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C+History
History · Somerset Township

Somerset Township dates to 1884, and 1 of its places is on the National Register

More historic than 40% of U.S. towns · #467 of 768 in Illinois. What drives it

Most of Somerset Township was built recently: 6% of its homes predate 1940 and the median home dates from 1974. Its Register listing is the Grange Hall. Below: maps from 1910 on and the census since 2000.

1884founded
1on the National Register
6%homes built before 1940
Add an old photoShare a memory
Quick answers

How Somerset Township began

When was Somerset Township founded?

1884

Somerset Township dates its founding to 1884 (Wikidata). The census first counted it in 2000.

First census: 4,152 in 20002020 census: 3,934142 years

How historic is Somerset Township?

C+

More historic than 40% of U.S. towns, on its age, its old homes and the National Register.

What drives the grade ↓
Founding year: Wikidata. First post office: 1883.
History grade

What drives Somerset Township’s History grade

On its age, its old homes and the National Register, Somerset Township is more historic than 40% of U.S. towns, #467 of 768 in Illinois. Its National Register listings hold the grade up; its share of homes from before 1940 pulls it down.

C+
HistoryA character grade: shown, never part of Somerset Township’s overall grade.
Founding era1884, from Wikidata: founded 1850–1899, an older era than 37% of U.S. townsC+Homes built before 19405.9% of homes (±3.1) · typical IL town 10.6% · U.S. 8.4%CNational Register1 listing, 2.5 per 10,000 residents · typical IL town 0.5 · U.S. 2.4B
All U.S. towns we grade (21,289)Ahead of 40%
NewerOlder
Illinois towns of 2,500+ (768)Ahead of 39%

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 Somerset Township’s 2.5 sits above most of its state (68% of Illinois towns have fewer) while its 1 listings outnumber those of 51% of U.S. towns.

NoteThe founding year comes from Wikidata alone; no second source gives 1884.
How sure. Graded on any two of the three inputs instead, the letter would range from C to B−. The pre-1940 share is a Census survey estimate (±3.1 points).

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 Somerset 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 Somerset Township are in the public archives yet. The rest are in attics and albums.Lost villages2 post offices opened and closed inside today’s Somerset Township, and 2 old place names are still on the map.On the map since 19104 editions of the USGS map, 1910 to 1978. Watch Somerset Township change.
★ What stands out · Help out

Start Somerset Township’s collection

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

Decades since 1900 with photos
00s10s20s30s40s50s60s70s80s90s
0 of 10 decades. The empty ones are waiting for someone’s album.
Share a family photoSign in to add one+10
Places that used to be

Lost post offices, old corners and burying grounds

Two other post offices opened and closed inside today’s town.

Finney
1883–1898
Grangehall
1894–1899
18801950today
Hamlets and corners on the map
Grange HallHarrison
4cemeteries and burying grounds inside Somerset Township
BoucherImmanuel LutheranRipleyZion Lutheran

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

On the map

Somerset Township on the map, 1910 to 1978

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

Somerset Township on the 1910 USGS mapSomerset Township on the 1938 USGS mapSomerset Township on the 1968 USGS mapSomerset Township on the 1978 USGS map1910Murphysboro 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 Somerset Township.

The story so far

Somerset Township, in brief

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

Somerset Township is one of sixteen townships in Jackson County, Illinois, USA. As of the 2020 census, its population was 3,934 and it contained 1,861 housing units.

Somerset Township was established in 1884. Between the 2010 and 2020 censuses its population fell from 4,205 to 3,934 (-6%).

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

Timeline

Somerset Township, 1883 to 1910

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

  1. 19th century
  2. 1883Post officeThe Finney post office opens
  3. 1884
    FoundingSomerset Township is established
  4. 1894Post officeThe Grangehall post office opens
  5. 1898Post officeThe Finney post office closes
  6. 1899Post officeThe Grangehall post office closes
  7. 20th century
  8. 1910On the mapFirst mapped by the U.S. Geological Survey
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.
Add from your album
On the National Register

1 historic place in Somerset Township

The country’s official list of buildings and places worth saving.

place listed
1
National Historic Landmarks
0
none yet
historic buildings protected
1
each building in a district counts
first listed
1990
Grange Hall
Grange Hall
Buildings

Architectural styles listings

Late 19th and Early 20th Century American Movement1
Commercial Style1
Grange HallLate 19th and Early 20th Century American Movement

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

People over time

Somerset Township, census by census

05001,0001,5002,0002,5003,0003,5004,0004,50020002020Peak: 4,205

Between 3,934 and 4,205 people in every census since 2000.

3 censuses, 2000–2020.

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

Famous people

Famous people close to Somerset Township

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

See all →
Laurie MetcalfAmerican actress · b. 1955
P
Paul GilbertAmerican guitarist · b. 1966
Agnes AyresAmerican actress · b. 1891
Ben FalconeAmerican actor, comedian, screenwriter and prod… · b. 1973
K
Ken SwoffordAmerican actor · b. 1933
John A. LoganAmerican soldier and politician · b. 1826
Stories next door

History across the town line

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

Levan TownshipIts storynot graded: under 1,000 residents or part of its townMurphysboro Township10 historic placesADe Soto TownshipIts storyCVergennes TownshipIts storynot graded: under 1,000 residents or part of its town

Questions about Somerset Township’s history

What year was Somerset Township founded?

In 1884, according to Wikidata. Somerset Township’s post office opened in 1883, and the census of 2000 counted 4,152 people here.

How does Somerset Township rank for history?

Somerset Township is more historic than 40% of U.S. towns, #467 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 Somerset Township?

One place: the Grange Hall (listed 1990).

How old are the homes in Somerset Township?

6% of Somerset Township’s homes were built before 1940 (Census estimate, ±3.1 points), against a typical 11% for an Illinois town; the median home was built in 1974.

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 the National Register of Historic Places (1), U.S. Geological Survey historical maps, U.S. Census counts (via Wikipedia), the US Post Offices dataset (Blevins & Helbock) 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.