle being driven to the weighing scales. Aledo sto…Illinois farmer with a calf he has brought to the stockyard at Aledo, Illinois1937Illinois farmer with a calf he has brought to the sto…Driving hogs onto the weighing scales at the Aledo stockyards, Illinois1937Driving hogs onto the weighing scales at the Aledo st…Hogs being unloaded from a farmer's wagon at the Aledo stockyards, Illinois1937Hogs being unloaded from a farmer's wagon at the Aled…Sign on store1938Sign on storeSign in store selling out1938Sign in store selling outSign in store selling out1938Sign in store selling out
1940s–1990snothing yet
Nothing in the archives for these yearsWeddings on Main Street, storms, parades, school pictures, the old store. If it’s in your family album, it belongs here.
Add from your album
Today29 recent
Wallen Block2020Wallen BlockWCGalloway AledoIL 18962020WCGalloway AledoIL 1896The Palace Drug Store Interior2020The Palace Drug Store InteriorStore of C. K. Marquis2020Store of C. K. MarquisMcKinney Block2020McKinney BlockKnights of Pythias Hall Interior2020Knights of Pythias Hall InteriorDetwiler Bros Hardware Store - drawing2020Detwiler Bros Hardware Store - drawingCB&Q RR Depot2020CB&Q RR Depot"The Livermore" Formerly The Button House2020"The Livermore" Formerly The Button HouseWelcome to2017Welcome toStandard Oil Station, 112 S College Ave2017Standard Oil Station, 112 S College AveRural Prosperity Task Force2017Rural Prosperity Task ForceAledoIL OperaHouse2017AledoIL OperaHouseAledoIL DowntownHD 32017AledoIL DowntownHD 3AledoIL DowntownHD 22017AledoIL DowntownHD 2AledoIL DowntownHD 12017AledoIL DowntownHD 1Aledo Opera House, 108 SE 2nd Ave2017Aledo Opera House, 108 SE 2nd Ave20170915-FAS-PJK-0783 TONED201720170915-FAS-PJK-0783 TONED108-112 N College Ave2017108-112 N College Ave101 N College Ave2017101 N College Ave101 E Main St2017101 E Main StImage Fairgrounds, Mercer County2015Image Fairgrounds, Mercer CountyImage County Jail2015Image County Jail20141104-OSEC-JC-0199201420141104-OSEC-JC-019920141104-OSEC-JC-0198201420141104-OSEC-JC-019820141104-OSEC-JC-0197201420141104-OSEC-JC-019720141104-OSEC-JC-0196201420141104-OSEC-JC-019620141104-OSEC-JC-0193201420141104-OSEC-JC-019320140224-OSEC-RBN-3100201420140224-OSEC-RBN-3100
On the National Register

3 listings protect 77 historic buildings

The country’s official list of buildings and places worth saving.

places listed
3
National Historic Landmarks
0
none yet
historic buildings protected
77
each building in a district counts
first listed
1982
Mercer County Courthouse
Mercer County Courthouse, built 1894Mercer County JailDowntown Aledo Historic District
BuildingsDistricts

Architectural styles listings

Romanesque1
Tudor Revival1
Mercer County CourthouseRomanesque · Built 1894
Mercer County JailTudor Revival
Downtown Aledo Historic DistrictDistrict

National Park Service, National Register of Historic Places. Photos from Wikimedia Commons, credited on each place’s page.

Every building

Aledo, building by building, 1885–1913

Fire insurance maps drew every building, what it was made of and what it was used for, so insurers could price the risk of fire. Pick a year, then a sheet.

Aledo fire insurance map, 1885, sheet 11885Sheet 1 of 2
Edition
BrickWoodStone

Sanborn Map Company, via the Library of Congress. Editions published in 1930 or earlier, which are in the public domain.

The story

How Aledo came to be

From Wikipedia’s history of Aledo.

Read it all →

Aledo was established in the 1850s when the Great Western Railroad was extended to that point. It was briefly named "DeSoto", after Hernando de Soto, until the discovery of an identically named village in Jackson County. "Aledo" likely derives from John S. Thompson who, reportedly, saw the name Aledo (a municipality in Spain) in Webster's Dictionary. Development began in the 1850s, and the oldest surviving buildings date from the following decade. A post office has been in operation at Aledo since September 24, 1856. In 1857, the county seat was moved to Aledo from Millersburg after a countywide referendum. Aledo was incorporated on August 15, 1863. In the 1950s, the first Tastee-Freez in the United States was built in the downtown. The Downtown Aledo Historic District was established in 2016, with 75 contributing historic buildings in the downtown area.

Text from Wikipedia, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0.

From the old history books

What they wrote about Aledo in 1882

Passages that mention Aledo, cut from the printed page as they were published.

