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History · Dwight

A history of Dwight,
since 1854

Postcards, papers and photographs of Dwight from public archives, woven together by decade. Neighbors fill in the gaps.

1854established
12old images & papers
4historic places
5recent photos
From Dwight’s archive · credits on each photo

The story

from WikipediaRead it all ↗

Dwight was laid out on January 30, 1854, by Richard Price Morgan Jr. (1828–1910), James C. Spencer (1828 – after 1890), and John Lathrop (1809 – 1870). Each of these three men took a quarter of the land. All were working as engineers for the Chicago and Mississippi Railroad. The final quarter was jointly owned by two Bloomington brothers, Jesse W. Fell (1808 – 1878) and Kersey H. Fell (1815 – 1893). All five men had links to the railroad which was to open from Bloomington to Joliet in 1854.

FoundingEarly DwightOriginal design of DwightPrince Albert's visitGrowth of DwightJune 2010 tornadoesJune 2026 tornado

Text from Wikipedia, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0.

Timeline

built from the dates on the items below
1854Established
18801940 Census Enumeration District Maps - Illinoi…Commons
1893First state convention, Women's Au[xilliary?] K…LOC
1900s9 items · Station at Dwight, IllLOC
c. 1915John R. Oughton House, Dwight, IL - c. 1915Commons
1920–1999Nothing yet. Family albums go here.
Help out

Finish Dwight’s story

Most archives stop around 1920. The photos from after that are in family albums, not libraries.

2 of 10 decades since 1900 have photos 🔁Retake an old view1940 Census Enumeration District …, 1880: stand where they stood+15 📦Share a family photoSign in to add one+10

Famous people from Dwight

See all 6 →
Franklin Sumner EarleFranklin Sumner EarleScience & MedicineFrank Leslie SmithFrank Leslie SmithPolitics & LawMabel TrunnelleMabel TrunnelleFilm, TV & StageJames G. StrongJames G. StrongPolitics & LawAntoinette FunkAntoinette FunkPolitics & LawDWDwight WilsonSports
By decade

Dwight, decade by decade

1880s1 item
1940 Census Enumeration District Maps - Illinois - Livingston County - Dwight - ED 53-11, ED 53-12, ED 53-13Commons1940 Census Enumeration District Maps - Illinois - Livingst…1880
1890s1 item
First state convention, Women's Au[xilliary?] Keeley League of Ill'sLOCFirst state convention, Women's Au[xilliary?] Keeley League…1893
1900s9 items
Station at Dwight, IllLOCStation at Dwight, Ill1900Water towerLOCWater tower1900The Oughton residenceLOCThe Oughton residence1900Doorway of the Keeley InstituteLOCDoorway of the Keeley Institute1900Livingston porchLOCLivingston porch1909Renfrew Park No. 3LOCRenfrew Park No. 31909Laboratory [The Leslie Keeley Co.]LOCLaboratory [The Leslie Keeley Co.]1909W. StLOCW. St1909P O BldgLOCP O Bldg1909
1910s1 item
John R. Oughton House, Dwight, IL - c. 1915CommonsJohn R. Oughton House, Dwight, IL - c. 1915c. 1915
1920s–
1990s
Nothing in the archives for these yearsWeddings on Main Street, storms, parades, school pictures, the old store. If it’s in your family album, it belongs here.
📷 Add from your album
Today5 photos
Dwight IL Keeley Building1CommonsDwight IL Keeley Building12007Dwight IL Java Stop1CommonsDwight IL Java Stop12007Dwight IL Downtown1CommonsDwight IL Downtown12007ILMap-doton-DwightCommonsILMap-doton-Dwight2006Dwight, IllinoisCommonsDwight, Illinois2006
National Register of Historic Places

4 historic places in Dwight

4 places in Dwight are on the National Register of Historic Places, the country’s official list of buildings and places worth saving.

#73
In Illinoisby listings · most towns there have none
4places listed3 buildings · 1 other
0National Historic LandmarksNone here yet
4historic buildings protectedcounting each building in a district
1980first listedJohn R. Oughton House · newest: Ambler's Texaco Gas Station, 2001

Where they are

Tap a dot for a photo and link. Districts show at their center.
John R. Oughton HouseDwight Chicago and Alton Railroad DepotPioneer Gothic ChurchAmbler's Texaco Gas Station
BuildingsSites

When they were listed

The Register began in 1966. Dwight’s busiest decade was the 1980s.
Listed 1980John R. Oughton HouseBuildingLandscape designMedicineSocial historyListed 1982Dwight Chicago and Alton Railroad DepotBuilt 1891TransportationArchitectureListed 1983Pioneer Gothic ChurchBuildingArchitectureListed 2001Ambler's Texaco Gas StationSiteTransportationArchitecture
National Park Service, National Register of Historic Places (05/22/2026) · styles from the National Archives catalog · photos from Wikimedia Commons, credited on each place

Then & now

No then-and-now pairs yet. Take a photo from the same spot as 1940 Census Enumeration District Maps - Illinois - Livingston County - Dwight - ED 53-11, ED 53-12, ED 53-13 (1880) and it appears here side by side.

🔁 Retake this view · +15

Stories next door

nearby towns’ history
📜 Dwight📜 Goodfarm📜 Garfield📜 Nevada

From Wikimedia Commons (7), the Library of Congress (10) and the National Register (1). Images are copied here with their credits and licenses, shown on each photo’s page. Refreshed monthly.

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Boundary source: https://tigerweb.geo.census.gov/arcgis/rest/services/TIGERweb/Places_CouSub_ConCity_SubMCD/MapServer/18 · 2025-01-01
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