More historic than 27% of U.S. towns · #578 of 768 in Illinois. What drives it
Most of Hazel Crest was built recently: 8% of its homes predate 1940 and the median home dates from 1968. Below: 4 old photos and papers, maps from 1892 on, and the census since 1920.
Founding year: Wikipedia. First post office: 1892.The full story ↓
History grade
What drives Hazel Crest’s History grade
On its age, its old homes and the National Register, Hazel Crest is more historic than 27% of U.S. towns, #578 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 Hazel Crest’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 Hazel Crest’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.
NoteThe founding year comes from Wikipedia alone; no second source gives 1870.
How sure. Graded on any two of the three inputs instead, the letter would range from C− to C. The pre-1940 share (±2.4 points) is firm at this size.
Founding year: Wikipedia (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 Hazel Crest’s past
Read from the archive, the National Register and the record. The page puts what stands out first.
Hazel Crest was first settled in 1870 in a farming community known as South Harvey. An enterprising newspaper editor named William McClintock moved here from Ohio in 1890, buying 80 acres (320,000 m2) from farmer Fred Puhrman, McClintock named the town South Harvey, and the town would receive its modern name in 1895, after a referendum.
McClintock built a depot for a local milk train and subsequently opened transportation opportunities to Chicago and beyond. The depot also served as the area's first real estate office, public meeting place, Sunday school, day school, and post office.
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.
In 1870, according to Wikipedia’s history of the town. Hazel Crest’s post office opened in 1892, and the census of 1920 counted 438 people here.
How does Hazel Crest rank for history?
Hazel Crest is more historic than 27% of U.S. towns, #578 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 Hazel Crest?
8% of Hazel Crest’s homes were built before 1940 (Census estimate, ±2.4 points), against a typical 11% for an Illinois town; the median home was built in 1968.
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 (6), 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.
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