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State Line elevatorPhoto: Huw Williams (Huwmanbeing) · Public domain
–Not graded
History · State Line City

State Line City dates to 1857, and 24% of its homes were built before 1940

Below: maps from 1899 on and the census since 1880.

1857founded
0on the National Register
24%homes built before 1940
1famous people
Add an old photoShare a memory
Photo: Huw Williams (Huwmanbeing) · Public domain
Quick answers

How State Line City began

When was State Line City founded?

1857

State Line City dates its founding to 1857 (Wikidata and Wikipedia’s history agree). The census first counted it in 1880.

First census: 268 in 18802020 census: 120169 years
Founding year: Wikidata; Wikipedia’s history section gives the same year. First post office: 1857.The full story ↓

What stands out about State Line City’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 State Line City are in the public archives yet. The rest are in attics and albums.On the map since 18995 editions of the USGS map, 1899 to 1978. Watch State Line City change.
★ What stands out · Help out

Start State Line City’s collection

The first neighbors to add old photos shape how State Line City’s history is told.

Decades since 1900 with photos
00s10s20s30s40s50s60s70s80s90s
0 of 10 decades. The empty ones are waiting for someone’s album.
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On the map

State Line City on the map, 1899 to 1978

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

State Line City on the 1899 USGS mapState Line City on the 1900 USGS mapState Line City on the 1950 USGS mapState Line City on the 1966 USGS mapState Line City on the 1978 USGS map1899Danville 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 State Line City.

The story

How State Line City came to be

From Wikipedia’s history of State Line City.

Read it all →

In the mid-1850s, two large railway lines converged on the Indiana-Illinois state line – the narrow-gauge Toledo, Wabash and Western Railway (later the Wabash Railroad), whose route from the east crossed Warren County and reached the state line in October 1856, and the standard-gauge Great Western Railroad, which shortly thereafter reached the state line from the west. State Line City was platted on June 29, 1857, by Robert Casement at the convergence of these two railroads. The city flourished, and within 10 years had reached a population of approximately 550, but because of the drinking and carousing of the numerous railroaders it gained an unsavory reputation.

Text from Wikipedia, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0.

Timeline

State Line City, 1857 to 1899

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

  1. 19th century
  2. 1857
    FoundingState Line City is established
  3. 1857Post officeThe State Line post office opens
  4. 1874Born hereAlbert Lee Stephens, Sr. is born here
  5. 1899On 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.

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People over time

State Line City, census by census

010020030018801900192019401960198020002020Peak: 268

Between 120 and 268 people in every census since 1880.

15 censuses, 1880–2020.

U.S. Census Bureau decennial counts, from the census table on State Line City’s Wikipedia page.

Places that used to be

Old corners

Old hamlets and crossroads still carry their names on the map.

Hamlets and corners on the map
State Line

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

Questions about State Line City’s history

What year was State Line City founded?

In 1857, according to Wikidata and Wikipedia’s history of the town. State Line City’s post office opened in 1857, and the census of 1880 counted 268 people here.

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 Wikipedia, Wikidata and Wikipedia for famous people, 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.