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History · Chestnut

Chestnut’s history is
mostly unwritten

The public archives hold no old photos of Chestnut. 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

Chestnut Township is one of twenty-one townships in Knox County, Illinois, United States. As of the 2020 census, its population was 216 and it contained 117 housing units.

Between the 2010 and 2020 censuses its population fell from 253 to 216 (-15%). Half of its homes were built before 1938.

Wikipedia doesn’t have a history of Chestnut 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 Chestnut’s collection

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

0 of 10 decades since 1900 have photos 📦Share a family photoSign in to add one+10
Famous people from ChestnutWriters, athletes, leaders and more who were born in Chestnut.Meet them →
By decade

Chestnut, 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 Chestnut is on the National Register yet

That’s true of most small towns. It doesn’t mean Chestnut has no history, only that no one has written up a nomination. The closest listed place is London Mills Bridge in London Mills, 3.5 miles away.

Chestnut and the nearest listed places

Dashed line = Chestnut. Tap a dot.
London Mills BridgeIndian Ford BridgeOdd Fellows Opera BlockKnox County Courthouse and Hall of RecordsKnox County JailWalnut Grove Farm

Closest to Chestnut

London Mills BridgeLondon Mills · Structure3.5miIndian Ford BridgeYoung Hickory · Structure4.7miOdd Fellows Opera BlockEllisville · Building9.1miKnox County Courthouse and Hall of RecordsKnoxville · Building10.4miKnox County JailKnoxville · Building10.4mi

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. London Mills Bridge’s page links to a real one.
Know an old place in Chestnut?A mill, a schoolhouse, a cellar hole, a church: add a photo of it to Chestnut’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
📜 London Mills📜 Maquon📜 Indian Point📜 Orange
The coffee’s on

Where to, neighbor?

You’re in Chestnut, ILKnox CountyView boundary

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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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