The Paradise Township post office opened in 1830, the earliest record of the town by name. Two smaller post offices, Paradise (1830) and Etna (1859), opened inside today’s town and later closed.
2020 census: 959196 years
Founding year: the first Paradise Township post office (Blevins & Helbock, CC0).
What stands out about Paradise Township’s past
Read from the archive, the National Register and the record. The page puts what stands out first.
Wikipedia doesn’t have a history of Paradise Township yet. The photos, dates and memories neighbors add here are how it gets written.
Paradise is an unincorporated community in Coles County, Illinois, United States. Paradise is located near the south shore of Lake Paradise, 6 miles (9.7 km) south-southwest of Mattoon.
Its first post office opened in 1830. Between the 2010 and 2020 censuses its population fell from 1,351 to 959 (-29%).
Intro from Wikipedia. Population: U.S. Census Bureau.
From the old history books
What they wrote about Paradise Township in 1879
Passages that mention Paradise Township, cut from the printed page as they were published.
The History of Coles County, Illinois ... map of Coles County1879Read the page →
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Paradise Township. School was kept here, or in the cabins, until about 1844 or 1845, when the first schoolhouse, built expressly for such purposes, was erected in Mattoon Township. That was about the dawn of the present schoolsystem of Illinois. It had been agitated as early as 1827, renewed in 1835- 86. and a few subsequent Legislatures, but so distasteful was the idea of taxation to the southern portion of the State, that not until 1844-45 did the first permanent school law come into force.
Text read by machine from the scan; it may contain errors.
Paradise Township. School was kept here, or in the cabins, until about 1844 or 1845, when the first schoolhouse, built expressly for such purposes, was erected in Mattoon Township. That was about the dawn of the present schoolsystem of Illinois. It had been agitated as early as 1827, renewed in 1835- 3t:i. and a few subsequent Legislatures, but so distasteful was the idea of taxation to the southern portion of the State, that not until 1844—45 did the first permanent school law come into force.
Text read by machine from the scan; it may contain errors.
The History of Coles County, Illinois ... map of Coles County1879 · page 494Read the page →
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The early physicians in this settlement were Drs. John Apperson and Seth Montague. Apperson, as has been elsewhere noted, was an early settler of Paradise Township, but his range of practice extended to then the uppermost settlements along the Okaw. Dr. J. T. Johnson came in some years later, and settled among them, and was for many years the leading practitioner in the community. The first post office established in the township was about the year 1852. Dr. Johnson was the first Postmaster, and, for a number of years, the office was kept at his house. It was named, however. Fuller's Point, in
Text read by machine from the scan; it may contain errors.
The history of Coles county, Illinois..1879 · page 494Read the page →
Read the text
The early physicians in this settlement were Drs. John Apperson and Seth Montague. Apperson, as has been elsewhere noted, was an early settler of Paradise Township, but his range of practice extended to then the uppermost settlements along the Okaw. Dr. J. T. Johnson came in some years later, and settled among them, and was for many years the leading practitioner in the community. The first post ofSce established in the townshij) was about the year 1852. Dr. Johnson was the first Postmaster, and, for a number of years, the office was kept at his house. It was named, however. Fuller's Point, in
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.
By decade
No old photos in the archives yet
Weddings on Main Street, storms, parades, school pictures, the old store. If it’s in your family album, it belongs here.
Be the first to add onePhotograph a print flat, in daylight, no flash.
Every edition of the U.S. Geological Survey’s map of Paradise Township. Tap a year, or press play to watch the town change.
1934Mattoon 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 Paradise Township.
Famous people
Famous people close to Paradise Township
Nobody well known was born in Paradise Township itself, so here are the best known from just nearby.
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 U.S. Geological Survey historical maps, the US Post Offices dataset (Blevins & Helbock), the USGS Geographic Names Information System 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.
