More historic than 39% of U.S. towns · #475 of 768 in Illinois. What drives it
Most of Itasca was built recently: 4% of its homes predate 1940 and the median home dates from 1980. Below: 1 old photo or paper, maps from 1953 on, and the census since 1880.
Founding year: Wikidata; Wikipedia’s history section gives the same year. First post office: 1873.The full story ↓
History grade
What drives Itasca’s History grade
On its age, its old homes and the National Register, Itasca is more historic than 39% of U.S. towns, #475 of 768 in Illinois. Its age holds the grade up; its National Register listings pull it down.
C+
HistoryA character grade: shown, never part of Itasca’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 Itasca’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 B−. The pre-1940 share (±2.8 points) is firm at this size. Two sources give 1841.
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 Itasca’s past
Read from the archive, the National Register and the record. The page puts what stands out first.
Itasca was first settled by Elijah Smith in 1841. Smith practiced medicine in Boston. In May 1841, at the advice of his colleagues he set out to find a suitable site for doctoring, farming, and raising a family. He traveled from New York via Detroit and headed toward DuPage County. His parchment government land title dated March 10, 1843, was signed by John Tyler, President of the United States. The document gave Smith title to the land that is now bounded by the railroad tracks on the south, Maple Street on the west, Cherry Street on the east, and Division Street on the north.
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 1841, according to Wikidata and Wikipedia’s history of the town. Itasca’s post office opened in 1873, and the census of 1880 counted 76 people here.
How does Itasca rank for history?
Itasca is more historic than 39% of U.S. towns, #475 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 Itasca?
4% of Itasca’s homes were built before 1940 (Census estimate, ±2.8 points), against a typical 11% for an Illinois town; the median home was built in 1980.
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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