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History · Plymouth

Plymouth’s post office opened in 1837, and 41% of its homes were built before 1940

Below: 1 old photo or paper.

1837first post office
0on the National Register
41%homes built before 1940
1old photo or paper
2famous people
Add an old photoShare a memory
Quick answers

How Plymouth began

When was Plymouth founded?

1837

The Plymouth post office opened in 1837, the earliest record of the town by name.

2020 census: 436189 years
Founding year: the first Plymouth post office (Blevins & Helbock, CC0).

What stands out about Plymouth’s past

Read from the archive, the National Register and the record. The page puts what stands out first.

A history waiting to be writtenOnly 1 old photo is in the public archives. The rest are in attics and albums.Old housesHalf of Plymouth’s homes were built before 1952.Deep rootsA post office since 1837: 189 years of Plymouth.
★ What stands out · Help out

Start Plymouth’s collection

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

Decades since 1900 with photos
00s10s20s30s40s50s60s70s80s90s
0 of 10 decades. The empty ones are waiting for someone’s album.
Date a photo1 archive item has no date. Guess the decade.+2Share a family photoSign in to add one+10
The story so far

Plymouth, in brief

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

Plymouth is a village in Hancock and McDonough counties, Illinois, United States. The population was 436 at the 2020 census, down from 505 in 2010.

Its first post office opened in 1837. Between the 2010 and 2020 censuses its population fell from 505 to 436 (-14%).

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

Timeline

Plymouth, 1837 to 1865

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

  1. 19th century
  2. 1837Post officeThe Plymouth post office opens
  3. 1859Born hereAdelaide Johnson is born here
  4. 1865Born hereEdmond H. Madison is born here
By decade

Plymouth, decade by decade

Date unknown1 to date
A history of Round Prairie and Plymouth, 1831-1875Date?A history of Round Prairie and Plymouth, 1831-1875Book
Famous people

2 famous people were born in Plymouth

Writers, athletes, leaders and more, ranked by how widely they’re known.

See all →
Adelaide JohnsonAmerican sculptor · b. 1859
Edmond H. MadisonAmerican politician · b. 1865

Questions about Plymouth’s history

What year was Plymouth founded?

The Plymouth post office opened in 1837, 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), Wikidata and Wikipedia for famous people, 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.