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CHistory
History · Fairmont City

Fairmont City was first counted by the census in 1920, and 24% of its homes were built before 1940

More historic than 30% of U.S. towns. What drives it

Below: maps from 1935 on and the census since 1920.

1920first census
0on the National Register
24%homes built before 1940
1famous people
Add an old photoShare a memory
Quick answers

How Fairmont City began

When was Fairmont City founded?

1920

Fairmont City first appears in the census in 1920.

First census: 1,056 in 19202020 census: 2,265106 years

How historic is Fairmont City?

C

More historic than 30% of U.S. towns, on its age, its old homes and the National Register.

What drives the grade ↓
Founding year: the first census.The full story ↓
History grade

What drives Fairmont City’s History grade

On its age, its old homes and the National Register, Fairmont City is more historic than 30% of U.S. towns. Its share of homes from before 1940 holds the grade up; its age pulls it down.

C
HistoryA character grade: shown, never part of Fairmont City’s overall grade.
Founding era1920, from the first census: founded 1900–1944, an older era than 9% of U.S. townsDHomes built before 194024.0% of homes (±10.7) · typical IL town 10.6% · U.S. 8.4%A−National RegisterNo listings counted · typical IL town 0.5 per 10,000 · U.S. 2.4C
All U.S. towns we grade (21,289)Ahead of 30%
NewerOlder

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 Fairmont City’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.

How sure. Graded on any two of the three inputs instead, the letter would range from D to B−. The pre-1940 share is a Census survey estimate (±10.7 points).

Founding year: the first census (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 Fairmont City’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 Fairmont City are in the public archives yet. The rest are in attics and albums.Old housesHalf of Fairmont City’s homes were built before 1952.
★ What stands out · Help out

Start Fairmont City’s collection

The first neighbors to add old photos shape how Fairmont City’s history is told.

Decades since 1900 with photos
00s10s20s30s40s50s60s70s80s90s
0 of 10 decades. The empty ones are waiting for someone’s album.
Share a family photoSign in to add one+10
The story

How Fairmont City came to be

From Wikipedia’s history of Fairmont City.

Read it all →

The Granby Mining Company of Granby, Missouri, built a zinc smelter in Fairmont City in 1912. A petition to incorporate the village was filed with St. Clair County on February 11, 1914. Residents voted for incorporation on March 3, when the community had a population of more than 300. The first village election followed in April, and Philip H. Cohn became the first mayor.

The American Zinc Company acquired the Granby operation in 1916. Primary zinc-smelting operations ended in 1953, but ore roasting and sulfuric acid production continued until the plant closed entirely in 1967. The smelter became the economic center of a working-class immigrant community.

Text from Wikipedia, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0.

Timeline

Fairmont City, 1875 to 1935

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

  1. 19th century
  2. 1875Post officeThe National Stock Yards post office opens
  3. 20th century
  4. 1919Born hereJohnny Wyrostek is born here
  5. 1935On the mapFirst mapped by the U.S. Geological Survey
By decade

Fairmont City, decade by decade

Today1 recent
Int55nInt70eUS40eRoad-ILnGRRSigns2014Int55nInt70eUS40eRoad-ILnGRRSigns
On the map

Fairmont City on the map, 1935 to 1993

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

Fairmont City on the 1935 USGS mapFairmont City on the 1954 USGS mapFairmont City on the 1968 USGS mapFairmont City on the 1974 USGS mapFairmont City on the 1993 USGS map1935Monks Mound 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 Fairmont City.

People over time

Fairmont City, census by census

05001,0001,5002,0002,5003,000192019401960198020002020Peak: 2,769

Between 1,056 and 2,769 people in every census since 1920.

11 censuses, 1920–2020.

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

Places that used to be

Old corners and places now gone

Old hamlets and crossroads still carry their names on the map.

Hamlets and corners on the map
ExermontNational City
Gone or out of use
Madison Kennel Clublocale

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

Stories next door

History across the town line

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

MadisonIts storyB+East St. Louis8 historic placesAEast St. Louis Township8 historic placesnot graded: under 1,000 residents or part of its townCollinsville8 historic placesA−Canteen Township1 historic placeB+Stites TownshipIts storynot graded: under 1,000 residents or part of its townCaseyvilleIts storyCWashington ParkIts storyC−BrooklynIts storynot graded: under 1,000 residents or part of its town

Questions about Fairmont City’s history

What year was Fairmont City founded?

The Fairmont City post office opened in 1920, the earliest record of the town by name (U.S. post office records).

How does Fairmont City rank for history?

Fairmont City is more historic than 30% 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 Fairmont City?

24% of Fairmont City’s homes were built before 1940 (Census estimate, ±10.7 points), against a typical 11% for an Illinois town; the median home was built in 1952.

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 (1), 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) 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.