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History · Smithton Township

Smithton Township’s post office opened in 1839, and 10% of its homes were built before 1940

Below: maps from 1912 on and the census since 1880.

1839first post office
0on the National Register
10%homes built before 1940
Add an old photoShare a memory
Quick answers

How Smithton Township began

When was Smithton Township founded?

1839

The Smithton Township post office opened in 1839, the earliest record of the town by name.

First census: 400 in 18802020 census: 4,174187 years
Founding year: the first Smithton Township post office (Blevins & Helbock, CC0).

What stands out about Smithton Township’s past

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

A history waiting to be writtenNo old photos of Smithton Township are in the public archives yet. The rest are in attics and albums.On the map since 19125 editions of the USGS map, 1912 to 1990. Watch Smithton Township change.Deep rootsA post office since 1839: 187 years of Smithton Township.
★ What stands out · Help out

Start Smithton Township’s collection

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

Decades since 1900 with photos
00s10s20s30s40s50s60s70s80s90s
0 of 10 decades. The empty ones are waiting for someone’s album.
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On the map

Smithton Township on the map, 1912 to 1990

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

Smithton Township on the 1912 USGS mapSmithton Township on the 1954 USGS mapSmithton Township on the 1968 USGS mapSmithton Township on the 1974 USGS mapSmithton Township on the 1990 USGS map1912New Athens 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 Smithton Township.

The story so far

Smithton Township, in brief

Wikipedia doesn’t have a history of Smithton Township yet. The photos, dates and memories neighbors add here are how it gets written.

Smithton is a village in St. Clair County, Illinois, United States. The population was 4,006 in the 2020 United States census. It is part of the Metro East region of Greater Saint Louis.

Its first post office opened in 1839. Between the 2010 and 2020 censuses its population fell from 4,275 to 4,174 (-2%).

Intro from Wikipedia. Population: U.S. Census Bureau.

By decade

No old photos in the archives yet

Weddings on Main Street, storms, parades, school pictures, the old store. If it’s in your family album, it belongs here.

Be the first to add onePhotograph a print flat, in daylight, no flash.
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People over time

Smithton Township, census by census

05001,0001,5002,0002,5003,0003,5004,000188019001920194019601980200020204,006

Grew from 400 people in 1880 to 4,006 in 2020, more than tenfold.

15 censuses, 1880–2020.

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

Famous people

Famous people close to Smithton Township

Nobody well known was born in Smithton Township itself, so here are the best known from just nearby.

See all →
William HoldenAmerican actor · b. 1918
Sandra MagnusAmerican astronaut · b. 1964
Buddy EbsenAmerican actor and dancer · b. 1908
Lea DeLariaAmerican actor, comedian and singer · b. 1958
J
John Carl BuechlerAmerican director · b. 1952
Reginald HudlinAmerican filmmaker · b. 1961
Places that used to be

Old corners, places now gone and burying grounds

Old hamlets and crossroads still carry their names on the map.

Hamlets and corners on the map
Wilderman
Gone or out of use
High Prairie SchoolschoolHolcomb SchoolschoolLou-Nash MinemineMorgan MinemineMount Pleasant SchoolschoolTurkey Hill SchoolschoolWest Prairie Schoolschool
4cemeteries and burying grounds inside Smithton Township
CarrHigh PrairieRittenhouseStein - Nagel

Places and cemeteries from the USGS Geographic Names Information System (2021).

Stories next door

History across the town line

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

Belleville6 historic placesA+FreeburgIts storyB−SmithtonIts storyC+Millstadt TownshipIts storyB−St. Clair TownshipIts storyC−Freeburg TownshipIts storynot graded: under 1,000 residents or part of its townPrairie Du Long TownshipIts storyC−

Questions about Smithton Township’s history

What year was Smithton Township founded?

The Smithton Township post office opened in 1839, 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 →
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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 U.S. Geological Survey historical maps, U.S. Census counts (via Wikipedia) and the USGS Geographic Names Information System. Archive images are copied here with their credits and licenses, shown on each photo’s page. Refreshed monthly.