Rock Falls’ post office opened in 1868, and 22% of its homes were built before 1940
More historic than 64% of U.S. towns · #299 of 768 in Illinois. What drives it
Its Register listing is the Col. Edward N. Kirk House. Its Register listing is the Col. Edward N. Kirk House. Below: maps from 1946 on and the census since 1870.
The Rock Falls post office opened in 1868, the earliest record of the town by name. Another post office, Coloma (1853), opened inside today’s city and later closed.
First census: 471 in 18702020 census: 8,789158 years
How historic is Rock Falls?
B
More historic than 64% of U.S. towns, on its age, its old homes and the National Register.
Founding year: the first Rock Falls post office (Blevins & Helbock, CC0).The full story ↓
History grade
What drives Rock Falls’ History grade
On its age, its old homes and the National Register, Rock Falls is more historic than 64% of U.S. towns, #299 of 768 in Illinois. Its share of homes from before 1940 holds the grade up; its age pulls it down.
B
HistoryA character grade: shown, never part of Rock Falls’ 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 Rock Falls’ 2.3 sits above most of its state (68% of Illinois towns have fewer) while its 2 historic buildings outnumber those of 60% 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 (±5.5 points). The founding year is the first post office, not a stated founding date.
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 Rock Falls’ past
Read from the archive, the National Register and the record. The page puts what stands out first.
Rock Falls was initially part of the Town of Sterling, created in 1838. In 1867, Augustus P. Smith purchased the rights to use the Rock River's hydroelectric power on the south bank, along with 65 acres of land on the river. Smith hired John Arey to survey the land, who soon platted the town in 1868. Rock Falls was incorporated into a village on January 26, 1869, and then incorporated into a city on April 16, 1889.
Passages that mention Rock Falls, cut from the printed page as they were published.
History of Whiteside county, Illinois, from its first settlement to the present time1877 · page 130Read the page →
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The population of Coloma township outside of the village of Rock Falls, in 1870, was 386, of which 334 were of native birth, and 51 of foreign birth. The estimated population of the township, outside of Rock Falls, in 1877, is 540.
Text read by machine from the scan; it may contain errors.
1877 history of whiteside county illinois1877 · page 130Read the page →
Read the text
The popwation of Coloma township outside of the village of Rock Falls, in 1870, was 386, of which 334 were of native birth, and 51 of foreign birth. The estimated population of the township, outside of Rock Falls, in 1877, is 540.
Text read by machine from the scan; it may contain errors.
1877 history of whiteside county illinois1877 · page 129Read the page →
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to raise a tax for paying the bounties to volunteers, by a vote of 24 to 5. In 1867 a new era dawned upon Coloma. A. P. Smith moved into the township, purchased lands, laid out the town of Rock Falls, built a race, and awakened a spirit of progress and improvement which has since built up a thriving village on this long neglected site. July 26, 1869, at a special town meeting it was voted to subscribe $50,000 to the capital stock of the Chicago & Rock River Railroad Co., by a vote of 123 to 4. "This year $80 was voted for township expenses, and J. A. Patterson, K. Woodford and L. H. Woodworth were
Text read by machine from the scan; it may contain errors.
History of Whiteside county, Illinois, from its first settlement to the present time1877 · page 426Read the page →
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The present officers of the Hydraulic Company are: Lorenzo Hapgood, President, and James M. Wallace, Secretary and Treasurer. ; The first bridge connecting Sterling and Rock Falls was erected in 1856-'57, but was washed away by a freshet soon after its completion. The present bridge was built in 1863 by the Sterling Bridge Company, at a cost of thirty thousand dollars. It is a toll bridge, and has been extensively used since its construction. In 1868 a part of the bridge was carried away, but the loss was soon replaced. The officers of this Company are: William L. Patterson,
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
Rock Falls, 1853 to 1980
Woven from the archive, old maps, post office records, the National Register and the people born here.
The Rock Falls post office opened in 1868, the earliest record of the town by name (U.S. post office records).
How does Rock Falls rank for history?
Rock Falls is more historic than 64% of U.S. towns, #299 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 Rock Falls?
One place: the Col. Edward N. Kirk House (listed 1980).
How old are the homes in Rock Falls?
22% of Rock Falls’ homes were built before 1940 (Census estimate, ±5.5 points), against a typical 11% for an Illinois town; the median home was built in 1961.
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 (4), the National Register of Historic Places (1), 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.
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