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History · Thompson Township

Thompson Township dates to 1852, and 12% of its homes were built before 1940

1852founded
0on the National Register
12%homes built before 1940
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Quick answers

How Thompson Township began

When was Thompson Township founded?

1852

Thompson Township dates its founding to 1852 (Wikidata). Its post office opened in 1847.

2020 census: 832174 years
Founding year: Wikidata. First post office: 1847.

What stands out about Thompson 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 Thompson Township are in the public archives yet. The rest are in attics and albums.Lost villages3 post offices opened and closed inside today’s Thompson Township, and 2 old place names are still on the map.
★ What stands out · Help out

Start Thompson Township’s collection

The first neighbors to add old photos shape how Thompson 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, places now gone and burying grounds

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

Mount Summer
1847–1870
Houghton
1863–1883
Schapville
1883–1906
18401930today
Hamlets and corners on the map
Apple Canyon LakeSchapville
Gone or out of use
Apple Canyon Lake AirportairportErie SchoolschoolKeenan SchoolschoolMount Sumner SchoolschoolPleasant Ridge SchoolschoolSalem ChurchchurchSampson SchoolschoolSchultz QuarrymineThompson Center SchoolschoolUnion Schoolschool
1cemetery inside Thompson Township
Thompson

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

The story so far

Thompson Township, in brief

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

Thompson Township is one of 23 townships in Jo Daviess County, Illinois, United States. As of the 2020 census, its population was 832 and it contained 1,053 housing units.

Thompson Township was established in 1852. Its population held steady between the last two censuses: 841 in 2010, 832 in 2020.

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

Timeline

Thompson Township, 1847 to 1906

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

  1. 19th century
  2. 1847Post officeThe Mount Summer post office opens
  3. 1852
    FoundingThompson Township is established
  4. 1863Post officeThe Houghton post office opens
  5. 1870Post officeThe Mount Summer post office closes
  6. 1883Post officeThe Houghton post office closes
  7. 1883Post officeThe Schapville post office opens
  8. 20th century
  9. 1906Post officeThe Schapville post office closes
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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Famous people

Famous people close to Thompson Township

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

See all →
G
George Safford ParkerAmerican businessman · b. 1863
William WarnerAmerican politician, Missouri · b. 1840
Abner DalrympleAmerican baseball player · b. 1857
John C. McKenzieAmerican politician · b. 1860
Leo E. AllenAmerican politician · b. 1898
Bill HellerAmerican politician · b. 1935
Stories next door

History across the town line

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

Rush Township2 historic placesnot graded: under 1,000 residents or part of its townGuilford TownshipIts storyC−Woodbine Township1 historic placenot graded: under 1,000 residents or part of its townApple River Township1 historic placenot graded: under 1,000 residents or part of its town

Questions about Thompson Township’s history

What year was Thompson Township founded?

In 1852, according to Wikidata. Thompson Township’s post office opened in 1847.

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 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.