On its age, its old homes and the National Register, Marion Township is more historic than 54% of U.S. towns, #370 of 768 in Illinois. Its National Register listings hold the grade up; its share of homes from before 1940 pulls it down.
B−
HistoryA character grade: shown, never part of Marion Township’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 Marion Township’s 2.6 sits above most of its state (69% of Illinois towns have fewer) while its 1 listings outnumber those of 51% of U.S. towns.
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 (±3.6 points).
Founding year: our sources. 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 Marion Township’s past
Read from the archive, the National Register and the record. The page puts what stands out first.
Lost post offices, old corners, places now gone and burying grounds
Two other post offices opened and closed inside today’s town.
Stillman
1844–1846
Black Walnut
1865–1877
18401930today
Hamlets and corners on the map
Loose Pulley JunctionVon Glen Acres
Gone or out of use
Black Walnut SchoolschoolCrowell SchoolschoolMarrill SchoolschoolMeridian SchoolschoolSlagle SchoolschoolStillman SchoolschoolWhitaker Schoolschool
1cemetery inside Marion Township
Stillman Valley
US Post Offices dataset (Blevins & Helbock, CC0). Places and cemeteries from the USGS Geographic Names Information System (2021).
The story so far
Marion Township, in brief
Wikipedia doesn’t have a history of Marion Township yet. The photos, dates and memories neighbors add here are how it gets written.
Marion Township is located in Ogle County, Illinois. As of the 2010 census, its population was 4,135 and it contained 1,531 housing units. This population dropped in 2022 when a population of 3,898 people was recorded.
Between the 2010 and 2020 censuses its population fell from 4,135 to 3,887 (-6%).
Intro from Wikipedia. Population: U.S. Census Bureau.
Timeline
Marion Township, 1844 to 1917
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 Marion Township. Tap a year, or press play to watch the town change.
1917Kings 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 Marion Township.
On the National Register
1 historic place in Marion Township
The country’s official list of buildings and places worth saving.
place listed
1
National Historic Landmarks
0
none yet
historic buildings protected
1
each building in a district counts
National Park Service, National Register of Historic Places. Photos from Wikimedia Commons, credited on each place’s page.
Famous people
Famous people close to Marion Township
Nobody well known was born in Marion Township itself, so here are the best known from just nearby.
Marion Township is more historic than 54% of U.S. towns, #370 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 Marion Township?
9% of Marion Township’s homes were built before 1940 (Census estimate, ±3.6 points), against a typical 11% for an Illinois town; the median home was built in 1981.
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 (1), U.S. Geological Survey historical maps, 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.
2007
