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A−History
History · Riverside

Riverside’s post office opened in 1870, and 62% of its homes were built before 1940

More historic than 83% of U.S. towns · #158 of 768 in Illinois. What drives it

6 places in town are on the National Register, among them 4 National Historic Landmarks and a historic district. Below: 10 old photos and papers, maps from 1891 on, and the census since 1900.

1870first post office
6on the National Register
62%homes built before 1940
10old photos & papers
8famous people
Add an old photoShare a memory
From Riverside’s archive · credits on each photo
Quick answers

How Riverside began

When was Riverside founded?

1870

The Riverside post office opened in 1870, the earliest record of the town by name. Wikidata gives 1875.

First census: 1,551 in 19002020 census: 9,298156 years

How historic is Riverside?

A−

More historic than 83% of U.S. towns, on its age, its old homes and the National Register.

What drives the grade ↓
Founding year: the first Riverside post office (Blevins & Helbock, CC0). Wikidata: 1875.The full story ↓
History grade

What drives Riverside’s History grade

On its age, its old homes and the National Register, Riverside is more historic than 83% of U.S. towns, #158 of 768 in Illinois. Its share of homes from before 1940 holds the grade up; its age pulls it down.

A−
HistoryA character grade: shown, never part of Riverside’s overall grade.
Founding era1870, from the first post office: founded 1850–1899, an older era than 37% of U.S. townsC+Homes built before 194061.7% of homes (±5.6) · typical IL town 10.6% · U.S. 8.4%A+National Register6 listings, 6.6 per 10,000 residents · typical IL town 0.5 · U.S. 2.4A−
All U.S. towns we grade (21,289)Ahead of 83%
NewerOlder
Illinois towns of 2,500+ (768)Ahead of 80%

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 Riverside’s 6.6 sits above most of its state (79% of Illinois towns have fewer) while its 6 listings outnumber those of 72% of U.S. towns.

How sure. Graded on any two of the three inputs instead, the letter would range from B to A. The pre-1940 share is a Census survey estimate (±5.6 points). The founding year is the first post office, not a stated founding date; Wikidata’s 1875 falls in the same era, so the grade doesn’t depend on which one is used.

Founding year: the first post office (other dates in Quick answers). 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 Riverside’s past

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

On the map since 18918 editions of the USGS map, 1891 to 1993. Watch Riverside change.A National Historic Landmark6 places on the National Register, 4 of them National Historic Landmarks.Old housesHalf of Riverside’s homes were built before 1938.Famous sons and daughtersDana Rettke, Judy Baar Topinka and 6 more were born here.
★ What stands out · On the map

Riverside on the map, 1891 to 1993

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

Riverside on the 1891 USGS mapRiverside on the 1900 USGS mapRiverside on the 1928 USGS mapRiverside on the 1953 USGS mapRiverside on the 1963 USGS mapRiverside on the 1972 USGS mapRiverside on the 1980 USGS mapRiverside 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 Riverside.

On the National Register

6 historic places in Riverside

The country’s official list of buildings and places worth saving. 4 are National Historic Landmarks, the highest tier.

places listed
6
National Historic Landmarks
4
Riverside Landscape Architecture District
historic buildings protected
6
each building in a district counts
first listed
1969
Riverside Landscape Architecture District
Arcade BuildingBenda HouseRiverside Landscape Architecture District★Avery Coonley House★Haymarket Martyrs' Monument★F.F. Tomek House★
BuildingsDistrictsObjects★ landmark

Architectural styles listings

Prairie School2
Early Modern1
★ Landmark
Riverside Landscape Architecture DistrictDistrict
★ Landmark
Avery Coonley HousePrairie School
★ Landmark
Haymarket Martyrs' MonumentObject
★ Landmark
F.F. Tomek HouseEarly Modern
Arcade BuildingBuilding
Benda HouseBuilding

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

The story

How Riverside came to be

From Wikipedia’s history of Riverside.

