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Downtown Hinsdale IllinoisPhoto: Dennisyerger84 · CC BY-SA 4.0
B+History
History · Hinsdale

Hinsdale’s post office opened in 1867, and 16% of its homes were built before 1940

More historic than 75% of U.S. towns · #226 of 768 in Illinois. What drives it

8 places in town are on the National Register, among them two historic districts with 292 buildings between them. Below: 5 old photos and papers, maps from 1891 on, and the census since 1880.

1867first post office
8on the National Register
16%homes built before 1940
5old photos & papers
52famous people
Add an old photoShare a memory
From Hinsdale’s archive · credits on each photo
Quick answers

How Hinsdale began

When was Hinsdale founded?

1867

The Hinsdale post office opened in 1867, the earliest record of the town by name. Wikidata gives 1873. Two smaller post offices, Brush Hill (1835) and Fullersburg (1859), opened inside today’s town and later closed.

First census: 819 in 18802020 census: 17,395159 years

How historic is Hinsdale?

B+

More historic than 75% of U.S. towns, on its age, its old homes and the National Register.

What drives the grade ↓
Founding year: the first Hinsdale post office (Blevins & Helbock, CC0). Wikidata: 1873.
History grade

What drives Hinsdale’s History grade

On its age, its old homes and the National Register, Hinsdale is more historic than 75% of U.S. towns, #226 of 768 in Illinois. Its National Register listings hold the grade up; its age pulls it down.

B+
HistoryA character grade: shown, never part of Hinsdale’s overall grade.
Founding era1867, from the first post office: founded 1850–1899, an older era than 37% of U.S. townsC+Homes built before 194015.8% of homes (±2.5) · typical IL town 10.6% · U.S. 8.4%BNational Register8 listings, 300 historic buildings, 175 per 10,000 residents · typical IL town 0.5 · U.S. 2.4A+
All U.S. towns we grade (21,289)Ahead of 75%
NewerOlder
Illinois towns of 2,500+ (768)Ahead of 71%

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 Hinsdale’s 175 sits above most of its state (96% of Illinois towns have fewer) while its 300 historic buildings outnumber those of 95% of U.S. towns.

How sure. Graded on any two of the three inputs instead, the letter would range from C+ to A. The pre-1940 share (±2.5 points) is firm at this size. The founding year is the first post office, not a stated founding date; Wikidata’s 1873 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 Hinsdale’s past

Read from the archive, the National Register and the record. The page puts what stands out first.

A historic districtThe Robbins Park Historic District takes in 232 historic buildings.On the map since 18918 editions of the USGS map, 1891 to 1993. Watch Hinsdale change.Famous sons and daughtersDanielle Campbell, Chris Klein and 50 more were born here.Lost villages2 post offices opened and closed inside today’s Hinsdale, and 1 old place names are still on the map.
★ What stands out · On the National Register

8 listings protect 300 historic buildings

The country’s official list of buildings and places worth saving.

places listed
8
National Historic Landmarks
0
none yet
historic buildings protected
300
each building in a district counts
first listed
1989
William Whitney House
William Whitney HouseRobert A. and Mary Childs HouseFrancis Stuyvesant Peabody House, built 1889Immanuel Evangelical ChurchOrland P. Bassett HouseDowntown Hinsdale Historic DistrictRobbins Park Historic DistrictWilliam and Helen Coffeen House
BuildingsDistricts

Architectural styles listings

Queen Anne4
Late Victorian3
Italianate3
Colonial Revival3
Italian Renaissance2
Late Gothic Revival1
William Whitney HouseLate Victorian
Robert A. and Mary Childs HouseQueen Anne
Francis Stuyvesant Peabody HouseQueen Anne · Built 1889
Immanuel Evangelical ChurchLate Gothic Revival
Orland P. Bassett HouseColonial Revival
Downtown Hinsdale Historic DistrictLate Victorian
Robbins Park Historic DistrictLate Victorian
William and Helen Coffeen HouseBuilding

National Park Service, National Register of Historic Places. Photos from Wikimedia Commons, credited on each place’s page.

On the map

Hinsdale on the map, 1891 to 1993

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

Hinsdale on the 1891 USGS mapHinsdale on the 1900 USGS mapHinsdale on the 1927 USGS mapHinsdale on the 1953 USGS mapHinsdale on the 1963 USGS mapHinsdale on the 1972 USGS mapHinsdale on the 1980 USGS mapHinsdale on the 1993 USGS map1891Riverside 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 Hinsdale.

Famous people

52 famous people were born in Hinsdale

Writers, athletes, leaders and more, ranked by how widely they’re known.

See all →
Danielle CampbellAmerican actress · b. 1995
Chris KleinAmerican actor · b. 1979
Nicholle TomAmerican actress · b. 1978
D
Dizzy ReedAmerican musician · b. 1963
Todd MartinAmerican tennis player · b. 1970
Marty RiessenUS tennis player · b. 1941
The story so far

Hinsdale, in brief

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

Hinsdale is a village in DuPage County, Illinois, United States, with a small portion in Cook County. It is one of the wealthiest communities in Illinois and in the United States. Hinsdale is a western suburb of Chicago with a population of 17,395 in the 2020 census.

