Founding year: Wikidata. First post office: 1836.The full story ↓
History grade
What drives Henry’s History grade
On its age, its old homes and the National Register, Henry is more historic than 73% of U.S. towns. Its share of homes from before 1940 holds the grade up; its National Register listings pull it down.
B+
HistoryA character grade: shown, never part of Henry’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 Henry’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 B− to A. The pre-1940 share is a Census survey estimate (±7.9 points). Two sources give 1834.
Founding year: Wikidata (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 Henry’s past
Read from the archive, the National Register and the record. The page puts what stands out first.
Henry is named after General James D. Henry and was initially surveyed in 1834. The topography of the land on the west side of the Illinois River, with relatively steep banks rising well above river level, assured early settlers that their homes would not flood.
Its slogan, "Best Town in Illinois by a Dam Site", is derived from the city's distinction of having the first lock and dam built on the Illinois River. It was completed in 1870 at a cost of $400,000.
The retreat house of the Roman Catholic Diocese of Peoria (Nazareth Retreat House, formerly King's House) is located here.
Passages that mention Henry, cut from the printed page as they were published.
Portrait and biographical album of Henry County, Illinois1885 · page 627Read the page →
Read the text
mercantile business from 1842 to 1853, and succeeded thereat in accumulating a considerable sum of money. Early in 1854 he removed from Wisconsin to Henry Co., 111., and was at the village of Wethersfield when the Chicago, Builington & Qtiincy Railroad was completed through to Galesburg. His shrewd business" knowledge taught him that Wethersfield as a town had fulfilled its mission, and that
Text read by machine from the scan; it may contain errors.
Portrait and biographical album of Henry County, Illinois1885 · page 346Read the page →
Read the text
on. Joshua Harper, deceased, was a former citizen of Geneseo. He occupied, perhaps, as conspicuous a position during his lifetime as any other of the residents of Henry county who have been placed on permanent record 'on the pages of this volume. He was a pioneer of what is now the township of Edford, in 1836, in the second year in which the tide of settle-
Text read by machine from the scan; it may contain errors.
Scans and text from the Internet Archive. Books published in 1930 or earlier, which are in the public domain.
By decade
Henry, decade by decade
2 decades in the archive, from the 1870s to the 1970s. Scroll each row; tap a photo for its story.
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 1834, according to Wikidata. Henry’s post office opened in 1836.
How does Henry rank for history?
Henry is more historic than 73% 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 Henry?
34% of Henry’s homes were built before 1940 (Census estimate, ±7.9 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 (6), Wikipedia, Wikidata and Wikipedia for famous people, the US Post Offices dataset (Blevins & Helbock), the USGS Geographic Names Information System and old county and town histories (Internet Archive). Archive images are copied here with their credits and licenses, shown on each photo’s page. Refreshed monthly.
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