The Cave Township post office opened in 1847, the earliest record of the town by name. Two smaller post offices, Parrish (1856) and Fitts Hill (1857), opened inside today’s town and later closed.
First census: 1,589 in 20002020 census: 1,683179 years
How historic is Cave Township?
B−
More historic than 53% of U.S. towns, on its age, its old homes and the National Register.
Founding year: the first Cave Township post office (Blevins & Helbock, CC0).
History grade
What drives Cave Township’s History grade
On its age, its old homes and the National Register, Cave Township is more historic than 53% of U.S. towns. Its age holds the grade up; its National Register listings pull it down.
B−
HistoryA character grade: shown, never part of Cave Township’s overall grade.
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 Cave Township’s 0.0 sits below most of its state (28% of Illinois towns have fewer) while its 0 listings outnumber those of 23% of U.S. towns.
How sure. Graded on any two of the three inputs instead, the letter would range from C to B+. The pre-1940 share is a Census survey estimate (±5.3 points). The founding year is the first post office, not a stated founding date.
Founding year: the first post office (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 Cave Township’s past
Read from the archive, the National Register and the record. The page puts what stands out first.
Lost post offices, old corners, places now gone and burying grounds
Two other post offices opened and closed inside today’s town.
Parrish
1856–1931
Fitts Hill
1857–1899
18501940today
Hamlets and corners on the map
FerberKegleyLocust GroveParrish
Gone or out of use
Fitts Hill Post Officepost officeOrton SchoolschoolPleasant Hill SchoolschoolSaul Schoolschool
4cemeteries and burying grounds inside Cave Township
ClemDownsIsaacsSmothers
US Post Offices dataset (Blevins & Helbock, CC0). Places and cemeteries from the USGS Geographic Names Information System (2021).
On the map
Cave Township on the map, 1909 to 1963
Every edition of the U.S. Geological Survey’s map of Cave Township. Tap a year, or press play to watch the town change.
1909West Frankfort 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 Cave Township.
The story so far
Cave Township, in brief
Wikipedia doesn’t have a history of Cave Township yet. The photos, dates and memories neighbors add here are how it gets written.
Cave Township is one of twelve townships in Franklin County, Illinois, USA. As of the 2020 census, its population was 1,683 and it contained 828 housing units.
Its first post office opened in 1847. Between the 2010 and 2020 censuses its population fell from 1,756 to 1,683 (-4%).
Intro from Wikipedia. Population: U.S. Census Bureau.
Timeline
Cave Township, 1856 to 1931
Woven from the archive, old maps, post office records, the National Register and the people born here.
The Cave Township post office opened in 1847, the earliest record of the town by name (U.S. post office records).
How does Cave Township rank for history?
Cave Township is more historic than 53% of U.S. towns. 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.
How old are the homes in Cave Township?
13% of Cave Township’s homes were built before 1940 (Census estimate, ±5.3 points), against a typical 11% for an Illinois town; the median home was built in 1985.
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 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.
