Founding year: the first Moro Township post office (Blevins & Helbock, CC0).The full story ↓
History grade
What drives Moro Township’s History grade
On its age, its old homes and the National Register, Moro Township is more historic than 32% of U.S. towns, #534 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 Moro 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 Moro Township’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.
How sure. Graded on any two of the three inputs instead, the letter would range from C− to C+. The pre-1940 share is a Census survey estimate (±10.3 points). The founding year is the first post office, not a stated founding date.
Founding year: the first post office (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 Moro Township’s past
Read from the archive, the National Register and the record. The page puts what stands out first.
Moro, Illinois, is a small unincorporated community located in Madison County. The area that is now Moro was originally inhabited by Native American tribes. European settlers began to arrive in the early 19th century, attracted by the fertile land and opportunities for farming.
In the mid-1800s, Moro began to develop as a rural community with the establishment of farms and small businesses. The construction of railroads in the late 19th century further stimulated growth, allowing for easier transportation of goods and people. The name "Moro" is thought to have been derived from a local or regional influence, though the exact origin is unclear.
Every edition of the U.S. Geological Survey’s map of Moro Township. Tap a year, or press play to watch the town change.
1927Edwardsville 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 Moro Township.
Stories next door
History across the town line
Each neighbor’s History grade, on the same three inputs.
The Moro Township post office opened in 1856, the earliest record of the town by name (U.S. post office records).
How does Moro Township rank for history?
Moro Township is more historic than 32% of U.S. towns, #534 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 Moro Township?
13% of Moro Township’s homes were built before 1940 (Census estimate, ±10.3 points), against a typical 11% for an Illinois town; the median home was built in 1983.
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 Wikipedia, 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.
