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Martinton Illinois water towerPhoto: Omnedon · Public domain
–Not graded
History · Martinton Township

Martinton Township’s post office opened in 1873, and 46% of its homes were built before 1940

Below: maps from 1939 on and the census since 1880.

1873first post office
0on the National Register
46%homes built before 1940
Add an old photoShare a memory
Photo: Omnedon · Public domain
Quick answers

How Martinton Township began

When was Martinton Township founded?

1873

The Martinton Township post office opened in 1873, the earliest record of the town by name.

First census: 142 in 18802020 census: 813153 years
Founding year: the first Martinton Township post office (Blevins & Helbock, CC0).

What stands out about Martinton Township’s past

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

A history waiting to be writtenNo old photos of Martinton Township are in the public archives yet. The rest are in attics and albums.Old housesHalf of Martinton Township’s homes were built before 1945.
★ What stands out · Help out

Start Martinton Township’s collection

The first neighbors to add old photos shape how Martinton Township’s history is told.

Decades since 1900 with photos
00s10s20s30s40s50s60s70s80s90s
0 of 10 decades. The empty ones are waiting for someone’s album.
Share a family photoSign in to add one+10
The story so far

Martinton Township, in brief

Wikipedia doesn’t have a history of Martinton Township yet. The photos, dates and memories neighbors add here are how it gets written.

Martinton is a village in Martinton Township, Iroquois County, Illinois, United States. The population was 334 at the 2020 census.

Its first post office opened in 1873. Between the 2010 and 2020 censuses its population fell from 943 to 813 (-14%).

Intro from Wikipedia. Population: U.S. Census Bureau.

By decade

Martinton Township, decade by decade

Today5 recent
Martinton post office 609512015Martinton post office 60951Martinton elevator2015Martinton elevatorMartinton Main at Second2015Martinton Main at SecondIL1nRoadSign-Martinton2013IL1nRoadSign-MartintonMartinton Illinois water tower2007Martinton Illinois water tower
On the map

Martinton Township on the map, 1939 to 1964

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

Martinton Township on the 1939 USGS mapMartinton Township on the 1964 USGS map1939Watseka 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 Martinton Township.

People over time

Martinton Township, census by census

010020030040018801900192019401960198020002020Peak: 381

Between 125 and 381 people in every census since 1880.

15 censuses, 1880–2020.

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

Famous people

Famous people close to Martinton Township

Nobody well known was born in Martinton Township itself, so here are the best known from just nearby.

See all →
P
P. C. CastAmerican writer · b. 1960
H
Henry BaconAmerican architect · b. 1866
Rex EverhartAmerican actor, singer · b. 1920
Fern AndraAmerican actress · b. 1893
C
Craig CalhounAmerican sociologist · b. 1952
Vaughn WalkerAmerican judge · b. 1944
Places that used to be

Old corners, places now gone and burying grounds

Old hamlets and crossroads still carry their names on the map.

Hamlets and corners on the map
Freedville
Gone or out of use
College Corner SchoolschoolGagnon SchoolschoolJarvis SchoolschoolLiberty SchoolschoolOld Burg SchoolschoolPleasant Grove SchoolschoolRegnier SchoolschoolSchoon SchoolschoolWeygandt Schoolschool
4cemeteries and burying grounds inside Martinton Township
GreentownMount OlivetOld BurgTegge

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

Stories next door

History across the town line

Each neighbor’s History grade, on the same three inputs.

Ashkum TownshipIts storyB−Papineau TownshipIts storynot graded: under 1,000 residents or part of its townMiddleport Township3 historic placesAIroquois TownshipIts storynot graded: under 1,000 residents or part of its townChebanse TownshipIts storyC+Beaver TownshipIts storynot graded: under 1,000 residents or part of its town

Questions about Martinton Township’s history

What year was Martinton Township founded?

The Martinton Township post office opened in 1873, the earliest record of the town by name (U.S. post office records).

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 (5), 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.