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History · Beverly Township

Beverly Township dates to 1836, and 38% of its homes were built before 1940

Below: maps from 1926 on and old-book passages.

1836founded
0on the National Register
38%homes built before 1940
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Quick answers

How Beverly Township began

When was Beverly Township founded?

1836

Beverly Township dates its founding to 1836 (Wikipedia’s history). Its post office opened in 1836.

2020 census: 354190 years
Founding year: Wikipedia. First post office: 1836.

What stands out about Beverly 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 Beverly Township are in the public archives yet. The rest are in attics and albums.Lost villages4 post offices opened and closed inside today’s Beverly Township, and 3 old place names are still on the map.Old housesHalf of Beverly Township’s homes were built before 1946.Deep rootsEstablished in 1836: 190 years of Beverly Township.
★ What stands out · Help out

Start Beverly Township’s collection

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

Decades since 1900 with photos
00s10s20s30s40s50s60s70s80s90s
0 of 10 decades. The empty ones are waiting for someone’s album.
Share a family photoSign in to add one+10
Places that used to be

Lost post offices, old corners, places now gone and burying grounds

Four other post offices opened and closed inside today’s town.

Kingston
1836–1837
Beverly
1837–1955
Fairweather
1851–1907
Chestline
1882–1906
18301930today
Hamlets and corners on the map
BeverlyChestlineKingston
Gone or out of use
East SchoolschoolLone Oak SchoolschoolMound SchoolschoolOak Grove SchoolschoolPleasant Hill Schoolschool
6cemeteries and burying grounds inside Beverly Township
Beverly OldKingston ParkMayfield FamilyMixer FamilyMound PrairieRubart

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

The story so far

Beverly Township, in brief

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

Beverly is an unincorporated community and census-designated place in Beverly Township, Adams County, Illinois, United States. Beverly is about 26 miles (42 km) southeast of Quincy in the southeast corner of Adams County. As of the 2020 census, Beverly had a population of 72. The village was founded in 1836 by a pioneer group. The village is named after the town of Beverly, Massachusetts. A post office called Beverly was established in 1837, and remained in operation until 1955.

Beverly Township was established in 1836. Between the 2010 and 2020 censuses its population fell from 406 to 354 (-13%).

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

From the old history books

What they wrote about Beverly Township in 1919

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

He came out to Beverly Township and built the second house in the township and moved into it with his family in November, 1834. Mr. Ezariah Mayfield and family were the first settlers, having built their house in the spring of 1834 and ilr. John B. Robertson and family built the third house in the …
Quincy and Adams County history1919 · page 1400Read the page →
Read the text

He came out to Beverly Township and built the second house in the township and moved into it with his family in November, 1834. Mr. Ezariah Mayfield and family were the first settlers, having built their house in the spring of 1834 and ilr. John B. Robertson and family built the third house in the township and moved into it in the spring of 1835. There is yet on file Grandfather Sykes' naturalization paper dated New York City September 25, 1834, also a commission from Augustus C. French, the eighth elected governor of Illinois, authorizing him to act as a.ssessor and collector of Highland County, dated

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

Beverly Township, 1836 to 1955

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

  1. 19th century
  2. 1836
    FoundingBeverly Township is established
  3. 1836Post officeThe Kingston post office opens
  4. 1837Post officeThe Kingston post office closes
  5. 1837Post officeThe Beverly post office opens
  6. 1851Post officeThe Fairweather post office opens
  7. 20th century
  8. 1907Post officeThe Fairweather post office closes
  9. 1926On the mapFirst mapped by the U.S. Geological Survey
  10. 1955Post officeThe Beverly 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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On the map

Beverly Township on the map, 1926 to 1981

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

Beverly Township on the 1926 USGS mapBeverly Township on the 1981 USGS map1926Mt Sterling 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 Beverly Township.

Famous people

Famous people close to Beverly Township

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

See all →
Walter A. ShewhartAmerican statistical quality control expert · b. 1891
Floyd DellNovelist, poet, playwright, critic, editor · b. 1887
C
Clifton C. EdomAmerican photojournalist · b. 1907
Daniel Wafena BellAmerican civil servant & banker · b. 1891
Calvin Brainerd CadyAmerican music educator · b. 1851
George NicolAmerican baseball player · b. 1870
Stories next door

History across the town line

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

McKee TownshipIts storynot graded: under 1,000 residents or part of its townFairmount TownshipIts storynot graded: under 1,000 residents or part of its townHadley Township1 historic placenot graded: under 1,000 residents or part of its townRichfield TownshipIts storynot graded: under 1,000 residents or part of its townBuckhorn TownshipIts storynot graded: under 1,000 residents or part of its townBarry Township1 historic placeA+

Questions about Beverly Township’s history

What year was Beverly Township founded?

In 1836, according to Wikipedia’s history of the town. Beverly Township’s post office opened in 1836.

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), the USGS Geographic Names Information System 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.