Half of Reed Township’s homes were built after 1994
More historic than 14% of U.S. towns · #694 of 768 in Illinois. What drives it
Most of Reed Township was built recently: 3% of its homes predate 1940 and the median home dates from 1994. Below: maps from 1973 on and old-book passages.
On its age, its old homes and the National Register, Reed Township is more historic than 14% of U.S. towns, #694 of 768 in Illinois. Its National Register listings hold the grade up; its share of homes from before 1940 pulls it down.
D
HistoryA character grade: shown, never part of Reed 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 Reed Township’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.
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 (±2.0 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 Reed 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 Reed Township yet. The photos, dates and memories neighbors add here are how it gets written.
Reed Township is located in Will County, Illinois. As of the 2010 census, its population was 6,948 and it contained 3,259 housing units. Reed Township was originally named Clinton Township, but was changed on June 10, 1850.
Its population held steady between the last two censuses: 6,948 in 2010, 6,864 in 2020.
Intro from Wikipedia. Population: U.S. Census Bureau.
From the old history books
What they wrote about Reed Township in 1878
Passages that mention Reed Township, cut from the printed page as they were published.
The history of Will County, Illinois, containing a history of the county ... a directory of its real estate owners1878 · page 610Read the page →
Read the text
In 1876, the citizens of the eastern portion of Reed Township, seeing that their interests were entirely different from those of the western portion, and that the tastes, habits and pursuits were somewhat inharmonious, petitioned to the Board of Supervisors to be set off as a separate precinct. A majority of the Board coinciding with the views of the petitioners, a division was made as •described, and an election of township officers ordered. The tragedy of the brave Gen. Custer and his troops being fresh in mind, the township was named in his honor. The first officers elected were : George Petro, Supervisor ; M.
Text read by machine from the scan; it may contain errors.
The history of Will County, Illinois, containing a history of the county ... a directory of its real estate owners1878 · page 757Read the page →
Read the text
St. L. R. R., located near Braceville station ; he then was engaged by a company to sink two shafts ; one of them was in Reed Township, Will County, and was the first coal shaft sunk in Reed Township ; was engaged in overseeing the Braceville coal shaft ; he then entered a mining company composed of miners, known as the
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.
Timeline
Reed Township, 1906 to 1973
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 Reed Township. Tap a year, or press play to watch the town change.
1973Essex sheet · 1:24,000
U.S. Geological Survey historical topographic maps (public domain), via Esri’s collection of the scans. The red ring marks the center of Reed Township.
Famous people
Famous people close to Reed Township
Nobody well known was born in Reed Township itself, so here are the best known from just nearby.
Lost post offices, old corners, places now gone and burying grounds
Another post office, Torino, opened and closed inside today’s town.
Hamlets and corners on the map
Torino
Gone or out of use
I MinemineMurphy And Keenan Number 3 MineminePit 11 Northern MineminePit 5 Northern MinemineWilmington Number 2 MinemineWilmington Number 2 MinemineWilmington Number 6 Minemine
2cemeteries and burying grounds inside Reed Township
Bohemian NationalMount Olivet
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.
Reed Township is more historic than 14% of U.S. towns, #694 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.
How old are the homes in Reed Township?
3% of Reed Township’s homes were built before 1940 (Census estimate, ±2.0 points), against a typical 11% for an Illinois town; the median home was built in 1994.
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 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.
