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History · Bushnell Township

Bushnell Township dates to 1854, and 45% of its homes were built before 1940

Below: 1 old photo or paper, maps from 1916 on, and the census since 1870.

1854founded
0on the National Register
45%homes built before 1940
1old photo or paper
Add an old photoShare a memory
From Bushnell Township’s archive · credits on each photo
Quick answers

How Bushnell Township began

When was Bushnell Township founded?

1854

Bushnell Township dates its founding to 1854 (Wikipedia’s history). The census first counted it in 1870.

First census: 2,003 in 18702020 census: 2,919172 years
Founding year: Wikipedia. First post office: 1856.The full story ↓

What stands out about Bushnell 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 writtenOnly 1 old photo is in the public archives. The rest are in attics and albums.Boom and bustPeaked at 3,811 in 1980; 2,718 people lived here in 2020.Old housesHalf of Bushnell Township’s homes were built before 1945.
★ What stands out · Help out

Start Bushnell Township’s collection

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

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

Bushnell Township, census by census

05001,0001,5002,0002,5003,0003,5004,00018801900192019401960198020002020Peak: 3,811

Peaked at 3,811 in 1980; 2,718 people lived here in 2020.

16 censuses, 1870–2020.

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

The story

How Bushnell Township came to be

From Wikipedia’s history of Bushnell Township.

Read it all →

The town was founded in 1854 when the Northern Cross Railroad built a line through the area. Nehemiah Bushnell was the president of the railroad, and townspeople honored him by naming their community after him. The railroad later became part of the Chicago, Burlington and Quincy Railroad, which continues to operate through Bushnell under the name Burlington Northern Santa Fe. Bushnell was also served by the Toledo, Peoria and Western Railway, now the Keokuk Junction Railway. Amtrak trains pass through the city but do not stop.

Text from Wikipedia, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0.

Timeline

Bushnell Township, 1854 to 1980

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

  1. 19th century
  2. 1854
    FoundingBushnell Township is established
  3. 20th century
  4. 1902In the archiveWest Park
  5. 1916On the mapFirst mapped by the U.S. Geological Survey
  6. 1980CensusPopulation peaks at 3,811
By decade

Bushnell Township, decade by decade

One decade in the archive so far: the 1900s. Scroll each row; tap a photo for its story.

1900s1 item
West Park1902West Park
1910s–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
Today6 recent
The heart of rural Bushnell Illinois, bisected by two active railroad lines. One being Amtrak2016The heart of rural Bushnell Illinois, bisected by two…Rialto Theater2016Rialto TheaterRialto Theater2016Rialto TheaterRialto Theater2016Rialto TheaterRIALTO2016RIALTOBushnell, IL2016Bushnell, IL
On the map

Bushnell Township on the map, 1916 to 1974

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

Bushnell Township on the 1916 USGS mapBushnell Township on the 1974 USGS map1916Good Hope 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 Bushnell Township.

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.

West Park
Retake this viewWest Park, 1902

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

Retake this view · +15
Places that used to be

Places now gone and burying grounds

Gone or out of use
Birds SchoolschoolBrock SchoolschoolMaple Grove SchoolschoolSchool Number 5school
1cemetery inside Bushnell Township
Solon - Robinson

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.

Prairie City TownshipIts storynot graded: under 1,000 residents or part of its townMound TownshipIts storynot graded: under 1,000 residents or part of its townLee Township1 historic placenot graded: under 1,000 residents or part of its townWalnut Grove TownshipIts storynot graded: under 1,000 residents or part of its town

Questions about Bushnell Township’s history

What year was Bushnell Township founded?

In 1854, according to Wikipedia’s history of the town. Bushnell Township’s post office opened in 1856, and the census of 1870 counted 2,003 people here.

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). How TownRatings grades history →

From Wikimedia Commons (6), the Library of Congress (1), Wikipedia, U.S. Geological Survey historical maps, U.S. Census counts (via Wikipedia) 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.