Guest, Sign inJoin

Post to Wyanet

We’ll email a one-tap link to publish your post. No password, and nothing is public until you click it.
Already a member? Sign in
–Not graded
History · Wyanet

Wyanet’s post office opened in 1855, and 28% of its homes were built before 1940

1855first post office
0on the National Register
28%homes built before 1940
1famous people
Add an old photoShare a memory
Photo: David Wilson from Oak Park, Illinois, USA · CC BY 2.0
Quick answers

How Wyanet began

When was Wyanet founded?

1855

The Wyanet post office opened in 1855, the earliest record of the town by name.

2020 census: 886171 years
Founding year: the first Wyanet post office (Blevins & Helbock, CC0).The full story ↓

What stands out about Wyanet’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 Wyanet are in the public archives yet. The rest are in attics and albums.Old housesHalf of Wyanet’s homes were built before 1964.
★ What stands out · Help out

Start Wyanet’s collection

The first neighbors to add old photos shape how Wyanet’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

How Wyanet came to be

From Wikipedia’s history of Wyanet.

Read it all →

Wyanet's history dates back to 1821; it was officially plated in 1854 and incorporated in 1857. The community has had several names since its beginning. In 1821 the settlement was first called "Center". Named by Bulbona an Indian trader. In 1837 the Village officially started to sprout its roots due to the area known as "Pond Creek". Named for the Creek at the South edge of town where Ellis Mercer built a saw mill and Amos Leonard built the first flour mill. The first railroad, the Chicago Rock Island & Pacific was built here in 1853. At this time the name was changed to "Kingston" in honor of the land donors Henry and Mary King. The Chicago, Burlington, Quincy Railroad gave the Village its current name, Wyanet, when they completed their rail line in 1855.

Text from Wikipedia, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0.

By decade

Wyanet, decade by decade

Today6 recent
E Main 2019-04-01 16562019E Main 2019-04-01 1656E Main 2019-04-01 16552019E Main 2019-04-01 1655Brick Details 2019-04-01 16502019Brick Details 2019-04-01 1650Brick Bldg 2019-04-01 16492019Brick Bldg 2019-04-01 1649Wyanet, Illinois2016Wyanet, Illinois20140119 32 Winter in Bureau County201420140119 32 Winter in Bureau County

Questions about Wyanet’s history

What year was Wyanet founded?

The Wyanet post office opened in 1855, 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 →
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). How TownRatings grades history →

From Wikimedia Commons (6), Wikipedia, Wikidata and Wikipedia for famous people, 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.