Founding year: Wikipedia. First post office: 1872.The full story ↓
History grade
What drives Chrisman’s History grade
On its age, its old homes and the National Register, Chrisman is more historic than 70% of U.S. towns. Its share of homes from before 1940 holds the grade up; its National Register listings pull it down.
B+
HistoryA character grade: shown, never part of Chrisman’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 Chrisman’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.
NoteThe founding year comes from Wikipedia alone; no second source gives 1840.
How sure. Graded on any two of the three inputs instead, the letter would range from B− to A. The pre-1940 share is a Census survey estimate (±7.2 points).
Founding year: Wikipedia (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 Chrisman’s past
Read from the archive, the National Register and the record. The page puts what stands out first.
Fire insurance maps drew every building, what it was made of and what it was used for, so insurers could price the risk of fire. Pick a year, then a sheet.
1893Sheet 1 of 1
Edition
Sheets
BrickWoodStone
Sanborn Map Company, via the Library of Congress. Editions published in 1930 or earlier, which are in the public domain.
Timeline
Chrisman, 1840 to 1958
Woven from the archive, old maps, post office records, the National Register and the people born here.
Chrisman was founded on land originally owned by a man named Abraham Smith, who moved to Ross Township in 1840. In 1851, Smith sold his farmland to John Chrisman who then built his home on the land where the Nazarene Church currently stands. Chrisman lived in this house until his death in 1870. Upon his death, the property, including the 800 acres of farmland, was inherited by his son, Mathias Chrisman. It is believed that at this time, around 20 other families were also living in the area.
Passages that mention Chrisman, cut from the printed page as they were published.
The History of Edgar County, Illinois, containing a history of the county--its cities, towns, &c.1879 · page 447Read the page →
Read the text
attached the monster vehicles, each carrying many times the amount formerly moved by the best. teams as he recollects them. The tavern where he formerly got his drinks, and lounged the live-long day, must be lacking in this story, for the reason that it was created after the nap began. The village of Chrisman was laid out for Matthias Chrisman from the old Smith farm, by H. W. Guthrie, Deputy County Surveyor, August 5, 1872. It will not be hard for the reader to determine, by a reference to the date of the opening of the two railroads, to which allusion has already been made, what has been the cause of the growth
Text read by machine from the scan; it may contain errors.
The History of Edgar County, Illinois1879 · page 447Read the page →
Read the text
attached the monster vehicles, each carrying many times the amount formerly moved by the best teams as he recollects them. The tavern where he formerly got his drinks, and lounged the live-long day, must be lacking in this story, for the reason that it was created after the nap began. The village of Chrisman was laid out for Matthias Chrisman from the old Smith farm, by H. W. Guthrie, Deputy County Surveyor, August 5, 1872. It will not be hard for the reader to determine, by a reference to the date of the opening of the two railroads, to which allusion has already been' made, what has been the cause of the growth
Text read by machine from the scan; it may contain errors.
The History of Edgar County, Illinois, containing a history of the county--its cities, towns, &c.1879 · page 490Read the page →
Read the text
township, where he lived some years, and then sold out, removed to Missouri, where he died several years ago. William Allen is another Virginian, and set¬ tled in Brouillett in 1828-29, but removed into Ross Township, a few miles west of Chrisman, about six years, remaining there about four years, then removed into the village of Chrisman, where he now lives, a hearty old gentleman, seventy-five years of age.
Text read by machine from the scan; it may contain errors.
The History of Edgar County, Illinois1879 · page 490Read the page →
Read the text
township, where he lived some years, and then sold out, removed to Missouri, where he died several years ago. William Allen is another Virginian, and set¬ tled in Brouillett in 1828-29, but removed into Ross Township, a few miles west of Chrisman, about six years, remaining there about four years, then removed into the village of Chrisman, where he now lives, a hearty old gentleman, seventy-five years of age.
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.
By decade
Chrisman, decade by decade
2 decades in the archive, from the 1910s to the 1950s. Scroll each row; tap a photo for its story.
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.
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.
Between 541 and 1,413 people in every census since 1880.
15 censuses, 1880–2020.
U.S. Census Bureau decennial counts, from the census table on Chrisman’s Wikipedia page.
Questions about Chrisman’s history
What year was Chrisman founded?
In 1840, according to Wikipedia’s history of the town. Chrisman’s post office opened in 1872, and the census of 1880 counted 541 people here.
How does Chrisman rank for history?
Chrisman is more historic than 70% 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 Chrisman?
28% of Chrisman’s homes were built before 1940 (Census estimate, ±7.2 points), against a typical 11% for an Illinois town; the median home was built in 1956.
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 (5), Wikipedia, Wikidata and Wikipedia for famous people, U.S. Geological Survey historical maps, U.S. Census counts (via Wikipedia), the US Post Offices dataset (Blevins & Helbock), the USGS Geographic Names Information System, Sanborn fire insurance maps (Library of Congress) 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.
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