Guest, Sign inJoin

Post to Dwight

We’ll email a one-tap link to publish your post. No password, and nothing is public until you click it.
Already a member? Sign in
A−History
History · Dwight

Dwight’s post office opened in 1854, and 35% of its homes were built before 1940

More historic than 80% of U.S. towns · #173 of 768 in Illinois. What drives it

4 places in town are on the National Register. Below: 12 old photos and papers, maps from 1885 on, and the census since 1860.

1854first post office
4on the National Register
35%homes built before 1940
12old photos & papers
6famous people
Add an old photoShare a memory
From Dwight’s archive · credits on each photo
Quick answers

How Dwight began

When was Dwight founded?

1854

The Dwight post office opened in 1854, the earliest record of the town by name.

First census: 295 in 18602020 census: 4,032172 years

How historic is Dwight?

A−

More historic than 80% of U.S. towns, on its age, its old homes and the National Register.

What drives the grade ↓
Founding year: the first Dwight post office (Blevins & Helbock, CC0).The full story ↓
History grade

What drives Dwight’s History grade

On its age, its old homes and the National Register, Dwight is more historic than 80% of U.S. towns, #173 of 768 in Illinois. Its share of homes from before 1940 holds the grade up; its age pulls it down.

A−
HistoryA character grade: shown, never part of Dwight’s overall grade.
Founding era1854, from the first post office: founded 1850–1899, an older era than 37% of U.S. townsC+Homes built before 194035.0% of homes (±7.1) · typical IL town 10.6% · U.S. 8.4%ANational Register4 listings, 6 historic buildings, 15.5 per 10,000 residents · typical IL town 0.5 · U.S. 2.4A−
All U.S. towns we grade (21,289)Ahead of 80%
NewerOlder
Illinois towns of 2,500+ (768)Ahead of 78%

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 Dwight’s 15.5 sits above most of its state (86% of Illinois towns have fewer) while its 6 historic buildings outnumber those of 72% of U.S. towns.

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 (±7.1 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 Dwight’s past

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

Then and nowOne place photographed years apart. Drag to compare.Mapped building by building5 fire insurance maps, 1885 to 1914, drew every building in Dwight.A town in old photos12 old photos, postcards and papers, 1880–1915.Landmarks on the Register4 places on the National Register.
★ What stands out · Then & now

The same spot, 122 years apart

Drag across each photo to compare.

Water tower 1238Water tower19002022
Water towerMatched from the two captions
Every building

Dwight, building by building, 1885–1914

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.

Dwight fire insurance map, 1885, sheet 11885Sheet 1 of 2
Edition
BrickWoodStone

Sanborn Map Company, via the Library of Congress. Editions published in 1930 or earlier, which are in the public domain.

By decade

Dwight, decade by decade

4 decades in the archive, from the 1880s to the 1910s. Scroll each row; tap a photo for its story.

1880s–1900s11 items
1940 Census Enumeration District Maps - Illinois - Livingston County - Dwight - ED 53-11, ED 53-12, ED 53-1318801940 Census Enumeration District Maps - Illinois - Li…First state convention, Women's Au[xilliary?] Keeley League of Ill's1893First state convention, Women's Au[xilliary?] Keeley …Station at Dwight, Ill1900Station at Dwight, IllWater tower1900Water towerThe Oughton residence1900The Oughton residenceDoorway of the Keeley Institute1900Doorway of the Keeley InstituteLivingston porch1909Livingston porchRenfrew Park No. 31909Renfrew Park No. 3Laboratory [The Leslie Keeley Co.]1909Laboratory [The Leslie Keeley Co.]W. St1909W. StP O Bldg1909P O Bldg
1910s1 item
John R. Oughton House, Dwight, IL - c. 1915c. 1915John R. Oughton House, Dwight, IL - c. 1915
1920s–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
Today17 recent
Dwight, IL 22026Dwight, IL 2Dwight, IL 12026Dwight, IL 1West Main 12432022West Main 1243Water tower 12382022Water tower 1238East Main 12302022East Main 1230Old Texaco Station2020Old Texaco StationAme05198 092017Ame05198 09Ame05198 082017Ame05198 08Ame05198 072017Ame05198 07Enseigne Route 66 à2010Enseigne Route 66 àOdd Fellows Hall2008Odd Fellows HallDwight IL Keeley Building22007Dwight IL Keeley Building2Dwight IL Keeley Building12007Dwight IL Keeley Building1Dwight IL Java Stop12007Dwight IL Java Stop1Dwight IL Downtown12007Dwight IL Downtown1ILMap-doton-Dwight2006ILMap-doton-DwightDwight, Illinois2006Dwight, Illinois
The story

How Dwight came to be

From Wikipedia’s history of Dwight.

Read it all →

Dwight was laid out on January 30, 1854, by Richard Price Morgan Jr. (1828–1910), James C. Spencer (1828 – after 1890), and John Lathrop (1809 – 1870). Each of these three men took a quarter of the land. All were working as engineers for the Chicago and Mississippi Railroad. The final quarter was jointly owned by two Bloomington brothers, Jesse W. Fell (1808 – 1878) and Kersey H. Fell (1815 – 1893). All five men had links to the railroad which was to open from Bloomington to Joliet in 1854.

ChaptersFoundingEarly DwightOriginal design of DwightPrince Albert's visitGrowth of DwightJune 2010 tornadoesJune 2026 tornado

Text from Wikipedia, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0.

