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History · East St. Louis Township

East St. Louis Township dates to 1797, and 28% of its homes were built before 1940

8 places in town are on the National Register. Below: 12 old photos and papers, maps from 1934 on, and the census since 1870.

1797founded
8on the National Register
28%homes built before 1940
12old photos & papers
Add an old photoShare a memory
From East St. Louis Township’s archive · credits on each photo
Quick answers

How East St. Louis Township began

When was East St. Louis Township founded?

1797

East St. Louis Township dates its founding to 1797 (Wikipedia’s history). The census first counted it in 1870.

First census: 5,044 in 18702020 census: 18,469229 years
Founding year: Wikipedia. First post office: 1824.The full story ↓

What stands out about East St. Louis Township’s past

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

Boom and bustPeaked at 82,366 in 1950; 18,469 people lived here in 2020.A town in old photos12 old photos, postcards and papers, 1876–1989.Landmarks on the Register8 places on the National Register.Deep rootsEstablished in 1797: 229 years of East St. Louis Township.
★ What stands out · People over time

East St. Louis Township, census by census

020,00040,00060,00080,00018801900192019401960198020002020Peak: 82,366

Peaked at 82,366 in 1950; 18,469 people lived here in 2020.

16 censuses, 1870–2020.

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

By decade

East St. Louis Township, decade by decade

6 decades in the archive, from the 1870s to the 1980s. Scroll each row; tap a photo for its story.

1870s–1900s4 items
"St. Louis, Missouri.-Drawn by Schell and Hogan, from a Sketch by C. A. Vanderhoof."1876"St. Louis, Missouri.-Drawn by Schell and Hogan, from…Great Railway Strike 1886 - E St Louis1886Great Railway Strike 1886 - E St LouisThe great railway strike-attempt to start a freight train, under a guard of United States marshals, at East St. Louis, …1886The great railway strike-attempt to start a freight t…First Methodist Episcopal Church East St Louis, Illinois1908First Methodist Episcopal Church East St Louis, Illin…
1910s–1940snothing 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
1950s–1980s8 items
USA 046 St Louis 61952USA 046 St Louis 6USA 047 St Louis 71952USA 047 St Louis 7Old Man River's City initial design1971Old Man River's City initial designR. Buckminster Fuller with his domed city design1971R. Buckminster Fuller with his domed city designAuto Carriers1989Auto CarriersChicago, Missouri & Western CMNW 1500 (SW1500)1989Chicago, Missouri & Western CMNW 1500 (SW1500)Chicago, Missouri & Western CMNW 1501 (SW1500)1989Chicago, Missouri & Western CMNW 1501 (SW1500)Southern Pacific SP 7801 (B30-7)1989Southern Pacific SP 7801 (B30-7)
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
Today10 recent
Gateway Geyser in2012Gateway Geyser inCargill and grain elevator in2012Cargill and grain elevator inThere once was an ugly duckl2011There once was an ugly ducklMalcolm W. Martin Memorial Park2009Malcolm W. Martin Memorial ParkCasino Queen2006Casino QueenCargill grain elevator and terminal2006Cargill grain elevator and terminalView from Arch 32005View from Arch 3St. Louis Mississippi Bridge with trains2005St. Louis Mississippi Bridge with trainsGatewayFountain-Arch2005GatewayFountain-ArchI55-70Arch2004I55-70Arch
On the National Register

8 listings protect 32 historic buildings

The country’s official list of buildings and places worth saving. One is a National Historic Landmark, the highest tier.

places listed
8
National Historic Landmark
1
none yet
historic buildings protected
32
each building in a district counts

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

The story

How East St. Louis Township came to be

From Wikipedia’s history of East St. Louis Township.

Read it all →

Native Americans had long inhabited both sides of the Mississippi River. The Mississippian culture rulers organized thousands of workers to construct complex earthwork mounds at what later became St. Louis and East St. Louis. The center of this culture was the urban complex of Cahokia, located to the northeast of present-day East St. Louis within Collinsville, Illinois. Before the Civil War, settlers reported up to 50 mounds in the area that became East St. Louis, but most were lost to 19th-century development and later roadbuilding.

ChaptersGreat Railroad Strike of 1877Great Cyclone of 1896East St. Louis riots of 191720th century21st centuryArcheological remains

Text from Wikipedia, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0.

Timeline

East St. Louis Township, 1797 to 1989

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

  1. 18th century
  2. 1797
    FoundingEast St. Louis Township is established
  3. 19th century
  4. 1876In the archive"St. Louis, Missouri.-Drawn by Schell and Hogan, from a Sketch by C. A. Vanderhoof."
  5. 1886In the archiveGreat Railway Strike 1886 - E St Louis
  6. 20th century
  7. 1908In the archiveFirst Methodist Episcopal Church East St Louis, Illinois
  8. 1934On the mapFirst mapped by the U.S. Geological Survey
  9. 1950CensusPopulation peaks at 82,366
  10. 1952In the archiveUSA 046 St Louis 6
  11. 1971In the archiveOld Man River's City initial design
  12. 1989In the archiveAuto Carriers
On the map

East St. Louis Township on the map, 1934 to 1993

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

East St. Louis Township on the 1934 USGS mapEast St. Louis Township on the 1940 USGS mapEast St. Louis Township on the 1954 USGS mapEast St. Louis Township on the 1968 USGS mapEast St. Louis Township on the 1974 USGS mapEast St. Louis Township on the 1993 USGS map1934Cahokia sheet · 1:24,000

U.S. Geological Survey historical topographic maps (public domain), via Esri’s collection of the scans. The red ring marks the center of East St. Louis 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.

"St. Louis, Missouri.-Drawn by Schell and Hogan, from a Sketch by C. A. Vanderhoof."
Retake this view"St. Louis, Missouri.-Drawn by Schell and Hogan, from a Sketch by C. A. Vanderhoof.", 1876

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

Retake this view · +15
Help out

Finish East St. Louis Township’s story

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

Decades since 1900 with photos
00s10s20s30s40s50s60s70s80s90s
4 of 10 decades. The empty ones are waiting for someone’s album.
Retake an old view"St. Louis, Missouri.-Drawn by Schell a…: stand where they stood+15Share a family photoSign in to add one+10
Stories next door

History across the town line

Each neighbor’s History grade, on the same three inputs.

East St. Louis8 historic placesACentreville Township4 historic placesB+Canteen Township1 historic placeB+Cahokia Heights4 historic placesBBelleville6 historic placesA+Washington ParkIts storyC−Fairmont CityIts storyCFairview HeightsIts storyC−Stites TownshipIts storynot graded: under 1,000 residents or part of its townSaugetIts storynot graded: under 1,000 residents or part of its town

Questions about East St. Louis Township’s history

What year was East St. Louis Township founded?

In 1797, according to Wikipedia’s history of the town. East St. Louis Township’s post office opened in 1824, and the census of 1870 counted 5,044 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 (22), Wikidata (1), Wikipedia, U.S. Geological Survey historical maps and U.S. Census counts (via Wikipedia). Archive images are copied here with their credits and licenses, shown on each photo’s page. Refreshed monthly.