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B−History
History · Bloomingdale

Bloomingdale dates to 1833, and 2 of its places are on the National Register

More historic than 53% of U.S. towns · #376 of 768 in Illinois. What drives it

Its Register listings are the Bloomingdale School-Village Hall and the Randecker's Hardware Store. Most of Bloomingdale was built recently: 2% of its homes predate 1940 and the median home dates from 1981. Below: 2 old photos and papers, maps from 1908 on, and the census since 1880.

1833founded
2on the National Register
2%homes built before 1940
2old photos & papers
Add an old photoShare a memory
From Bloomingdale’s archive · credits on each photo
Quick answers

How Bloomingdale began

When was Bloomingdale founded?

1833

Bloomingdale dates its founding to 1833 (Wikidata). The census first counted it in 1880.

First census: 226 in 18802020 census: 22,382193 years

How historic is Bloomingdale?

B−

More historic than 53% of U.S. towns, on its age, its old homes and the National Register.

What drives the grade ↓
Founding year: Wikidata. First post office: 1837.The full story ↓
History grade

What drives Bloomingdale’s History grade

On its age, its old homes and the National Register, Bloomingdale is more historic than 53% of U.S. towns, #376 of 768 in Illinois. Its age holds the grade up; its share of homes from before 1940 pulls it down.

B−
HistoryA character grade: shown, never part of Bloomingdale’s overall grade.
Founding era1833, from Wikidata: founded 1776–1849, an older era than 75% of U.S. townsA−Homes built before 19401.9% of homes (±0.9) · typical IL town 10.6% · U.S. 8.4%C−National Register2 listings, 0.9 per 10,000 residents · typical IL town 0.5 · U.S. 2.4B
All U.S. towns we grade (21,289)Ahead of 53%
NewerOlder
Illinois towns of 2,500+ (768)Ahead of 51%

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 Bloomingdale’s 0.9 sits near the middle of its state (62% of Illinois towns have fewer) while its 2 listings outnumber those of 60% of U.S. towns.

How sure. Graded on any two of the three inputs instead, the letter would range from C to A−. The pre-1940 share (±0.9 points) is firm at this size. Two sources give 1833.

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 Bloomingdale’s past

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

A history waiting to be writtenOnly 2 old photos are in the public archives. The rest are in attics and albums.Shrank, then grewLost a third of its people between 1890 and 1900, then grew more than tenfold.On the map since 19087 editions of the USGS map, 1908 to 1993. Watch Bloomingdale change.Deep rootsEstablished in 1833: 193 years of Bloomingdale.
★ What stands out · Help out

Start Bloomingdale’s collection

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

Decades since 1900 with photos
00s10s20s30s40s50s60s70s80s90s
1 of 10 decades. The empty ones are waiting for someone’s album.
Date a photo1 archive item has no date. Guess the decade.+2Retake an old viewGlendale Country Club Route 20 - at Gle…: stand where they stood+15Share a family photoSign in to add one+10
People over time

Bloomingdale, census by census

05,00010,00015,00020,00025,00018801900192019401960198020002020403 in 1890Low: 235

Lost a third of its people between 1890 and 1900, then grew more than tenfold.

15 censuses, 1880–2020.

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

On the map

Bloomingdale on the map, 1908 to 1993

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

Bloomingdale on the 1908 USGS mapBloomingdale on the 1948 USGS mapBloomingdale on the 1953 USGS mapBloomingdale on the 1962 USGS mapBloomingdale on the 1972 USGS mapBloomingdale on the 1980 USGS mapBloomingdale on the 1993 USGS map1908Wheaton 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 Bloomingdale.

The story

How Bloomingdale came to be

From Wikipedia’s history of Bloomingdale.

Read it all →

Bloomingdale is one of the earliest villages settled in what is now DuPage County. The Meacham family settled here in 1833, and by the end of the following year, 12 to 15 families had settled in the locality. It was originally named Meacham's Grove. The community was served by the Chicago-Galena Highway, modern day Lake Street. It became an important stop for stage coaches and westward travelers. Originally a Cook County settlement, it was annexed by DuPage County in 1839. The northern part of the village wanted to develop commercially while the southern part wished to remain a farming community. In 1923, the village split to accommodate this—the northern portion of the town was incorporated as Roselle. From 1950 to 1980, the population increased from 338 to 12,659.

Text from Wikipedia, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0.

