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History · River Forest Township

River Forest Township’s post office opened in 1882, and 42% of its homes were built before 1940

5 places in town are on the National Register. Below: 14 old photos and papers, maps from 1891 on, and the census since 1900.

1882first post office
5on the National Register
42%homes built before 1940
14old photos & papers
Add an old photoShare a memory
From River Forest Township’s archive · credits on each photo
Quick answers

How River Forest Township began

When was River Forest Township founded?

1882

The River Forest Township post office opened in 1882, the earliest record of the town by name.

First census: 1,539 in 19002020 census: 11,717144 years
Founding year: the first River Forest Township post office (Blevins & Helbock, CC0).The full story ↓

What stands out about River Forest Township’s past

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

On the map since 18917 editions of the USGS map, 1891 to 1993. Watch River Forest Township change.A town in old photos14 old photos, postcards and papers, 1900–1996.Old housesHalf of River Forest Township’s homes were built before 1946.Landmarks on the Register5 places on the National Register.
★ What stands out · On the map

River Forest Township on the map, 1891 to 1993

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

River Forest Township on the 1891 USGS mapRiver Forest Township on the 1900 USGS mapRiver Forest Township on the 1928 USGS mapRiver Forest Township on the 1953 USGS mapRiver Forest Township on the 1963 USGS mapRiver Forest Township on the 1972 USGS mapRiver Forest Township on the 1993 USGS map1891Riverside 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 River Forest Township.

By decade

River Forest Township, decade by decade

5 decades in the archive, from the 1900s to the 1990s. Scroll each row; tap a photo for its story.

1900s–1930s12 items
St. Luke's Church, River Forest, Illinois, early 20th century (NBY 943)1900St. Luke's Church, River Forest, Illinois, early 20th…William E. Drummond House1915William E. Drummond HouseHABS ILL,16-RIVFO,2- (sheet 1 of 5) - William E. Drummond House, 559 Edgewood Place1933HABS ILL,16-RIVFO,2- (sheet 1 of 5) - William E. Drum…HABS ILL,16-RIVFO,2- (sheet 1 of 5) - William E. Drummond House, 559 Edgewood Place1933HABS ILL,16-RIVFO,2- (sheet 1 of 5) - William E. Drum…HABS ILL,16-RIVFO,2- (sheet 2 of 5) - William E. Drummond House, 559 Edgewood Place1933HABS ILL,16-RIVFO,2- (sheet 2 of 5) - William E. Drum…HABS ILL,16-RIVFO,2- (sheet 2 of 5) - William E. Drummond House, 559 Edgewood Place1933HABS ILL,16-RIVFO,2- (sheet 2 of 5) - William E. Drum…HABS ILL,16-RIVFO,2- (sheet 3 of 5) - William E. Drummond House, 559 Edgewood Place1933HABS ILL,16-RIVFO,2- (sheet 3 of 5) - William E. Drum…HABS ILL,16-RIVFO,2- (sheet 3 of 5) - William E. Drummond House, 559 Edgewood Place1933HABS ILL,16-RIVFO,2- (sheet 3 of 5) - William E. Drum…HABS ILL,16-RIVFO,2- (sheet 4 of 5) - William E. Drummond House, 559 Edgewood Place1933HABS ILL,16-RIVFO,2- (sheet 4 of 5) - William E. Drum…HABS ILL,16-RIVFO,2- (sheet 4 of 5) - William E. Drummond House, 559 Edgewood Place1933HABS ILL,16-RIVFO,2- (sheet 4 of 5) - William E. Drum…HABS ILL,16-RIVFO,2- (sheet 5 of 5) - William E. Drummond House, 559 Edgewood Place1933HABS ILL,16-RIVFO,2- (sheet 5 of 5) - William E. Drum…HABS ILL,16-RIVFO,2- (sheet 5 of 5) - William E. Drummond House, 559 Edgewood Place1933HABS ILL,16-RIVFO,2- (sheet 5 of 5) - William E. Drum…
1960s–1990s2 items
19680727 01 Chuck Tauscher196819680727 01 Chuck TauscherUntitled photo1996Untitled photo
The story

How River Forest Township came to be

From Wikipedia’s history of River Forest Township.

Read it all →

The Native American history of the area is closely tied to the Des Plaines River and includes Menominee and Chippewa settlements near what is now the Desplaines Avenue and Roosevelt Road forest preserves of Cook County. The Menominees would eventually be driven out by the Potowatomi Nation in 1810. The Potawatomi were in turn pushed west of the Mississippi by the Treaty of Chicago of 1833.

1831 saw the establishment of a steam sawmill on the east bank of the Des Plaines River. In 1842, the first planked road in what is now Lake Street was created. The community was known as Noyesville at the time. In 1848 the Galena and Chicago Union Railroad completed construction of tracks westward from Chicago, and train service commenced in January 1849.

Text from Wikipedia, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0.

Timeline

River Forest Township, 1891 to 1996

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

  1. 19th century
  2. 1891On the mapFirst mapped by the U.S. Geological Survey
  3. 20th century
  4. 1900In the archiveSt. Luke's Church, River Forest, Illinois, early 20th century (NBY 943)
  5. 1915In the archiveWilliam E. Drummond House
  6. 1933In the archiveHABS ILL,16-RIVFO,2- (sheet 1 of 5) - William E. Drummond House, 559 Edgewood Place
  7. 1968In the archive19680727 01 Chuck Tauscher
  8. 1996In the archiveUntitled photo
Then & now

Stand where they stood

No then-and-now pairs yet. Take a photo from the same spot as an old one and they appear here side by side.

St. Luke's Church, River Forest, Illinois, early 20th century (NBY 943)
Retake this viewSt. Luke's Church, River Forest, Illinois, early 20th century (NBY 943), 1900

Find the spot, match the angle, and add your photo. It becomes the first then-and-now pair on River Forest Township’s page.

Retake this view · +15
On the National Register

5 historic places in River Forest Township

The country’s official list of buildings and places worth saving.

places listed
5
National Historic Landmarks
0
none yet
historic buildings protected
626
each building in a district counts

National Park Service, National Register of Historic Places. Photos from Wikimedia Commons, credited on each place’s page.

People over time

River Forest Township, census by census

02,0004,0006,0008,00010,00012,00014,0001900192019401960198020002020Peak: 13,402

Between 1,539 and 13,402 people in every census since 1900.

13 censuses, 1900–2020.

U.S. Census Bureau decennial counts, from the census table on River Forest Township’s Wikipedia page.

Help out

Finish River Forest Township’s story

Most archives stop around 1920. The photos from after that are in family albums, not libraries.

Decades since 1900 with photos
00s10s20s30s40s50s60s70s80s90s
5 of 10 decades. The empty ones are waiting for someone’s album.
Retake an old viewSt. Luke's Church, River Forest, Illino…: stand where they stood+15Share a family photoSign in to add one+10
Stories next door

History across the town line

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

River Forest5 historic placesAProviso Township20 historic placesA−Maywood17 historic placesA−Melrose ParkIts storyB−Forest Park1 historic placeB

Questions about River Forest Township’s history

What year was River Forest Township founded?

The River Forest Township post office opened in 1882, 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 →
Start a conversation
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 (14), Wikidata (2), Wikipedia, U.S. Geological Survey historical maps and U.S. Census counts (via Wikipedia). Archive images are copied here with their credits and licenses, shown on each photo’s page. Refreshed monthly.