Read it all →

Riverside is arguably the first planned suburb (as opposed to a stand-alone community) in the United States, designed in 1869 by Calvert Vaux and Frederick Law Olmsted. The village was incorporated in 1875. The Riverside Landscape Architecture District, an area bounded by 26th Street, Harlem and Ogden avenues, the Des Plaines River, and Golf Road, was designated a National Historic Landmark in 1970.

Text from Wikipedia, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0.

From the old history books

What they wrote about Riverside in 1884

Passages that mention Riverside, cut from the printed page as they were published.

The town of Riverside, as now constituted, was organized in lSTt>, the first action to this effect being taken at a meeting held September 24, 1870,011 a petition of the legal voters of Sections 25, 2U. 3.'> and 36, Township 39 north, Range 12 east. At this meeting it was asked that the above menti…
History of Cook County, Illinois. From the earliest period to the present time1884 · page 875Read the page →
Read the text

The town of Riverside, as now constituted, was organized in lSTt>, the first action to this effect being taken at a meeting held September 24, 1870,011 a petition of the legal voters of Sections 25, 2U. 3.'> and 36, Township 39 north, Range 12 east. At this meeting it was asked that the above mentioned sections be gut off as a separate township from the town of Prov iso, to Iw known as Riverside; the iiotitiou was granted

Text read by machine from the scan; it may contain errors.
mains to all parts of the village. This tower is V* feet high, ami from a balcony some ,0 feet from the ground, reached bv winding stairs within, a hue new of Riverside and its surroundings may be had. *n audition to the gas and water works buildings, the company had within the same time built and …
History of Cook County, Illinois. From the earliest period to the present time1884 · page 876Read the page →
Read the text

mains to all parts of the village. This tower is V* feet high, ami from a balcony some ,0 feet from the ground, reached bv winding stairs within, a hue new of Riverside and its surroundings may be had. *n audition to the gas and water works buildings, the company had within the same time built and wmiplcteu a handsome stone chapel (now the Presbyterian I hurt* of Riverside) at a cost of nearly $10,000, a neat and

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

Riverside, 1870 to 1999

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

  1. 19th century
  2. 1870Post officeThe Riverside post office opens
  3. 1891On the mapFirst mapped by the U.S. Geological Survey
  4. 20th century
  5. 1908Born hereRobert McClory is born here
  6. 1910In the archiveWohnhaus für Herrn Coonley
  7. 1935Born hereEdward J. Nell is born here
  8. 1944Born hereJudy Baar Topinka is born here
  9. 1967In the archiveCB&Q Nebraska Zephyr & Kansas City Zephyr @ Riverside, IL-2
  10. 1970LandmarkRiverside Landscape Architecture District named a National Historic Landmark
  11. 1970LandmarkAvery Coonley House named a National Historic Landmark
  12. 1981In the archiveGundling Beulah - Claire de Lune - 04 1981 - Midwest Aquatic Art Symposium at Riverside-B…
  13. 1997LandmarkHaymarket Martyrs' Monument named a National Historic Landmark
  14. 1999Born hereDana Rettke is born here
  15. 1999LandmarkF.F. Tomek House named a National Historic Landmark
By decade

Riverside, decade by decade

3 decades in the archive, from the 1910s to the 1980s. Scroll each row; tap a photo for its story.

