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History · Kankakee Township

Kankakee Township dates to 1853, and 27% of its homes were built before 1940

10 places in town are on the National Register. Below: 5 old photos and papers, maps from 1922 on, and the census since 1880.

1853founded
10on the National Register
27%homes built before 1940
5old photos & papers
Add an old photoShare a memory
From Kankakee Township’s archive · credits on each photo
Quick answers

How Kankakee Township began

When was Kankakee Township founded?

1853

Kankakee Township dates its founding to 1853 (Wikidata). The census first counted it in 1880.

First census: 5,651 in 18802020 census: 24,508173 years
Founding year: Wikidata. First post office: 1866.The full story ↓

What stands out about Kankakee Township’s past

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

Landmarks on the Register10 places on the National Register.On the map since 19223 editions of the USGS map, 1922 to 1973. Watch Kankakee Township change.Old housesHalf of Kankakee Township’s homes were built before 1957.
★ What stands out · On the National Register

10 listings protect 144 historic buildings

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

places listed
10
National Historic Landmarks
0
none yet
historic buildings protected
144
each building in a district counts

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

On the map

Kankakee Township on the map, 1922 to 1973

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

Kankakee Township on the 1922 USGS mapKankakee Township on the 1964 USGS mapKankakee Township on the 1973 USGS map1922Kankakee 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 Kankakee Township.

The story

How Kankakee Township came to be

From Wikipedia’s history of Kankakee Township.

Read it all →

The city's name is probably derived from a corrupted version of the Miami-Illinois word teeyaahkiki, meaning "open country/exposed land/land in open/land exposed to view", in reference to the area's prior status as a marsh. Kankakee was founded in 1854.

On March 10, 2026, a high-end EF3 tornado struck the south side of Kankakee, with winds up to 160 miles per hour.

Text from Wikipedia, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0.

Timeline

Kankakee Township, 1853 to 1936

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

  1. 19th century
  2. 1853
    FoundingKankakee Township is established
  3. 1869In the archiveBird's eye view of the city of Kankakee, Kankakee County, Illinois 1869
  4. 20th century
  5. 1908In the archiveKankakee River
  6. 1921In the archiveKreohler
  7. 1922On the mapFirst mapped by the U.S. Geological Survey
  8. 1936In the archiveIllinois - Kankakee through Lebanon
By decade

Kankakee Township, decade by decade

4 decades in the archive, from the 1860s to the 1930s. Scroll each row; tap a photo for its story.

1860s1 item
Bird's eye view of the city of Kankakee, Kankakee County, Illinois 18691869Bird's eye view of the city of Kankakee, Kankakee Cou…
1900s–1930s4 items
Kankakee River1908Kankakee RiverKreohler1921KreohlerIllinois - Kankakee through Lebanon1936Illinois - Kankakee through LebanonIllinois - Kankakee through Lebanon1936Illinois - Kankakee through Lebanon
1940s–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
Today11 recent
Phone photos 9442015Phone photos 944Majestic Coal Chute, 19262015Majestic Coal Chute, 1926A modern toilet2015A modern toiletWildwood Church of the Nazarene2014Wildwood Church of the NazareneB. Harley Bradley House and Stable2012B. Harley Bradley House and StableP1010052 Kankakee County Courthouse2009P1010052 Kankakee County CourthouseKankakee River in Flood2009Kankakee River in FloodKankakee County Courthouse Civil War Memorial2009Kankakee County Courthouse Civil War MemorialCN & GT IN K.KEE2009CN & GT IN K.KEEKankakee aerial2008Kankakee aerialILMap-doton-Kankakee2006ILMap-doton-Kankakee
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.

Bird's eye view of the city of Kankakee, Kankakee County, Illinois 1869
Retake this viewBird's eye view of the city of Kankakee, Kankakee County, Illinois 1869, 1869

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

Retake this view · +15
People over time

Kankakee Township, census by census

05,00010,00015,00020,00025,00030,00018801900192019401960198020002020Peak: 30,944

Between 5,651 and 30,944 people in every census since 1880.

15 censuses, 1880–2020.

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

Places that used to be

Places now gone

Gone or out of use
Grinnell SchoolschoolSeedorf Schoolschool

Places and cemeteries from the USGS Geographic Names Information System (2021).

Help out

Finish Kankakee Township’s story

Most archives stop around 1920. The photos from after that are in family albums, not libraries.

Decades since 1900 with photos
00s10s20s30s40s50s60s70s80s90s
3 of 10 decades. The empty ones are waiting for someone’s album.
Retake an old viewBird's eye view of the city of Kankakee…: 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.

Aroma TownshipIts storyCOtto TownshipIts storyB−Bourbonnais Township1 historic placeBLimestone TownshipIts storyC+Kankakee10 historic placesA−BradleyIts storyC

Questions about Kankakee Township’s history

What year was Kankakee Township founded?

In 1853, according to Wikidata. Kankakee Township’s post office opened in 1866, and the census of 1880 counted 5,651 people here.

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). How TownRatings grades history →

From Wikimedia Commons (16), Wikidata (1), Wikipedia, U.S. Geological Survey historical maps, U.S. Census counts (via Wikipedia) 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.