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History · Dresden Township

Dresden Township’s post office opened in 1888, and 56% of its homes were built before 1940

Below: maps from 1978 on and the census since 1930.

1888first post office
0on the National Register
56%homes built before 1940
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Quick answers

How Dresden Township began, and where its name came from

When was Dresden Township founded?

1888

The Dresden Township post office opened in 1888, the earliest record of the town by name.

First census: 231 in 19302020 census: 91138 years

How did Dresden Township get its name?

Dresden Township was named by German settlers after the city of Dresden, Germany.

Founding year: the first Dresden Township post office (Blevins & Helbock, CC0). Name: Wikipedia, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0.The full story ↓

What stands out about Dresden 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 Dresden Township are in the public archives yet. The rest are in attics and albums.Old housesHalf of Dresden Township’s homes were built before 1938.
★ What stands out · Help out

Start Dresden Township’s collection

The first neighbors to add old photos shape how Dresden Township’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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The story

How Dresden Township came to be

From Wikipedia’s history of Dresden Township.

Read it all →

Dresden was founded in 1888. It was named by German settlers after the city of Dresden, Germany.

The first post office in Dresden was established in October 1888.

Dresden was a station on the Chicago, Rock Island and Pacific Railroad.

Text from Wikipedia, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0.

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

Dresden Township on the map, 1978 to 1985

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

Dresden Township on the 1978 USGS mapDresden Township on the 1985 USGS map1978Dresden South sheet · 1:24,000

U.S. Geological Survey historical topographic maps (public domain), via Esri’s collection of the scans. The red ring marks the center of Dresden Township.

People over time

Dresden Township, census by census

010020019401960198020002020Peak: 231

Between 41 and 231 people in every census since 1930.

10 censuses, 1930–2020.

U.S. Census Bureau decennial counts, from the census table on Dresden Township’s Wikipedia page.

Places that used to be

Old corners and places now gone

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

Hamlets and corners on the map
Leoville
Gone or out of use
Meitl Airportairport

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

Stories next door

History across the town line

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

Prairie Dog TownshipIts storynot graded: under 1,000 residents or part of its townCuster TownshipIts storynot graded: under 1,000 residents or part of its townLyon TownshipIts storynot graded: under 1,000 residents or part of its town

Questions about Dresden Township’s history

What year was Dresden Township founded?

The Dresden Township post office opened in 1888, 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 →
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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, 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.