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C−History
History · St. Clair Township

St. Clair Township dates to 1885

More historic than 20% of U.S. towns · #631 of 768 in Illinois. What drives it

Most of St. Clair Township was built recently: 4% of its homes predate 1940 and the median home dates from 1988. Below: 4 old photos and papers and maps from 1907 on.

1885founded
0on the National Register
4%homes built before 1940
4old photos & papers
Add an old photoShare a memory
From St. Clair Township’s archive · credits on each photo
Quick answers

How St. Clair Township began

When was St. Clair Township founded?

1885

St. Clair Township dates its founding to 1885 (Wikidata). Its post office opened in 1809.

2020 census: 35,758141 years

How historic is St. Clair Township?

C−

More historic than 20% of U.S. towns, on its age, its old homes and the National Register.

What drives the grade ↓
Founding year: Wikidata. First post office: 1809.
History grade

What drives St. Clair Township’s History grade

On its age, its old homes and the National Register, St. Clair Township is more historic than 20% of U.S. towns, #631 of 768 in Illinois. Its age holds the grade up; its National Register listings pull it down.

C−
HistoryA character grade: shown, never part of St. Clair Township’s overall grade.
Founding era1885, from Wikidata: founded 1850–1899, an older era than 37% of U.S. townsC+Homes built before 19403.9% of homes (±1.1) · typical IL town 10.6% · U.S. 8.4%CNational RegisterNo listings counted · typical IL town 0.5 per 10,000 · U.S. 2.4C
All U.S. towns we grade (21,289)Ahead of 20%
NewerOlder
Illinois towns of 2,500+ (768)Ahead of 18%

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 St. Clair Township’s 0.0 sits below most of its state (28% of Illinois towns have fewer) while its 0 listings outnumber those of 23% of U.S. towns.

NoteThe founding year comes from Wikidata alone; no second source gives 1885.
How sure. Graded on any two of the three inputs instead, the letter would still be C−. The pre-1940 share (±1.1 points) is firm at this size.

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 St. Clair 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 writtenOnly 4 old photos are in the public archives. The rest are in attics and albums.On the map since 19077 editions of the USGS map, 1907 to 1991. Watch St. Clair Township change.Lost villages1 post office opened and closed inside today’s St. Clair Township, and 3 old place names are still on the map.
★ What stands out · Help out

Start St. Clair Township’s collection

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

Decades since 1900 with photos
00s10s20s30s40s50s60s70s80s90s
0 of 10 decades. The empty ones are waiting for someone’s album.
Date a photo4 archive items have no date. Guess the decade.+2Retake an old viewKiel Farmstead, Privy, East side State …: stand where they stood+15Share a family photoSign in to add one+10
On the map

St. Clair Township on the map, 1907 to 1991

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

St. Clair Township on the 1907 USGS mapSt. Clair Township on the 1937 USGS mapSt. Clair Township on the 1954 USGS mapSt. Clair Township on the 1968 USGS mapSt. Clair Township on the 1974 USGS mapSt. Clair Township on the 1982 USGS mapSt. Clair Township on the 1991 USGS map1907Belleville 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 St. Clair Township.

Places that used to be

Lost post offices, old corners and burying grounds

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

Hamlets and corners on the map
Avery HillDutch HollowMiller
4cemeteries and burying grounds inside St. Clair Township
Green MountRiderValhallaWhiteside

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

The story so far

St. Clair Township, in brief

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

St. Clair Township is located in St. Clair County, Illinois. As of the 2010 census, its population was 35,498 and it contained 15,366 housing units. St. Clair Township formed from a portion of Belleville Township on October 5, 1885.

St. Clair Township was established in 1885. Its population held steady between the last two censuses: 35,498 in 2010, 35,758 in 2020.

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

Timeline

St. Clair Township, 1885 to 1907

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

  1. 19th century
  2. 1885
    FoundingSt. Clair Township is established
  3. 1887Post officeThe Stockey post office opens
  4. 1896Post officeThe Stockey post office closes
  5. 20th century
  6. 1907On the mapFirst mapped by the U.S. Geological Survey
By decade

St. Clair Township, decade by decade

Date unknown4 to date
Kiel Farmstead, Privy, East side State Route 4, one half mile south of U.S. Route 64, MascoutahDate?Kiel Farmstead, Privy, East side State Route 4, one h…Kiel Farmstead, House, East side State Route 4, one half mile south of U.S. Route 64, MascoutahDate?Kiel Farmstead, House, East side State Route 4, one h…Kiel Farmstead, Summer Kitchen & Smokehouse, East side State Route 4, one half mile south of U.S. Route 64, MascoutahDate?Kiel Farmstead, Summer Kitchen & Smokehouse, East sid…Griffen House, New Baden, Clinton County, ILDate?Griffen House, New Baden, Clinton County, IL
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.

Kiel Farmstead, Privy, East side State Route 4, one half mile south of U.S. Route 64, Mascoutah
Retake this viewKiel Farmstead, Privy, East side State Route 4, one half mile south of U.S. Route 64, Mascoutah

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

Retake this view · +15
Stories next door

History across the town line

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

Belleville6 historic placesA+SwanseaIts storyC−Stookey TownshipIts storyC−Caseyville TownshipIts storyC−Smithton TownshipIts storynot graded: under 1,000 residents or part of its townShiloh Valley Township1 historic placeBShilohIts storyC−O'Fallon1 historic placeC+Fairview HeightsIts storyC−

Questions about St. Clair Township’s history

What year was St. Clair Township founded?

In 1885, according to Wikidata. St. Clair Township’s post office opened in 1809.

How does St. Clair Township rank for history?

St. Clair Township is more historic than 20% of U.S. towns, #631 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.

How old are the homes in St. Clair Township?

4% of St. Clair Township’s homes were built before 1940 (Census estimate, ±1.1 points), against a typical 11% for an Illinois town; the median home was built in 1988.

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 Library of Congress (4), 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.