From the old history books

What they wrote about Dwight, 1878–1894

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

was dedicated by Mr, Morgan, and the plat admitted to record. The following are his dedicating words: "To be known as the town of Dwight, and the streets and alleys described on the town plat are hereby donated to the public." It was named for Henry Dwight, of Xevv York, who was a capitalist, and f…
History of Dwight, from 1853 to 18941894Read the page →
Read the text

was dedicated by Mr, Morgan, and the plat admitted to record. The following are his dedicating words: "To be known as the town of Dwight, and the streets and alleys described on the town plat are hereby donated to the public." It was named for Henry Dwight, of Xevv York, who was a capitalist, and furnish-

Text read by machine from the scan; it may contain errors.
The first house or cabin in the village of Dwight was built by a man from Morris, whose name is now forgotten. It was a frame building, 16x24 feet, one and a half stories high, erected on Lot 8, Block 18, in 1853, and was built originally for a store or a kind of supply depot for the railroad hands…
History of Dwight, from 1853 to 18941894 · page 17Read the page →
Read the text

The first house or cabin in the village of Dwight was built by a man from Morris, whose name is now forgotten. It was a frame building, 16x24 feet, one and a half stories high, erected on Lot 8, Block 18, in 1853, and was built originally for a store or a kind of supply depot for the railroad hands, and finally

Text read by machine from the scan; it may contain errors.
These five families were the pioneers of Round Grove Township, and, until Stephen Potter settled in 1854, Avere the only residents here. They came before the railroad was built, when there was no Dwight or Odell, and when Pontiac was a place of small note, Avhose nearest railroad communication was …
The History of Livingston County, Illinois1878 · page 446Read the page →
Read the text

These five families were the pioneers of Round Grove Township, and, until Stephen Potter settled in 1854, Avere the only residents here. They came before the railroad was built, when there was no Dwight or Odell, and when Pontiac was a place of small note, Avhose nearest railroad communication was Springfield, where was the old Northern Cross Railroad, the oldest in the State, and where, in 1851, the first railroad crossing in the State was made, when what is now the Chicao-o, Alton & St. Louis Railroad reached that city and crossed the old Northern Cross — now Toledo, Wabash & Western. The people of this part

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

Dwight, 1854 to 1948

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

  1. 19th century
  2. 1854Post officeThe Dwight post office opens
  3. 1856Born hereFranklin Sumner Earle is born here
  4. 1867Born hereFrank Leslie Smith is born here
  5. 1870Born hereJames G. Strong is born here
  6. 1879Born hereMabel Trunnelle is born here
  7. 1880In the archive1940 Census Enumeration District Maps - Illinois - Livingston County - Dwight - ED 53-11,…
  8. 1891BuiltDwight Chicago and Alton Railroad Depot is built
  9. 1893In the archiveFirst state convention, Women's Au[xilliary?] Keeley League of Ill's
  10. 20th century
  11. 1900In the archiveStation at Dwight, Ill
  12. 1915In the archiveJohn R. Oughton House, Dwight, IL - c. 1915
  13. 1948On the mapFirst mapped by the U.S. Geological Survey
On the map

Dwight on the map, 1948 to 1983

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

Dwight on the 1948 USGS mapDwight on the 1950 USGS mapDwight on the 1983 USGS map1948Dwight 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 Dwight.

On the National Register

4 historic places in Dwight

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

places listed
4
National Historic Landmarks
0
none yet
historic buildings protected
6
each building in a district counts
first listed
1980
John R. Oughton House
John R. Oughton HouseDwight Chicago and Alton Railroad Depot, built 1891Pioneer Gothic ChurchAmbler's Texaco Gas Station
BuildingsSites

Architectural styles listings

Victorian1
Richardsonian Romanesque1
Carpenter Gothic1
House with Canopy Gas Station1
John R. Oughton HouseVictorian
Dwight Chicago and Alton Railroad DepotRichardsonian Romanesque · Built 1891
Pioneer Gothic ChurchCarpenter Gothic
Ambler's Texaco Gas StationHouse with Canopy Gas Station

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

People over time

Dwight, census by census

05001,0001,5002,0002,5003,0003,5004,0004,500190019502000Peak: 4,363

Between 295 and 4,363 people in every census since 1860.

17 censuses, 1860–2020.

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

Famous people

6 famous people were born in Dwight

Writers, athletes, leaders and more, ranked by how widely they’re known.

See all →
Franklin Sumner EarleAmerican mycologist · b. 1856
Frank Leslie SmithAmerican politician · b. 1867
Mabel TrunnelleAmerican actress · b. 1879
James G. StrongAmerican politician · b. 1870
Antoinette FunkAmerican attorney and suffragette · b. 1873
D
Dwight WilsonAmerican football coach · b. 1887
Help out

Finish Dwight’s story

Most archives stop around 1920. The photos from after that are in family albums, not libraries.

Decades since 1900 with photos
00s10s20s30s40s50s60s70s80s90s
2 of 10 decades. The empty ones are waiting for someone’s album.
Retake an old view1940 Census Enumeration District Maps -…: stand where they stood+15Share a family photoSign in to add one+10

Questions about Dwight’s history

What year was Dwight founded?

The Dwight post office opened in 1854, the earliest record of the town by name (U.S. post office records).

How does Dwight rank for history?

Dwight is more historic than 80% of U.S. towns, #173 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 Dwight?

4 listings: 3 buildings, among them the John R. Oughton House (listed 1980, the first), and 1 site. 6 historic buildings in all.

How old are the homes in Dwight?

35% of Dwight’s homes were built before 1940 (Census estimate, ±7.1 points), against a typical 11% for an Illinois town; the median home was built in 1957.

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 (10), Wikidata (1), the National Register of Historic Places (4), 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.