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History · Ellis Grove

Ellis Grove’s post office opened in 1853, and 21% of its homes were built before 1940

Below: maps from 1912 on and the census since 1900.

1853first post office
0on the National Register
21%homes built before 1940
Add an old photoShare a memory
Quick answers

How Ellis Grove began

When was Ellis Grove founded?

1853

The Ellis Grove post office opened in 1853, the earliest record of the town by name. Another post office, Ellisgrove (1898), opened inside today’s town and later closed.

First census: 280 in 19002020 census: 328173 years
Founding year: the first Ellis Grove post office (Blevins & Helbock, CC0).

What stands out about Ellis Grove’s past

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

A history waiting to be writtenNo old photos of Ellis Grove are in the public archives yet. The rest are in attics and albums.On the map since 19124 editions of the USGS map, 1912 to 1982. Watch Ellis Grove change.
★ What stands out · Help out

Start Ellis Grove’s collection

The first neighbors to add old photos shape how Ellis Grove’s history is told.

Decades since 1900 with photos
00s10s20s30s40s50s60s70s80s90s
0 of 10 decades. The empty ones are waiting for someone’s album.
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On the map

Ellis Grove on the map, 1912 to 1982

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

Ellis Grove on the 1912 USGS mapEllis Grove on the 1942 USGS mapEllis Grove on the 1970 USGS mapEllis Grove on the 1982 USGS map1912Baldwin 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 Ellis Grove.

The story so far

Ellis Grove, in brief

Wikipedia doesn’t have a history of Ellis Grove yet. The photos, dates and memories neighbors add here are how it gets written.

Ellis Grove is a village in Randolph County, Illinois, United States. The population was 328 at the 2020 census.

Its first post office opened in 1853. Between the 2010 and 2020 censuses its population fell from 363 to 328 (-10%).

Intro from Wikipedia. Population: U.S. Census Bureau.

Timeline

Ellis Grove, 1853 to 1981

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

  1. 19th century
  2. 1853Post officeThe Ellis Grove post office opens
  3. 1898Post officeThe Ellisgrove post office opens
  4. 20th century
  5. 1912On the mapFirst mapped by the U.S. Geological Survey
  6. 1981Post officeThe Ellisgrove post office closes
By decade

No old photos in the archives yet

Weddings on Main Street, storms, parades, school pictures, the old store. If it’s in your family album, it belongs here.

Be the first to add onePhotograph a print flat, in daylight, no flash.
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People over time

Ellis Grove, census by census

01002003004001900192019401960198020002020Peak: 381

Between 218 and 381 people in every census since 1900.

13 censuses, 1900–2020.

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

Places that used to be

Lost post offices

Ellis Grove’s post office has been open since 1853. Another post office, Ellisgrove, opened and closed inside today’s town.

Ellis Grove
1853–today
Ellisgrove
1898–1981
18501940today

US Post Offices dataset (Blevins & Helbock, CC0). Places and cemeteries from the USGS Geographic Names Information System (2021).

Questions about Ellis Grove’s history

What year was Ellis Grove founded?

The Ellis Grove post office opened in 1853, the earliest record of the town by name (U.S. post office records).

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 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.