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History · Garrett

Garrett’s post office opened in 1885, and 48% of its homes were built before 1940

Below: maps from 1950 on.

1885first post office
0on the National Register
48%homes built before 1940
Add an old photoShare a memory
Quick answers

How Garrett began

When was Garrett founded?

1885

The Garrett post office opened in 1885, the earliest record of the town by name.

2020 census: 122141 years
Founding year: the first Garrett post office (Blevins & Helbock, CC0).

What stands out about Garrett’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 Garrett are in the public archives yet. The rest are in attics and albums.Old housesHalf of Garrett’s homes were built before 1951.
★ What stands out · Help out

Start Garrett’s collection

The first neighbors to add old photos shape how Garrett’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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The story so far

Garrett, in brief

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

Garrett is a village in Douglas County, Illinois, United States. The population was 122 at the 2020 census.

Its first post office opened in 1885. Between the 2010 and 2020 censuses its population fell from 162 to 122 (-25%).

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

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.
Add from your album
On the map

Garrett on the map, 1950 to 1998

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

Garrett on the 1950 USGS mapGarrett on the 1975 USGS mapGarrett on the 1983 USGS mapGarrett on the 1998 USGS map1950Tuscola 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 Garrett.

Famous people

Famous people close to Garrett

Nobody well known was born in Garrett itself, so here are the best known from just nearby.

See all →
M
Margery C. CarlsonU.S. botanist and conservationist · b. 1892
G
Gertrude SawyerAmerican architect · b. 1895
William Cowper BrannAmerican journalist · b. 1855
T. Gilbert PearsonConservationist · b. 1873
Fred Ernst BusbeyPolitician and United States Army soldier · b. 1895
Helen BertramAmerican musical theatre actress · b. 1865

Questions about Garrett’s history

What year was Garrett founded?

The Garrett post office opened in 1885, 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 →
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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. Archive images are copied here with their credits and licenses, shown on each photo’s page. Refreshed monthly.