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History · Berlin Township

42% of Berlin Township’s homes were built before 1940

Below: maps from 1893 on.

0on the National Register
42%homes built before 1940
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What stands out about Berlin 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 Berlin Township are in the public archives yet. The rest are in attics and albums.On the map since 18934 editions of the USGS map, 1893 to 1966. Watch Berlin Township change.Old housesHalf of Berlin Township’s homes were built before 1950.
★ What stands out · Help out

Start Berlin Township’s collection

The first neighbors to add old photos shape how Berlin 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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On the map

Berlin Township on the map, 1893 to 1966

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

Berlin Township on the 1893 USGS mapBerlin Township on the 1909 USGS mapBerlin Township on the 1911 USGS mapBerlin Township on the 1966 USGS map1893Hennepin 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 Berlin Township.

The story so far

Berlin Township, in brief

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

Berlin Township is one of twenty-five townships in Bureau County, Illinois, United States. As of the 2020 census, its population was 659 and it contained 297 housing units.

Between the 2010 and 2020 censuses its population fell from 746 to 659 (-12%).

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

Timeline

Berlin Township, 1893 to 1965

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

  1. 19th century
  2. 1893On the mapFirst mapped by the U.S. Geological Survey
  3. 20th century
  4. 1902Post officeThe Zearing post office opens
  5. 1965Post officeThe Zearing post office closes
By decade

No old photos in the archives yet

Weddings on Main Street, storms, parades, school pictures, the old store. If it’s in your family album, it belongs here.

Be the first to add onePhotograph a print flat, in daylight, no flash.
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Famous people

Famous people close to Berlin Township

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

See all →
Zez ConfreyAmerican composer and pianist · b. 1895
B
Billy GarrettRacecar driver · b. 1933
Kathryn HaysAmerican actress · b. 1933
V
Virgil FoxAmerican musician · b. 1912
Billy PapkeAmerican boxer · b. 1886
J. A. HappAmerican baseball player · b. 1982
Places that used to be

Lost post offices, old corners and places now gone

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

Hamlets and corners on the map
Zearing
Gone or out of use
Zearing Post Officepost office

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.

La Moille Township3 historic placesnot graded: under 1,000 residents or part of its townSelby TownshipIts storyA−Westfield TownshipIts storynot graded: under 1,000 residents or part of its townDover Township1 historic placenot graded: under 1,000 residents or part of its town

Questions about Berlin 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 U.S. Geological Survey historical maps, 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.