Each edition grades its towns against each other only.
More historic than 73% of U.S. towns. What drives it
Below: maps from 1912 on and old-book passages.
The Edgington Township post office opened in 1847, the earliest record of the town by name. Another post office, Edgington (1847), opened inside today’s town and later closed.
More historic than 73% of U.S. towns, on its age, its old homes and the National Register.
On its age, its old homes and the National Register, Edgington Township is more historic than 73% of U.S. towns. Its share of homes from before 1940 holds the grade up; its National Register listings pull it down.
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 Edgington 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.
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 →
Read from the archive, the National Register and the record. The page puts what stands out first.
The first neighbors to add old photos shape how Edgington Township’s history is told.
Every edition of the U.S. Geological Survey’s map of Edgington Township. Tap a year, or press play to watch the town change.
U.S. Geological Survey historical topographic maps (public domain), via Esri’s collection of the scans. The red ring marks the center of Edgington Township.
Woven from the archive, old maps, post office records, the National Register and the people born here.
On the mapFirst mapped by the U.S. Geological SurveyFrom Wikipedia’s history of Edgington Township.
The Edgington post office closed in 1920. The community's name honors Daniel and John Edgington, pioneer settlers.
Text from Wikipedia, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0.
Passages that mention Edgington Township, cut from the printed page as they were published.
three cabins formed a sort of triangle, with a path leading from one to the other. Such was the beginning of the settlement of Edgington Township. George W. Kell and Henry Eberhart and familj-, came in the spring of 1835. Charles Eberhart and family, John Titterington and family, with Moses and Charles Titterington,
Text read by machine from the scan; it may contain errors.
rods north of the Andalusia road, leading from the east to that village. This was the first mill built in this neighborhood, and had the buhrs used by Joseph Dunlap in Edgington Township. As stated, Andalusia was set off from Edgington Township in 1859. Its first election was held April 5 of that year, the following named being elected .
Text read by machine from the scan; it may contain errors.
which is its northern boundary line. It is bounded on the east by Black Hawk, on the west by Buffalo Prairie, and on the south by Edgington Township. On the adoption of the township organization law in 1857, Andalusia formed a part of Edgington Township, but was set off by the Board of Supervisors in 1859.
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.
Weddings on Main Street, storms, parades, school pictures, the old store. If it’s in your family album, it belongs here.
Another post office, Edgington, opened and closed inside today’s town.
US Post Offices dataset (Blevins & Helbock, CC0). Places and cemeteries from the USGS Geographic Names Information System (2021).
Each neighbor’s History grade, on the same three inputs.
The Edgington Township post office opened in 1847, the earliest record of the town by name (U.S. post office records).
Edgington Township is more historic than 73% 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.
34% of Edgington Township’s homes were built before 1940 (Census estimate, ±9.9 points), against a typical 11% for an Illinois town; the median home was built in 1960.
What the archives can’t tell you, neighbors can.
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 Wikipedia, U.S. Geological Survey historical maps, the US Post Offices dataset (Blevins & Helbock), the USGS Geographic Names Information System 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.
