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History · South Ross Township

South Ross Township dates to 1927, and 50% of its homes were built before 1940

Below: maps from 1938 on.

1927founded
0on the National Register
50%homes built before 1940
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Quick answers

How South Ross Township began

When was South Ross Township founded?

1927

South Ross Township dates its founding to 1927 (Wikidata). Its post office opened in 1872.

2020 census: 1,00399 years
Founding year: Wikidata. First post office: 1872.

What stands out about South Ross 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 South Ross Township are in the public archives yet. The rest are in attics and albums.Old housesHalf of South Ross Township’s homes were built before 1942.Lost villages1 post office opened and closed inside today’s South Ross Township, and 3 old place names are still on the map.
★ What stands out · Help out

Start South Ross Township’s collection

The first neighbors to add old photos shape how South Ross 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
The story so far

South Ross Township, in brief

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

South Ross Township is a township in Vermilion County, Illinois, USA. As of the 2010 census, its population was 1,070 and it contained 445 housing units.

South Ross Township was established in 1927. Between the 2010 and 2020 censuses its population fell from 1,070 to 1,003 (-6%).

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

Places that used to be

Lost post offices, old corners, places now gone and burying grounds

Another post office, Rayville, opened and closed inside today’s town.

Hamlets and corners on the map
Barlow ParkRayvilleThomas
Gone or out of use
Albright SchoolschoolBrown SchoolschoolCentennial SchoolschoolCottage Grove SchoolschoolFrench SchoolschoolGreen SchoolschoolKnowleslocaleLee SchoolschoolLincoln SchoolschoolRickart SchoolschoolSumner Schoolschool
1cemetery inside South Ross Township
Gundy

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

Timeline

South Ross Township, 1882 to 1938

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

  1. 19th century
  2. 1882Post officeThe Rayville post office opens
  3. 1883Post officeThe Rayville post office closes
  4. 20th century
  5. 1927
    FoundingSouth Ross Township is established
  6. 1938On 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.
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On the map

South Ross Township on the map, 1938 to 1964

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

South Ross Township on the 1938 USGS mapSouth Ross Township on the 1964 USGS map1938Hoopeston 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 South Ross Township.

Famous people

Famous people close to South Ross Township

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

See all →
Ned LukeAmerican actor · b. 1958
Jerry Van DykeAmerican actor and comedian · b. 1931
Joseph R. TannerWelsh-American astronaut · b. 1950
Helen MorganAmerican jazz singer and actress · b. 1900
Morris AnkrumAmerican actor · b. 1896
J
Jewell YoungAmerican basketball player/coach · b. 1913
Stories next door

History across the town line

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

Ross TownshipIts storyB+Newell Township1 historic placeBMiddlefork TownshipIts storyBBlount TownshipIts storyC

Questions about South Ross Township’s history

What year was South Ross Township founded?

In 1927, according to Wikidata. South Ross Township’s post office opened in 1872.

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, 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.