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History · Ophir Township

Ophir Township’s post office opened in 1851, and 28% of its homes were built before 1940

1851first post office
0on the National Register
28%homes built before 1940
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Quick answers

How Ophir Township began

When was Ophir Township founded?

1851

The Ophir Township post office opened in 1851, the earliest record of the town by name. Another post office, Ophir (1851), opened inside today’s town and later closed.

2020 census: 436175 years
Founding year: the first Ophir Township post office (Blevins & Helbock, CC0).

What stands out about Ophir 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 Ophir Township are in the public archives yet. The rest are in attics and albums.
★ What stands out · Help out

Start Ophir Township’s collection

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

Decades since 1900 with photos
00s10s20s30s40s50s60s70s80s90s
0 of 10 decades. The empty ones are waiting for someone’s album.
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The story so far

Ophir Township, in brief

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

Ophir Township is located in LaSalle County, Illinois. As of the 2020 census, its population was 436 and it contained 207 housing units. Ophir Township was originally named Fremont Township, but was renamed in May, 1850. It contains the census-designated place of Triumph.

Its first post office opened in 1851. Between the 2010 and 2020 censuses its population fell from 508 to 436 (-14%).

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

Timeline

Ophir Township, 1851 to 1869

Woven from the archive, old maps, post office records, the National Register and the people born here.

  1. 19th century
  2. 1851Post officeThe Ophir post office opens
  3. 1857Post officeThe Triumph post office opens
  4. 1869Post officeThe Ophir post office closes
By decade

Ophir Township, decade by decade

Today1 recent
Ophir Community Building 2026-09-022026Ophir Community Building 2026-09-02
Famous people

Famous people close to Ophir Township

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

See all →
Wild Bill HickokAmerican folk hero and lawman · b. 1837
Zez ConfreyAmerican composer and pianist · b. 1895
Gary K. WolfAmerican author · b. 1941
L
Lynden EvansAmerican politician · b. 1858
A
Albert C. Martin, Sr.American architect · b. 1879
J
James Thomas Aubrey, Jr.American film and TV executive · b. 1918
Places that used to be

Lost post offices, old corners, places now gone and burying grounds

Another post office, Ophir, opened and closed inside today’s town.

Ophir
1851–1869
Triumph
1857–today
18501940today
Hamlets and corners on the map
Triumph
Gone or out of use
Austin SchoolschoolCampbell SchoolschoolCarr SchoolschoolGarland SchoolschoolOphir Center SchoolschoolSchool Number 237schoolSellers Airportairport
4cemeteries and burying grounds inside Ophir Township
DavisDeweyHillWisner

US Post Offices dataset (Blevins & Helbock, CC0). 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.

Troy Grove TownshipIts storyB+Waltham TownshipIts storynot graded: under 1,000 residents or part of its townMeriden TownshipIts storynot graded: under 1,000 residents or part of its townFreedom TownshipIts storynot graded: under 1,000 residents or part of its town

Questions about Ophir Township’s history

What year was Ophir Township founded?

The Ophir Township post office opened in 1851, 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 →
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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 (1), 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.