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History · Richland Township

31% of Richland Township’s homes were built before 1940

Below: maps from 1893 on.

0on the National Register
31%homes built before 1940
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What stands out about Richland 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 Richland Township are in the public archives yet. The rest are in attics and albums.On the map since 18934 editions of the USGS map, 1893 to 1972. Watch Richland Township change.Lost villages2 post offices opened and closed inside today’s Richland Township, and 1 old place names are still on the map.Old housesHalf of Richland Township’s homes were built before 1952.
★ What stands out · Help out

Start Richland Township’s collection

The first neighbors to add old photos shape how Richland 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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On the map

Richland Township on the map, 1893 to 1972

Every edition of the U.S. Geological Survey’s map of Richland Township. Tap a year, or press play to watch the town change.

Richland Township on the 1893 USGS mapRichland Township on the 1937 USGS mapRichland Township on the 1948 USGS mapRichland Township on the 1972 USGS map1893Metamora 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 Richland Township.

Places that used to be

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

Two other post offices opened and closed inside today’s town.

Wilburn
1888–1929
Wilbern
1929–1953
18801950today
Hamlets and corners on the map
Wilbern
Gone or out of use
Garfield SchoolschoolHull SchoolschoolMaple SchoolschoolStrawn Schoolschool
4cemeteries and burying grounds inside Richland Township
BarnesFort DeverNew SalemStrawn

US Post Offices dataset (Blevins & Helbock, CC0). Places and cemeteries from the USGS Geographic Names Information System (2021).

The story so far

Richland Township, in brief

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

Richland Township is located in Marshall County, Illinois. As of the 2010 census, its population was 446 and it contained 195 housing units.

Between the 2010 and 2020 censuses its population fell from 446 to 419 (-6%).

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

Timeline

Richland Township, 1888 to 1953

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

  1. 19th century
  2. 1888Post officeThe Wilburn post office opens
  3. 1893On the mapFirst mapped by the U.S. Geological Survey
  4. 20th century
  5. 1929Post officeThe Wilburn post office closes
  6. 1929Post officeThe Wilbern post office opens
  7. 1953Post officeThe Wilbern post office closes
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.

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Famous people

Famous people close to Richland Township

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

See all →
Clifford C. IrelandAmerican politician · b. 1878
J. Frank DuryeaAmerican inventor · b. 1869
Ted KennedyAmerican baseball player · b. 1865
B
Bob BarnesAmerican baseball player · b. 1902
John P. CromwellUnited States Navy Medal of Honor recipient · b. 1901
J
Joseph Henry WegsteinAmerican computer scientist · b. 1922
Stories next door

History across the town line

Each neighbor’s History grade, on the same three inputs.

Lacon TownshipIts storyB+Bell Plain TownshipIts storynot graded: under 1,000 residents or part of its townCazenovia TownshipIts storyB−Hopewell TownshipIts storynot graded: under 1,000 residents or part of its town

Questions about Richland Township’s history

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 U.S. Geological Survey historical maps, 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.