Timeline

Bloomingdale, 1833 to 2020

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

  1. 19th century
  2. 1833
    FoundingBloomingdale is established
  3. 1837Post officeThe Bloomingdale post office opens
  4. 1889Post officeThe Cloverdale post office opens
  5. 20th century
  6. 1908On the mapFirst mapped by the U.S. Geological Survey
  7. 1936Post officeThe Cloverdale post office closes
  8. 1957In the archiveGlendale Country Club Route 20 - at Glen Ellyn Road, Bloomingdale, Ill (NBY 428737)
  9. 21st century
  10. 2020CensusPopulation peaks at 22,382
By decade

Bloomingdale, decade by decade

One decade in the archive so far: the 1950s. Scroll each row; tap a photo for its story.

1950s1 item
Glendale Country Club Route 20 - at Glen Ellyn Road, Bloomingdale, Ill (NBY 428737)1957Glendale Country Club Route 20 - at Glen Ellyn Road, …
1960s–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
Date unknown1 to date
Laudon-Bender FarmhouseDate?Laudon-Bender Farmhouse
Today18 recent
Buffalo Wild Wings (Bloomingdale, Illinois) 12026Buffalo Wild Wings (Bloomingdale, Illinois) 1The RoomPlace (Bloomingdale, Illinois) 12024The RoomPlace (Bloomingdale, Illinois) 1Meijer (Bloomingdale, Illinois) 12024Meijer (Bloomingdale, Illinois) 1WSCR's main and auxiliary towers2020WSCR's main and auxiliary towersWSCR WBBM transmitter building2020WSCR WBBM transmitter buildingStratford Square Mall ^ Carol Stream from the sky2013Stratford Square Mall ^ Carol Stream from the skyRoosters2012RoostersBloomingdale, IL, USA2012Bloomingdale, IL, USABloomingdale, IL, USA - panoramio (6)2012Bloomingdale, IL, USA - panoramio (6)Bloomingdale, IL, USA - panoramio (5)2012Bloomingdale, IL, USA - panoramio (5)Bloomingdale, IL, USA - panoramio (4)2012Bloomingdale, IL, USA - panoramio (4)Bloomingdale, IL, USA - panoramio (3)2012Bloomingdale, IL, USA - panoramio (3)Bloomingdale, IL, USA - panoramio (2)2012Bloomingdale, IL, USA - panoramio (2)Bloomingdale, IL, USA - panoramio (1)2012Bloomingdale, IL, USA - panoramio (1)Bloomingdale School–Village Hall2010Bloomingdale School–Village HallResidence Inn by Marriott Chicago Bloomingdale (DuPage County, IL)2008Residence Inn by Marriott Chicago Bloomingdale (DuPag…Hilton Chicago Indian Lakes Resort (DuPage County, IL)2008Hilton Chicago Indian Lakes Resort (DuPage County, IL)Courtyard by Marriott Chicago Bloomingdale (DuPage County, IL)2008Courtyard by Marriott Chicago Bloomingdale (DuPage Co…
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.

Glendale Country Club Route 20 - at Glen Ellyn Road, Bloomingdale, Ill (NBY 428737)
Retake this viewGlendale Country Club Route 20 - at Glen Ellyn Road, Bloomingdale, Ill (NBY 428737), 1957

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

Retake this view · +15
On the National Register

2 historic places in Bloomingdale

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

places listed
2
National Historic Landmarks
0
none yet
historic buildings protected
2
each building in a district counts
first listed
1994
Bloomingdale School-Village Hall
Bloomingdale School-Village HallRandecker's Hardware Store
Buildings

Architectural styles listings

Queen Anne1
Commercial Style1
Bloomingdale School-Village HallQueen Anne
Randecker's Hardware StoreCommercial Style

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

Places that used to be

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

Bloomingdale’s post office has been open since 1837. Another post office, Cloverdale, opened and closed inside today’s town.

Bloomingdale
1837–today
Cloverdale
1889–1936
18301930today
Hamlets and corners on the map
Cloverdale
Gone or out of use
Cloverdale Post Officepost office
4cemeteries and burying grounds inside Bloomingdale
CloverdaleSaint Andrew Ukrainian OrthodoxSaint IsidoreSaint Paul Evergreen

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.

RoselleIts storyC−Glendale HeightsIts storyD−AddisonIts storyCCarol StreamIts storyD−Hanover ParkIts storyD−

Questions about Bloomingdale’s history

What year was Bloomingdale founded?

In 1833, according to Wikidata. Bloomingdale’s post office opened in 1837, and the census of 1880 counted 226 people here.

How does Bloomingdale rank for history?

Bloomingdale is more historic than 53% of U.S. towns, #376 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 Bloomingdale?

Two places: the Bloomingdale School-Village Hall (listed 1994) and the Randecker's Hardware Store (1994).

How old are the homes in Bloomingdale?

2% of Bloomingdale’s homes were built before 1940 (Census estimate), against a typical 11% for an Illinois town; the median home was built in 1981.

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 (19), the Library of Congress (1), the National Register of Historic Places (2), 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.