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History · Sibley

Sibley dates to 1877, and 33% of its homes were built before 1940

Below: 1 old photo or paper, maps from 1899 on, and the census since 1890.

1877founded
0on the National Register
33%homes built before 1940
1old photo or paper
Add an old photoShare a memory
From Sibley’s archive · credits on each photo
Quick answers

How Sibley began

When was Sibley founded?

1877

Sibley dates its founding to 1877 (Wikidata). The census first counted it in 1890.

First census: 404 in 18902020 census: 288149 years
Founding year: Wikidata. First post office: 1873.The full story ↓

What stands out about Sibley’s past

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

A history waiting to be writtenOnly 1 old photo is in the public archives. The rest are in attics and albums.Mapped building by building3 fire insurance maps, 1899 to 1914, drew every building in Sibley.Old housesHalf of Sibley’s homes were built before 1957.
★ What stands out · Help out

Start Sibley’s collection

The first neighbors to add old photos shape how Sibley’s history is told.

Decades since 1900 with photos
00s10s20s30s40s50s60s70s80s90s
1 of 10 decades. The empty ones are waiting for someone’s album.
Retake an old viewSteam threshing machines [i.e. traction…: stand where they stood+15Share a family photoSign in to add one+10
Every building

Sibley, building by building, 1899–1914

Fire insurance maps drew every building, what it was made of and what it was used for, so insurers could price the risk of fire. Pick a year, then a sheet.

Sibley fire insurance map, 1899, sheet 11899Sheet 1 of 1
Edition
Sheets
BrickWoodStone

Sanborn Map Company, via the Library of Congress. Editions published in 1930 or earlier, which are in the public domain.

The story

How Sibley came to be

From Wikipedia’s history of Sibley.

Read it all →

The site of Sibley was laid out for Michael L. Sullivant, the namesake of Sullivant Township, in 1877. Sullivant sold the land to Hiram Sibley in 1878. The post office was established in 1873 under the name Burr Oaks, but was renamed Sibley in 1880.

Sibley was once cited on Ripley's Believe It or Not! as the home of the largest corn crib in the World with a capacity of 125,000 bushels. However, it was demolished in 1965.

Text from Wikipedia, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0.

From the old history books

What they wrote about Sibley in 1908

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

Wabash, St. Louis & Pacific Railroad. The original town of Burr Oaks was surveyed and laid out by John R. Lewis, in February, 1877, for ]M. L. Sullivant, in the northwest quarter of section 32. In 1880. Sibley's addition was laid off, and the name changed to Sibley to conform with the I'ailroad sta…
History of Ford County, Illinois1908 · page 194Read the page →
Read the text

Wabash, St. Louis & Pacific Railroad. The original town of Burr Oaks was surveyed and laid out by John R. Lewis, in February, 1877, for ]M. L. Sullivant, in the northwest quarter of section 32. In 1880. Sibley's addition was laid off, and the name changed to Sibley to conform with the I'ailroad station and llie postoffice. But few buildings had been erected here previous to 1878. when iNIr. Si])ley organized a system of improvt'ments, and a nuiiiher of dwelling houses were erected, a hotel, the largest and best iu the county at that time, a large seed barn, flax mill, stores, offices and numerous other buildings. A large

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

Sibley, 1873 to 1947

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

  1. 19th century
  2. 1873Post officeThe Burr Oaks post office opens
  3. 1877
    FoundingSibley is established
  4. 1880Post officeThe Burr Oaks post office closes
  5. 1880Post officeThe Sibley post office opens
  6. 20th century
  7. 1936In the archiveSteam threshing machines [i.e. traction engines]. Sibley, Illinois
  8. 1947On the mapFirst mapped by the U.S. Geological Survey
By decade

Sibley, decade by decade

One decade in the archive so far: the 1930s. Scroll each row; tap a photo for its story.

1930s1 item
Steam threshing machines [i.e. traction engines]. Sibley, Illinois1936Steam threshing machines [i.e. traction engines]. Sib…
1940s–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
Today1 recent
Sibley, Illinois2020Sibley, Illinois
On the map

Sibley on the map, 1947 to 1986

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

Sibley on the 1947 USGS mapSibley on the 1986 USGS map1947Sibley 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 Sibley.

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.

Steam threshing machines [i.e. traction engines]. Sibley, Illinois
Retake this viewSteam threshing machines [i.e. traction engines]. Sibley, Illinois, 1936

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

Retake this view · +15
People over time

Sibley, census by census

01002003004001900192019401960198020002020Peak: 444

Between 272 and 444 people in every census since 1890.

14 censuses, 1890–2020.

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

Places that used to be

Lost post offices

Sibley’s post office has been open since 1880. Another post office, Burr Oaks, opened and closed inside today’s town.

Burr Oaks
1873–1880
Sibley
1880–today
18701950today

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

Questions about Sibley’s history

What year was Sibley founded?

In 1877, according to Wikidata. Sibley’s post office opened in 1873, and the census of 1890 counted 404 people here.

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 (1), the Library of Congress (1), Wikipedia, 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, Sanborn fire insurance maps (Library of Congress) 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.