Each edition grades its towns against each other only.
More historic than 40% of U.S. towns. What drives it
Below: maps from 1914 on and the census since 1880.
The New Berlin post office opened in 1864, the earliest record of the town by name.
More historic than 40% of U.S. towns, on its age, its old homes and the National Register.
On its age, its old homes and the National Register, New Berlin is more historic than 40% of U.S. towns. Its share of homes from before 1940 holds the grade up; its National Register listings pull it down.
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 New Berlin’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.
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 →
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 New Berlin’s history is told.
From Wikipedia’s history of New Berlin.
The village was founded in 1865 by a community of mostly German immigrants. Only a very few buildings from the original village still remain on the town's main thoroughfare, old Illinois State Route 54.
Text from Wikipedia, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0.
Passages that mention New Berlin, cut from the printed page as they were published.
The ordinance describing the boundaries of the town of New Berlin is as follows: "That the boundaries of the town of New Berlin shall commence at the southeast corner of the north quai'ter of section nineteen, township fifteen, north of range seven west, thence east one mile, thence south one mile, thence west one mile, thence north one mile to place of beginning."
Text read by machine from the scan; it may contain errors.
The village of New Berlin was laid out in 1838, and its plat recorded as the property of Thomas Yates, and is described as part of the east half of the northeast quarter of section thirty, township fifteen, range seven. The date of the record is October 26, 1838.
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.
Every edition of the U.S. Geological Survey’s map of New Berlin. 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 New Berlin.
Fire insurance maps drew every building, what it was made of and what it was used for, so insurers could price the risk of fire. Pick a sheet.
1914Sheet 1 of 1Sanborn Map Company, via the Library of Congress. Editions published in 1930 or earlier, which are in the public domain.
Grew from 403 people in 1880 to 1,381 in 2020, 3 times over.
15 censuses, 1880–2020.
U.S. Census Bureau decennial counts, from the census table on New Berlin’s Wikipedia page.
Writers, athletes, leaders and more, ranked by how widely they’re known.
The New Berlin post office opened in 1864, the earliest record of the town by name (U.S. post office records).
New Berlin is more historic than 40% of U.S. towns. 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.
19% of New Berlin’s homes were built before 1940 (Census estimate, ±8.7 points), against a typical 11% for an Illinois town; the median home was built in 1981.
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).
From Wikimedia Commons (1), 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, Sanborn fire insurance maps (Library of Congress) 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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