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History · Brooklyn

Brooklyn’s history is
mostly unwritten

The public archives hold no old photos of Brooklyn. The rest are in attics, shoeboxes and the historical society. Help start the collection.

0old images & papers
0recent photos

The story so far

from Wikipedia & the U.S. Census

Brooklyn Township is one of twenty-two townships in Lee County, Illinois, USA. As of the 2020 census, its population was 691 and it contained 336 housing units. In September 1858, Reynolds Township was formed from part of Brooklyn Township.

Between the 2010 and 2020 censuses its population fell from 793 to 691 (-13%). Half of its homes were built before 1938.

Wikipedia doesn’t have a history of Brooklyn yet — the old photos, dates and memories neighbors add here are how it gets written.

Intro from Wikipedia, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0. Population and housing: U.S. Census Bureau.

Be one of the first

Start Brooklyn’s collection

The first neighbors to add old photos shape how Brooklyn’s history is told.

0 of 10 decades since 1900 have photos 📦Share a family photoSign in to add one+10

Famous people close to Brooklyn

See all 17 →
Wild Bill HickokWild Bill HickokTroy Grove · 13 miJohn Joseph MyersJohn Joseph MyersEarlville · 11 miGary K. WolfGary K. WolfEarlville · 11 miBelle JohnsonBelle JohnsonMendota · 7 miBill BrownBill BrownMendota · 7 miHelen E. HokinsonHelen E. HokinsonMendota · 7 mi
By decade

Brooklyn, decade by decade

Before
2000
No old photos in the archives yetWeddings on Main Street, storms, parades, school pictures, the old store. If it’s in your family album, it belongs here.
📷 Add from your album
National Register of Historic Places

Nothing in Brooklyn is on the National Register yet

That’s true of most small towns. It doesn’t mean Brooklyn has no history, only that no one has written up a nomination. The closest listed place is Stephen Wright House in Wyoming, 6.4 miles away.

Brooklyn and the nearest listed places

Dashed line = Brooklyn. Tap a dot.
Stephen Wright HouseValencia Court ApartmentsRollo Congregational United Church of ChristAmboy Illinois Central DepotNisbet Homestead FarmWood-Tellkamp House

Closest to Brooklyn

Stephen Wright HouseWyoming · Queen Anne6.4miValencia Court ApartmentsViola · Spanish Revival8.6miRollo Congregational United Church of ChristPaw Paw · Building11.4miAmboy Illinois Central DepotAmboy · Built 187611.8miNisbet Homestead FarmPaw Paw · Greek Revival12.7mi

How a place gets listed

1Talk to the stateEvery nomination goes through the State Historic Preservation Office. Owners, towns and historical societies can start one.
2Try a local or state list firstMany states keep their own register with a shorter form, a common first step for old barns, halls and schoolhouses.
3Write it upA nomination covers the history, photos and a map. Stephen Wright House’s page links to a real one.
Know an old place in Brooklyn?A mill, a schoolhouse, a cellar hole, a church: add a photo of it to Brooklyn’s story, or a memory of it.
📷 Add a photo of an old place
National Park Service, National Register of Historic Places · photos from Wikimedia Commons

Then & now

When neighbors add old photos, retakes from the same spot appear here side by side.

Stories next door

nearby towns’ history
📜 Compton📜 West Brooklyn📜 Wyoming📜 Viola
The coffee’s on

Where to, neighbor?

You’re in Brooklyn, ILLee CountyView boundary

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Brooklyn is your selected town. The feed includes posts assigned to this town, not a distance radius or ZIP code.

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Boundary source: https://tigerweb.geo.census.gov/arcgis/rest/services/TIGERweb/Places_CouSub_ConCity_SubMCD/MapServer/15 · 2025-01-01
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