Rochester Township dates to 1819, and 1 of its places is on the National Register
More historic than 72% of U.S. towns · #253 of 768 in Illinois. What drives it
Most of Rochester Township was built recently: 5% of its homes predate 1940 and the median home dates from 1985. Its Register listing is the Taft Farmstead. Below: maps from 1961 on and the census since 1880.
Founding year: Wikidata; Wikipedia’s history section gives the same year. First post office: 1834.
History grade
What drives Rochester Township’s History grade
On its age, its old homes and the National Register, Rochester Township is more historic than 72% of U.S. towns, #253 of 768 in Illinois. Its National Register listings hold the grade up; its share of homes from before 1940 pulls it down.
B+
HistoryA character grade: shown, never part of Rochester 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 Rochester Township’s 18.1 sits above most of its state (86% of Illinois towns have fewer) while its 10 historic buildings outnumber those of 76% 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 (±3.0 points). Two sources give 1819.
Founding year: Wikidata (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 Rochester 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 Rochester Township yet. The photos, dates and memories neighbors add here are how it gets written.
Rochester is a village and suburb of Springfield in Sangamon County, Illinois, United States. As of the 2020 census, Rochester had a population of 3,863. The village was settled in 1819, and is located in Rochester Township. Rochester is part of the Springfield, Illinois Metropolitan Statistical Area.
Rochester Township was established in 1819. Between the 2010 and 2020 censuses its population grew from 5,361 to 5,530 (+3%).
Intro from Wikipedia. Population: U.S. Census Bureau.
From the old history books
What they wrote about Rochester Township in 1912
Passages that mention Rochester Township, cut from the printed page as they were published.
Historical Encyclopedia of Illinois and history of Sangamon County1912 · page 1360Read the page →
Read the text
The father, who was a brickmaker by trade, came to Illinois at an early day, settling in Rochester Township. At first he conducted a grist mill, but later engaged in the manufacture of brick. For eighteen years he continued in this business, and supplied the material for many of the older structures now standing in Springfield. Retiring from active business, he
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.
Every edition of the U.S. Geological Survey’s map of Rochester Township. Tap a year, or press play to watch the town change.
1961New City 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 Rochester Township.
On the National Register
1 historic place in Rochester Township
The country’s official list of buildings and places worth saving.
In 1819, according to Wikidata and Wikipedia’s history of the town. Rochester Township’s post office opened in 1834, and the census of 1880 counted 307 people here.
How does Rochester Township rank for history?
Rochester Township is more historic than 72% of U.S. towns, #253 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 Rochester Township?
One place: the Taft Farmstead (listed 1980).
How old are the homes in Rochester Township?
5% of Rochester Township’s homes were built before 1940 (Census estimate, ±3.0 points), against a typical 11% for an Illinois town; the median home was built in 1985.
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 (1), Wikidata (1), the National Register of Historic Places (1), U.S. Geological Survey historical maps, U.S. Census counts (via Wikipedia), 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.
2014