1910s5 items
Wohnhaus für Herrn Coonley1910Wohnhaus für Herrn CoonleyWohnzimmer für Herrn Coonley1910Wohnzimmer für Herrn CoonleyWohnhaus im Vorort für Tomek1910Wohnhaus im Vorort für TomekLandhaus für Avery Coonley1910Landhaus für Avery CoonleyArchitectural drawing for a theater ("playhouse") for Mr. and Mrs. Avery Coonley, 350 Fairbanks Road1911Architectural drawing for a theater ("playhouse") for…
1920s–1950snothing yet
Nothing in the archives for these yearsWeddings on Main Street, storms, parades, school pictures, the old store. If it’s in your family album, it belongs here.
Add from your album
1960s–1980s5 items
CB&Q Nebraska Zephyr & Kansas City Zephyr @ Riverside, IL-21967CB&Q Nebraska Zephyr & Kansas City Zephyr @ Riverside…CB&Q Nebraska Zephyr & Kansas City Zephyr @ Riverside, IL-31967CB&Q Nebraska Zephyr & Kansas City Zephyr @ Riverside…Gundling Beulah - Claire de Lune - 04 1981 - Midwest Aquatic Art Symposium at Riverside-Brookfield High School - Illino…1981Gundling Beulah - Claire de Lune - 04 1981 - Midwest …Airslide Hopper, C&O1987Airslide Hopper, C&OAirslide Hopper, Corn Products Co1987Airslide Hopper, Corn Products Co
1990snothing yet
Nothing in the archives for these yearsWeddings on Main Street, storms, parades, school pictures, the old store. If it’s in your family album, it belongs here.
Add from your album
Today17 recent
Riverside Brookfield High School in Illinois, US2026Riverside Brookfield High School in Illinois, USNational Grove Woods 22018National Grove Woods 2National Grove - South 22018National Grove - South 2BNSF 6528 at Harlem Avenue2018BNSF 6528 at Harlem AvenueBNSF 19912018BNSF 1991A Burlington Northern Dinkey (commuter train) at Riverside, IL in November 19812017A Burlington Northern Dinkey (commuter train) at Rive…19990103 04 Scottswood Rd201519990103 04 Scottswood Rd19990103 02 Loncommon Rd201519990103 02 Loncommon RdUnited Methodist Church - La Iglesia Metodista Unida2013United Methodist Church - La Iglesia Metodista UnidaRiverside, Illinois2013Riverside, IllinoisUntitled photo2013Untitled photoDowntown2012DowntownGreetings from Riverside, Illinois - Large Letter Postcard2012Greetings from Riverside, Illinois - Large Letter Pos…DocumentBoxcar, Great Northern2011Boxcar, Great NorthernBoxcar, Great Northern2011Boxcar, Great NorthernDowntown Riverside Illinois - 20072007Downtown Riverside Illinois - 2007Riverside Presbyterian Church2003Riverside Presbyterian Church
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.

Wohnhaus für Herrn Coonley
Retake this viewWohnhaus für Herrn Coonley, 1910

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

Retake this view · +15
People over time

Riverside, census by census

02,0004,0006,0008,00010,0001900192019401960198020002020Peak: 10,357

Between 1,551 and 10,357 people in every census since 1900.

13 censuses, 1900–2020.

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

Famous people

8 famous people were born in Riverside

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

See all →
D
Dana RettkeAmerican volleyball player · b. 1999
Judy Baar TopinkaAmerican politician · b. 1944
Robert McCloryAmerican politician · b. 1908
E
Edward J. NellAmerican economist · b. 1935
Jean FennSinger · b. 1930
E
Eric RohmannAmerican children's illustrator and writer · b. 1957
Places that used to be

Places now gone

Riverside’s post office has been open since 1870.

Gone or out of use
First Church of Christ Scientistchurch

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

Help out

Finish Riverside’s story

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

Decades since 1900 with photos
00s10s20s30s40s50s60s70s80s90s
3 of 10 decades. The empty ones are waiting for someone’s album.
Retake an old viewWohnhaus für Herrn Coonley: 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.

Lyons2 historic placesARiverside Township5 historic placesA−North RiversideIts storyCLyons Township10 historic placesABrookfield1 historic placeB+

Questions about Riverside’s history

What year was Riverside founded?

The Riverside post office opened in 1870, the earliest record of the town by name (U.S. post office records). Wikidata gives 1875.

How does Riverside rank for history?

Riverside is more historic than 83% of U.S. towns, #158 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 Riverside?

6 listings, 4 of them National Historic Landmarks: 4 buildings, 1 historic district, the Riverside Landscape Architecture District,, and 1 object.

How old are the homes in Riverside?

62% of Riverside’s homes were built before 1940 (Census estimate, ±5.6 points), against a typical 11% for an Illinois town; the median home was built in 1938.

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).

From Wikimedia Commons (22), the Library of Congress (5), the National Register of Historic Places (6), Wikipedia, Wikidata and Wikipedia for famous people, U.S. Geological Survey historical maps, U.S. Census counts (via Wikipedia), 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.