2 of Plato Township’s places are on the National Register
More historic than 34% of U.S. towns · #517 of 768 in Illinois. What drives it
Its Register listings are the Memorial Washington Reformed Presbyterian Church and the Robert and Elizabeth Muirhead House. Most of Plato Township was built recently: 2% of its homes predate 1940 and the median home dates from 2003. Below: maps from 1925 on and the census since 2000.
On its age, its old homes and the National Register, Plato Township is more historic than 34% of U.S. towns, #517 of 768 in Illinois. Its National Register listings hold the grade up; its share of homes from before 1940 pulls it down.
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HistoryA character grade: shown, never part of Plato 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 Plato Township’s 2.2 sits above most of its state (67% of Illinois towns have fewer) while its 2 listings outnumber those of 60% of U.S. towns.
How sure. Graded on two of the three inputs, so a change in either one moves the letter more than it would with three. The pre-1940 share (±1.3 points) is firm at this size.
Founding year: our sources. 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 Plato Township’s past
Read from the archive, the National Register and the record. The page puts what stands out first.
4cemeteries and burying grounds inside Plato Township
L. M. BakerNorth PlatoUdinaWashington Memorial
US Post Offices dataset (Blevins & Helbock, CC0). Places and cemeteries from the USGS Geographic Names Information System (2021).
On the map
Plato Township on the map, 1925 to 1992
Every edition of the U.S. Geological Survey’s map of Plato Township. Tap a year, or press play to watch the town change.
1925Elgin 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 Plato Township.
The story so far
Plato Township, in brief
Wikipedia doesn’t have a history of Plato Township yet. The photos, dates and memories neighbors add here are how it gets written.
Plato Township is one of sixteen townships in Kane County, Illinois, USA. As of the 2020 census, its population was 9,296 and it contained 3,298 housing units. It was originally named Homer Township; the name was changed to Plato on July 2, 1850.
Between the 2010 and 2020 censuses its population grew from 6,166 to 9,296 (+51%).
Intro from Wikipedia. Population: U.S. Census Bureau.
Timeline
Plato Township, 1855 to 1925
Woven from the archive, old maps, post office records, the National Register and the people born here.
Plato Township is more historic than 34% of U.S. towns, #517 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.
What is on the National Register in Plato Township?
Two places: the Memorial Washington Reformed Presbyterian Church (listed 1980) and the Robert and Elizabeth Muirhead House (2016).
How old are the homes in Plato Township?
2% of Plato Township’s homes were built before 1940 (Census estimate, ±1.3 points), against a typical 11% for an Illinois town; the median home was built in 2003.
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 Wikidata (1), the National Register of Historic Places (2), U.S. Geological Survey historical maps, U.S. Census counts (via Wikipedia), 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.