Its first post office opened in 1867. Between the 2010 and 2020 censuses its population grew from 16,816 to 17,395 (+3%).

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

Timeline

Hinsdale, 1835 to 1995

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

  1. 19th century
  2. 1835Post officeThe Brush Hill post office opens
  3. 1859Post officeThe Brush Hill post office closes
  4. 1859Post officeThe Fullersburg post office opens
  5. 1867Post officeThe Hinsdale post office opens
  6. 1889BuiltFrancis Stuyvesant Peabody House is built
  7. 1891On the mapFirst mapped by the U.S. Geological Survey
  8. 20th century
  9. 1907In the archiveHinsdale, IL - Sept. 10, 1907
  10. 1908Post officeThe Fullersburg post office closes
  11. 1963Born hereDizzy Reed is born here
  12. 1978Born hereNicholle Tom is born here
  13. 1979Born hereChris Klein is born here
  14. 1995Born hereDanielle Campbell is born here
By decade

Hinsdale, decade by decade

One decade in the archive so far: the 1900s. Scroll each row; tap a photo for its story.

1900s1 item
Hinsdale, IL - Sept. 10, 19071907Hinsdale, IL - Sept. 10, 1907
1910s–1990snothing yet
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.
Add from your album
Date unknown4 to date
Chicken Basket, Erv Kolarik Prop. (NBY 436405)Date?Chicken Basket, Erv Kolarik Prop. (NBY 436405)Immanuel Hall, 302 South Grant StreetDate?Immanuel Hall, 302 South Grant StreetJensen House, 325 East Eighth StreetDate?Jensen House, 325 East Eighth StreetAnna & William Hinckley House, 202 East Fourth StreetDate?Anna & William Hinckley House, 202 East Fourth Street
Today9 recent
Whole Foods Market (Hinsdale, Illinois) 12024Whole Foods Market (Hinsdale, Illinois) 1Aerial view of Hinsdale Central High School, October 20242024Aerial view of Hinsdale Central High School, October …20180310 02 Illinois Tollway Hinsdale Oasis201820180310 02 Illinois Tollway Hinsdale OasisM8greyhound3arcwwii2016M8greyhound3arcwwiiDowntown2016DowntownUntitled photo2016Untitled photoGreetings from Hinsdale, Illinois - Large Letter Postcard2012Greetings from Hinsdale, Illinois - Large Letter Post…DocumentDyas Home in2007Dyas Home inBronswood Cemetary2007Bronswood Cemetary
Then & now

Stand where they stood

No then-and-now pairs yet. Take a photo from the same spot as an old one and they appear here side by side.

Hinsdale, IL - Sept. 10, 1907
Retake this viewHinsdale, IL - Sept. 10, 1907, 1907

Find the spot, match the angle, and add your photo. It becomes the first then-and-now pair on Hinsdale’s page.

Retake this view · +15
People over time

Hinsdale, census by census

02,0004,0006,0008,00010,00012,00014,00016,00018,0001880190019201940196019802000202017,395

Grew from 819 people in 1880 to 17,395 in 2020, more than tenfold.

15 censuses, 1880–2020.

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

Places that used to be

Lost post offices, old corners and burying grounds

Hinsdale’s post office has been open since 1867. Two other post offices opened and closed inside today’s town.

Brush Hill
1835–1859
Fullersburg
1859–1908
Hinsdale
1867–today
18301930today
Hamlets and corners on the map
Fullersburg
1cemetery inside Hinsdale
Fullersburg

US Post Offices dataset (Blevins & Helbock, CC0). Places and cemeteries from the USGS Geographic Names Information System (2021).

Help out

Start Hinsdale’s collection

The first neighbors to add old photos shape how Hinsdale’s history is told.

Decades since 1900 with photos
00s10s20s30s40s50s60s70s80s90s
1 of 10 decades. The empty ones are waiting for someone’s album.
Date a photo4 archive items have no date. Guess the decade.+2Retake an old viewHinsdale, IL - Sept. 10, 1907: stand where they stood+15Share a family photoSign in to add one+10
Stories next door

History across the town line

Each neighbor’s History grade, on the same three inputs.

Burr Ridge1 historic placeDOak Brook4 historic placesC−Western Springs2 historic placesBIndian Head ParkIts storyC−Westmont1 historic placeC−Clarendon HillsIts storyC−Downers Grove Township11 historic placesA−York Township13 historic placesB+

Questions about Hinsdale’s history

What year was Hinsdale founded?

The Hinsdale post office opened in 1867, the earliest record of the town by name (U.S. post office records). Wikidata gives 1873.

How does Hinsdale rank for history?

Hinsdale is more historic than 75% of U.S. towns, #226 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.

What is on the National Register in Hinsdale?

8 listings: 6 buildings, among them the William Whitney House (listed 1989, the first), and 2 historic districts, the Downtown Hinsdale Historic District and the Robbins Park Historic District, with 292 contributing buildings. 300 historic buildings in all.

How old are the homes in Hinsdale?

16% of Hinsdale’s homes were built before 1940 (Census estimate, ±2.5 points), against a typical 11% for an Illinois town; the median home was built in 1981.

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).

From Wikimedia Commons (11), the Library of Congress (3), Wikidata (2), the National Register of Historic Places (8), 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.