More historic than 27% of U.S. towns · #580 of 768 in Illinois. What drives it
Most of Franklin Park was built recently: 8% of its homes predate 1940 and the median home dates from 1957. Below: 4 old photos and papers, maps from 1891 on, and the census since 1900.
From Franklin Park’s archive · credits on each photo
Quick answers
How Franklin Park began, and where its name came from
When was Franklin Park founded?
1891
The Franklin Park post office opened in 1891, the earliest record of the town by name. Wikidata gives 1892. Three smaller post offices, Cazenovia (1837), Leyden (1850) and Manheim (1874), opened inside today’s town and later closed.
First census: 483 in 19002020 census: 18,467135 years
How did Franklin Park get its name?
Franklin Park was named for real estate broker Lesser Franklin who bought acres of the area when it was a majority of farming fields.
How historic is Franklin Park?
C
More historic than 27% of U.S. towns, on its age, its old homes and the National Register.
Founding year: the first Franklin Park post office (Blevins & Helbock, CC0). Wikidata: 1892. Name: Wikipedia, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0.
History grade
What drives Franklin Park’s History grade
On its age, its old homes and the National Register, Franklin Park is more historic than 27% of U.S. towns, #580 of 768 in Illinois. Its share of homes from before 1940 holds the grade up; its National Register listings pull it down.
C
HistoryA character grade: shown, never part of Franklin Park’s overall grade.
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 Franklin Park’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 C− to C. The pre-1940 share is a Census survey estimate (±3.2 points). The founding year is the first post office, not a stated founding date; Wikidata’s 1892 falls in the same era, so the grade doesn’t depend on which one is used.
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 →
What stands out about Franklin Park’s past
Read from the archive, the National Register and the record. The page puts what stands out first.
Every edition of the U.S. Geological Survey’s map of Franklin Park. Tap a year, or press play to watch the town change.
1891Riverside 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 Franklin Park.
Places that used to be
Lost post offices
Franklin Park’s post office has been open since 1891. Three other post offices opened and closed inside today’s town.
Cazenovia
1837–1850
Leyden
1850–1874
Manheim
1874–1928
Franklin Park
1891–today
18301930today
US Post Offices dataset (Blevins & Helbock, CC0). Places and cemeteries from the USGS Geographic Names Information System (2021).
The story so far
Franklin Park, in brief
Wikipedia doesn’t have a history of Franklin Park yet. The photos, dates and memories neighbors add here are how it gets written.
Franklin Park is a village in Cook County, Illinois, United States. The population was 18,467 at the 2020 census, and was estimated at 18,110 in 2024. It was named for real estate broker Lesser Franklin who bought acres of the area when it was a majority of farming fields.
Its first post office opened in 1891. Its population held steady between the last two censuses: 18,333 in 2010, 18,467 in 2020.
Intro from Wikipedia. Population: U.S. Census Bureau.
Timeline
Franklin Park, 1837 to 1987
Woven from the archive, old maps, post office records, the National Register and the people born here.
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.
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.
The Franklin Park post office opened in 1891, the earliest record of the town by name (U.S. post office records). Wikidata gives 1892.
How does Franklin Park rank for history?
Franklin Park is more historic than 27% of U.S. towns, #580 of 768 in Illinois. 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 Franklin Park?
8% of Franklin Park’s homes were built before 1940 (Census estimate, ±3.2 points), against a typical 11% for an Illinois town; the median home was built in 1957.
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 (18), 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.
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