More historic than 23% of U.S. towns · #598 of 768 in Illinois. What drives it
Most of Manhattan was built recently: 7% of its homes predate 1940 and the median home dates from 2005. Below: maps from 1929 on and the census since 1890.
Founding year: Wikipedia. First post office: 1880.The full story ↓
History grade
What drives Manhattan’s History grade
On its age, its old homes and the National Register, Manhattan is more historic than 23% of U.S. towns, #598 of 768 in Illinois. Its share of homes from before 1940 holds the grade up; its National Register listings pull it down.
C−
HistoryA character grade: shown, never part of Manhattan’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 Manhattan’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.
NoteThe founding year comes from Wikipedia alone; no second source gives 1853.
How sure. Graded on two of the three inputs, so a change in either one moves the letter more than it would with three. The pre-1940 share is a Census survey estimate (±4.4 points).
Founding year: Wikipedia (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 Manhattan’s past
Read from the archive, the National Register and the record. The page puts what stands out first.
Manhattan village was established in 1880 as a stop along the Wabash Railroad 6th district, and incorporated in 1886. Its named comes from the New York City borough of Manhattan, which may have been suggested by then-Will County supervisor John Young. Due to railroad construction in the mid-19th century, many immigrants, especially Irish, moved to the area. It was eventually incorporated to obtain a saloon license. Its forebears of German and Irish heritage give expression in the early spring festival Irish Fest.
On May 27, 1917, Manhattan was struck by a tornado as part of the May 25 - June 1, 1917 tornado outbreak, one of the most widespread and deadly on record.
Passages that mention Manhattan, cut from the printed page as they were published.
The history of Will County, Illinois, containing a history of the county ... a directory of its real estate owners1878 · page 638Read the page →
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and two years, and is one of the respected citizens and wealthy farmers of the township. He is the preseni; Supervisor, an office he has held for several years, as will be found on another page. This comprises a number of the first settlers of Manhattan Township up to a period when the tide of immigration poured in with a rapidity defying the power of the historian to keep pace with names and dates. When township organization went into efiiect, in 1850, there were but ten legal voters in the territory now comprised in Manhattan Township, and, as already stated, was not sufficient to form a township of itself, but
Text read by machine from the scan; it may contain errors.
The history of Will County, Illinois, containing a history of the county ..1878 · page 638Read the page →
Read the text
and two years, and is one of the respected citizens and wealthy farmers of the township. He is the present Supervisor, an office he has held for several years, as will be found on another page. This comprises a number of the first settlers of Manhattan Township up to a period when the tide of immigration poured in with a rapidity defying the power of the historian to keep pace with names and dates. When township organization went into eflfect, in 1850, there were but ten legal voters in the territory now comprised in Manhattan Township, and, as already stated, was not sufficient to form a township of itself, but
Text read by machine from the scan; it may contain errors.
Souvenir of settlement and progress of Will County, Ill. A review of the lives of our presidents, political, military and commercial history of the United States and of the state of Illinois ... Business directory of Joliet ... Comp. specially for the peo1884 · page 428Read the page →
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The old township of Trenton, set off as a precinct in 1836, embraced the present towns of Manhattan and Green Garden. In 1850, under the law authorizing township organization, Trenton sent William Nelson as representative on the Board of Supervisors, and in 1851 and 1852 conferred that honor on M.
Text read by machine from the scan; it may contain errors.
The history of Will County, Illinois, containing a history of the county ... a directory of its real estate owners1878 · page 639Read the page →
Read the text
received the office in 1849, but did not hold it long, as he sold out in 1850 and went to California. The first blacksmith-shop was kept by a man named Cunningham, in 1851. Where Cunningham came from, or whither he went, no one can now tell. There is no village in Manhattan Township, nor 'has there ever been a store within its borders, nor a post office established for its particular benefit. But very recently Greengarden post office was moved over, just inside of the Manhattan line. Joliet is the point of traffic of its citizens, and is the post office where the large majority of them get their mail matter.' It is
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.
Timeline
Manhattan, 1853 to 1929
Woven from the archive, old maps, post office records, the National Register and the people born here.
Every edition of the U.S. Geological Survey’s map of Manhattan. Tap a year, or press play to watch the town change.
1929Brisbane sheet · 1:24,000
U.S. Geological Survey historical topographic maps (public domain), via Esri’s collection of the scans. The red ring marks the center of Manhattan.
People over time
Manhattan, census by census
Grew from 257 people in 1890 to 9,385 in 2020, more than tenfold.
14 censuses, 1890–2020.
U.S. Census Bureau decennial counts, from the census table on Manhattan’s Wikipedia page.
Places that used to be
Old corners, places now gone and burying grounds
Manhattan’s post office has been open since 1880.
Hamlets and corners on the map
Century East
Gone or out of use
Mud Creek Schoolschool
1cemetery inside Manhattan
Saint Joseph Guardian Angels
US Post Offices dataset (Blevins & Helbock, CC0). Places and cemeteries from the USGS Geographic Names Information System (2021).
Questions about Manhattan’s history
What year was Manhattan founded?
In 1853, according to Wikipedia’s history of the town. Manhattan’s post office opened in 1880, and the census of 1890 counted 257 people here.
How does Manhattan rank for history?
Manhattan is more historic than 23% of U.S. towns, #598 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 Manhattan?
7% of Manhattan’s homes were built before 1940 (Census estimate, ±4.4 points), against a typical 11% for an Illinois town; the median home was built in 2005.
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 (4), 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), 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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