Each edition grades its towns against each other only.
Below: maps from 1912 on and the census since 1890.
The Lenzburg post office opened in 1853, the earliest record of the town by name.
Read from the archive, the National Register and the record. The page puts what stands out first.
The first neighbors to add old photos shape how Lenzburg’s history is told.
Every edition of the U.S. Geological Survey’s map of Lenzburg. Tap a year, or press play to watch the town change.
U.S. Geological Survey historical topographic maps (public domain), via Esri’s collection of the scans. The red ring marks the center of Lenzburg.
Wikipedia doesn’t have a history of Lenzburg yet. The photos, dates and memories neighbors add here are how it gets written.
Lenzburg is a village in St. Clair County, Illinois, USA. As of the 2020 census, Lenzburg had a population of 468.
Its first post office opened in 1853. Between the 2010 and 2020 censuses its population fell from 521 to 468 (-10%).
Intro from Wikipedia. Population: U.S. Census Bureau.
Passages that mention Lenzburg, cut from the printed page as they were published.
The Lenzburg School was originally a part of the Hickory Grove School District. It was established in 1862, composed of a part of the Hickory Grove District and a part of the East Dutch Hill District. It was originally a one-room building until an addition was built and it became a two-room building, which stands at the present time on the edge of the town of Lenzburg.
Text read by machine from the scan; it may contain errors.
Lenzburg post-office was located in 1866, P. J. Dreher, P. M who has ever since held the office. There is a neat German Evangelical church building, which was erected in 1879.
Text read by machine from the scan; it may contain errors.
Molles has been associated with school work either as a teacher or as a student. The last six years of his teaching career have been spent in Lenzburg, where he holds the principalship of the Community Consolidated Schools. He has worked hard to attain his present position. It would seem that he is to remain in Lenzburg for many years more; here he has bought residence
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.
Woven from the archive, old maps, post office records, the National Register and the people born here.
Born hereMickey Haefner is born here
On the mapFirst mapped by the U.S. Geological SurveyWeddings on Main Street, storms, parades, school pictures, the old store. If it’s in your family album, it belongs here.
Between 266 and 577 people in every census since 1890.
14 censuses, 1890–2020.
U.S. Census Bureau decennial counts, from the census table on Lenzburg’s Wikipedia page.
Each neighbor’s History grade, on the same three inputs.
The Lenzburg post office opened in 1853, the earliest record of the town by name (U.S. post office records).
What the archives can’t tell you, neighbors can.
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 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), 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.
