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History · Lyman

Lyman’s history is
mostly unwritten

The public archives hold no old photos of Lyman. 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

Lyman Township is one of twelve townships in Ford County, Illinois, USA. As of the 2020 census, its population was 516 and it contained 260 housing units. The township was formed from a portion of Brenton Township on September 9, 1867.

Its population held steady between the last two censuses: 518 people in 2010, 516 in 2020. Half of its homes were built before 1938.

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

The first neighbors to add old photos shape how Lyman’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 Lyman

See all 21 →
CBCharles BrownOnarga · 11 miAlice GentleAlice GentleChatsworth · 8 miLeslie C. ArendsLeslie C. ArendsMelvin · 5 miHRHugh Doak RankinLoda · 10 miCurtiss LaQ. DayCurtiss LaQ. DayPaxton · 13 miEd WalkerEd WalkerForrest · 14 mi
By decade

Lyman, 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 Lyman is on the National Register yet

That’s true of most small towns. It doesn’t mean Lyman has no history, only that no one has written up a nomination. The closest listed place is Smith, A. Herr and E. E., Public Library in Loda, 9.6 miles away.

Lyman and the nearest listed places

Dashed line = Lyman. Tap a dot.
Smith, A. Herr and E. E., Public LibraryDunnan-Hampton HousePaxton Carnegie Public LibraryPaxton Water Tower and Pump HousePaxton First SchoolhouseAlfred Phillips House

Closest to Lyman

Smith, A. Herr and E. E., Public LibraryLoda · Building9.6miDunnan-Hampton HousePaxton · Building12.1miPaxton Carnegie Public LibraryPaxton · Built 190412.3miPaxton Water Tower and Pump HousePaxton · Building12.4miPaxton First SchoolhousePaxton · Building13.1mi

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. Smith, A. Herr and E. E., Public Library’s page links to a real one.
Know an old place in Lyman?A mill, a schoolhouse, a cellar hole, a church: add a photo of it to Lyman’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
📜 Roberts📜 Melvin📜 Thawville📜 Germanville
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Where to, neighbor?

You’re in Lyman, ILFord 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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