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History · Flat Rock

Flat Rock’s post office opened in 1851, and 32% of its homes were built before 1940

Below: maps from 1917 on and the census since 1880.

1851first post office
0on the National Register
32%homes built before 1940
1famous people
Add an old photoShare a memory
Photo: Brian Stansberry · CC BY 4.0
Quick answers

How Flat Rock began

When was Flat Rock founded?

1851

The Flat Rock post office opened in 1851, the earliest record of the town by name.

First census: 140 in 18802020 census: 323175 years
Founding year: the first Flat Rock post office (Blevins & Helbock, CC0).The full story ↓

What stands out about Flat Rock’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 Flat Rock are in the public archives yet. The rest are in attics and albums.Boom and bustPeaked at 840 in 1910; 323 people lived here in 2020.On the map since 19173 editions of the USGS map, 1917 to 1964. Watch Flat Rock change.Old housesHalf of Flat Rock’s homes were built before 1954.
★ What stands out · Help out

Start Flat Rock’s collection

The first neighbors to add old photos shape how Flat Rock’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
People over time

Flat Rock, census by census

020040060080018801900192019401960198020002020Peak: 840

Peaked at 840 in 1910; 323 people lived here in 2020.

15 censuses, 1880–2020.

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

On the map

Flat Rock on the map, 1917 to 1964

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

Flat Rock on the 1917 USGS mapFlat Rock on the 1942 USGS mapFlat Rock on the 1964 USGS map1917Birds 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 Flat Rock.

The story

How Flat Rock came to be

From Wikipedia’s history of Flat Rock.

Read it all →

Flat Rock was established in 1876 by John W. Jones, a merchant who would operate the first general store in the village.

Text from Wikipedia, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0.

Timeline

Flat Rock, 1851 to 1917

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

  1. 19th century
  2. 1851Post officeThe Flat Rock post office opens
  3. 1899Born hereGeorge A. Taylor is born here
  4. 20th century
  5. 1910CensusPopulation peaks at 840
  6. 1917On the mapFirst mapped by the U.S. Geological Survey
By decade

Flat Rock, decade by decade

Today3 recent
Flat-Rock-water-tower-il2020Flat-Rock-water-tower-ilFlat-Rock-from-east-il2020Flat-Rock-from-east-ilFlat-Rock-First-Street-il2020Flat-Rock-First-Street-il

Questions about Flat Rock’s history

What year was Flat Rock founded?

The Flat Rock post office opened in 1851, 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 Wikimedia Commons (3), 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.