Nov. 9, 1856, and continued with the congregation as pastor for about two years. The records show that five persons were received into membership by certificate during the first pastorate. In the year 1856 the village of Aledo was laid out, and the name of the congregation was soon changed from "Mi…
History of Mercer County1882 · page 576Read the page →
Read the text

Nov. 9, 1856, and continued with the congregation as pastor for about two years. The records show that five persons were received into membership by certificate during the first pastorate. In the year 1856 the village of Aledo was laid out, and the name of the congregation was soon changed from "Millersburg" to that of "Aledo." Near the time that the first pastor was released, the Rev, Matthew Bigger,

Text read by machine from the scan; it may contain errors.
Margaret A., daughter of William Willits, of New Boston township, and removed to Wapello, Iowa, where he edited the "Wapello Intelligencer," for some months. In the spring of 1856 he came back to Mercer county, locating in Aledo, where he erected the first building, in which he opened and kept the …
History of Mercer County1882 · page 570Read the page →
Read the text

Margaret A., daughter of William Willits, of New Boston township, and removed to Wapello, Iowa, where he edited the "Wapello Intelligencer," for some months. In the spring of 1856 he came back to Mercer county, locating in Aledo, where he erected the first building, in which he opened and kept the first boarding-house. He was the first postmaster of Aledo, and it is said that he carried the mail around in his hat. He taught the first school in the village, in the winter of that year, and held for some years the office of town clerk. In 1858 he

Text read by machine from the scan; it may contain errors.

Scans and text from the Internet Archive. Books published in 1930 or earlier, which are in the public domain.

Timeline

Aledo, 1855 to 1984

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

  1. 19th century
  2. 1855
    FoundingAledo is established
  3. 1856Post officeThe Aledo post office opens
  4. 1870Born hereJudson Churchill Welliver is born here
  5. 1875Born hereCharles S. Wharton is born here
  6. 1878Post officeThe Mercer post office opens
  7. 1879Post officeThe Mercer post office closes
  8. 1894BuiltMercer County Courthouse is built
  9. 20th century
  10. 1905Born hereDoris Lee is born here
  11. 1936In the archiveSign pasted on building
  12. 1956Born hereSuzy Bogguss is born here
  13. 1984On the mapFirst mapped by the U.S. Geological Survey
On the map

Aledo on the map in 1984

The U.S. Geological Survey’s map of Aledo.

Aledo on the 1984 USGS map1984Aledo sheet · 1:100,000

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

Then & now

Stand where they stood

No then-and-now pairs yet. Take a photo from the same spot as an old one and they appear here side by side.

Sign pasted on building
Retake this viewSign pasted on building, 1936

Find the spot, match the angle, and add your photo. It becomes the first then-and-now pair on Aledo’s page.

Retake this view · +15
People over time

Aledo, census by census

05001,0001,5002,0002,5003,0003,5004,000190019502000Peak: 3,881

Between 563 and 3,881 people in every census since 1860.

17 censuses, 1860–2020.

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

Famous people

10 famous people were born in Aledo

Writers, athletes, leaders and more, ranked by how widely they’re known.

See all →
Suzy BoggussAmerican musician · b. 1956
D
Doris LeeAmerican painter, printmaker and muralist · b. 1905
Judson Churchill WelliverAmerican speechwriter · b. 1870
C
Charles S. WhartonU.S. Representative · b. 1875
H. L. CarnahanAmerican politician (1879–1941); Lieutenant Gov… · b. 1879
D
Dewey McDougalAmerican baseball player · b. 1871
Places that used to be

Lost post offices, places now gone and burying grounds

Aledo’s post office has been open since 1856. Another post office, Mercer, opened and closed inside today’s town.

Aledo
1856–today
Mercer
1878–1879
18501940today
Gone or out of use
Roosevelt Military Academyschool
1cemetery inside Aledo
Aledo

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

Help out

Finish Aledo’s story

Most archives stop around 1920. The photos from after that are in family albums, not libraries.

Decades since 1900 with photos
00s10s20s30s40s50s60s70s80s90s
1 of 10 decades. The empty ones are waiting for someone’s album.
Retake an old viewSign pasted on building: stand where they stood+15Share a family photoSign in to add one+10

Questions about Aledo’s history

What year was Aledo founded?

In 1855, according to Wikidata. Aledo’s post office opened in 1856, and the census of 1860 counted 563 people here.

How does Aledo rank for history?

Aledo is more historic than 84% of U.S. towns, #148 of 768 in Illinois. The History grade combines the town’s founding era, the share of homes built before 1940 and its National Register listings. It’s a character grade, so it isn’t part of the overall grade. How it works.

What is on the National Register in Aledo?

Three places: the Mercer County Courthouse (listed 1982), the Mercer County Jail (1997) and the Downtown Aledo Historic District (2016).

How old are the homes in Aledo?

31% of Aledo’s homes were built before 1940 (Census estimate, ±6.2 points), against a typical 11% for an Illinois town; the median home was built in 1958.

Memory lane

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

Town Square →
Start a conversation
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).

From Wikimedia Commons (29), the Library of Congress (40), Wikidata (3), the National Register of Historic Places (3), Wikipedia, Wikidata and Wikipedia for famous people, U.S. Geological Survey historical maps, U.S. Census counts (via Wikipedia), the US Post Offices dataset (Blevins & Helbock), the USGS Geographic Names Information System, Sanborn fire insurance maps (Library of Congress) and old county and town histories (Internet Archive). Archive images are copied here with their credits and licenses, shown on each photo’s page. Refreshed monthly.