Forreston, Illinois
14 topographic sheets cover this place, the earliest surveyed in 1942 and the latest in 1983. It stands in Forreston Township. It lies in ZIP code area 61030. The Survey maps it on the Forreston North quadrangle. 1,435 people lived here at the 2020 count. It stands 938 feet above sea level.
Population over time
2 figuresForreston fell from 1,446 to 1,435 between 2010 and 2020. These are the recorded population figures Wikidata holds for this place, reached through the Geographic Names Information System number this page is keyed on rather than by name, so they belong to this place and not to another of the same name. Most are census counts, but not all are: an early figure may be a founding or settlement estimate, and an estimate published within five years of a census is left out. The change column is computed, and is left blank where more than 20 years separate a figure from the one before it, because a gap that long is not a change between two counts.
| Year | People | Change |
|---|---|---|
| 2010 | 1,446 | |
| 2020 | 1,435 | -11 (-1%) |
Topographic sheets covering this place
8 surveys from 14 printed sheetsMatched by testing this settlement's coordinate against the published boundary of every sheet in the United States Geological Survey's historical collection. Each opens the scanned sheet at the Survey.
- 1942 USGS Forreston quadrangle1:62500, 2 printings
- 1945 USGS Forreston quadrangle1:62500, 2 printings
- 1954 USGS Rockford quadrangle1:250000
- 1955 USGS Rockford quadrangle1:250000
- 1958 USGS Rockford quadrangle1:250000, 4 printings
- 1963 USGS Rockford quadrangle1:250000
- 1981 USGS Rockford quadrangle1:100000, 2 printings
- 1983 USGS Forreston North quadrangle1:24000
In the county-history sources
8,941 words on this townshipThe History of Ogle County, Illinois, Containing a History of the County, Its Cities, Towns, Etc., a Biographical Directory of Its Citizens, War Record of Its Volunteers in the Late Rebellion, General and Local Statistics ... History of the Northwest, History of Illinois ... Etc, published 1878 names this settlement in its chapter on Forreston Township. These are the passages that mention it, exactly as the scans read.
George W. Hewitt came to this county in October, 1848, from Pennsylvania, and entered a bounty claim. In 1854, he bought the site of Forreston of John Dement. The town was an outgrowth of the Illinois Central Railroad. The original town, now forming the western part of the village, was laid out in the Fall of 1854, on Mr. Hewitt's land. The Railroad Company made two additions, one in 1855, the other March 8, 1861. Mr. Hewitt made three additions, the first, November 14, 1861. West Forreston was laid out April 1st, 1868, by John Meyer.
Passage source: The History of Ogle County, Illinois, Containing a History of the County, Its Cities, Towns, Etc., a Biographical Directory of Its Citizens, War Record of Its Volunteers in the Late Rebellion, General and Local Statistics ... History of the Northwest, History of Illinois ... Etc, published 1878.
In the Spring of 1855, Mr. Daniels built and opened a store, near the depot on the west side of the track, where he also kept the first post ofiice. In the same Spring, Samuel Mitchell, who had come from Maryland to Lincoln Township, together with Jonathan Meyers, in 1837, and Matthew Blair, who came to Mount Morris from Pennsylvania in 1845, moved to the new village of Forreston with their families and built their residences. In this year, also, Mr. Hewitt brought his family from Pennsylvania, although he had previously built his residence.
Passage source: The History of Ogle County, Illinois, Containing a History of the County, Its Cities, Towns, Etc., a Biographical Directory of Its Citizens, War Record of Its Volunteers in the Late Rebellion, General and Local Statistics ... History of the Northwest, History of Illinois ... Etc, published 1878.
In the Fall of 1855, Henry Hiller established the first store, of any importance, in the small building still standing just north of the Sherman House. This he sold to Mr. Woodruff, who in turn disposed of his business to David Reinhardt, in 1858. Mr. Reinhardt built the store now occupied by Hewitt & Rosenstiel in the same year, and continued his general store in that building.
Passage source: The History of Ogle County, Illinois, Containing a History of the County, Its Cities, Towns, Etc., a Biographical Directory of Its Citizens, War Record of Its Volunteers in the Late Rebellion, General and Local Statistics ... History of the Northwest, History of Illinois ... Etc, published 1878.
Machine-read from a century-old scan, so expect the errors a machine makes: misspelled names, dropped words, stray characters.
Read the whole chapter on Forreston Township - it names this place 37 more 37 times.
Fires near this place
3 since 2020Regional context, not property-specific evidence. The federal wildfire occurrence database lists 3 fires within 5 miles of Forreston in 2020, burning about 5 acres in total. None started naturally. None was recorded as arson. Distance is straight-line from the map coordinates, so a fire counted here may appear on a neighbouring settlement's page as well.
| Reported cause | Fires |
|---|---|
| Missing data/not specified/undetermined | 2 |
| Railroad operations and maintenance | 1 |
The most recent of them, most recent first, with the day each was reported and the service that recorded it.
| Date | Cause | Size | Reported by | Name on the report |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 4 April 2020 | Railroad operations and maintenance | 2.0 acres | Illinois Division of Forestry Resources | 20-0000039 |
| 4 April 2020 | Missing data/not specified/undetermined | 1.0 acres | Illinois Division of Forestry Resources | 20-0000032 |
| 4 April 2020 | Missing data/not specified/undetermined | 2.0 acres | Illinois Division of Forestry Resources | 20-0000038 |
Settlements close enough to share some of these fires:
Mines and quarries near this place
10 within 5 milesRegional context, not property-specific evidence. The federal mineral resources record lists 10 workings within 5 miles of Forreston: 7 past producers, 2 producers, 1 plant. 3 still produce. What was taken out: Stone, Crushed/Broken, Sand and Gravel, Construction. Distance is straight-line from the map coordinates, so a quarry counted here may appear on a neighbouring settlement's page as well.
| Where | Site | Commodity | Status | Recorded |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Bauch Pit | Sand and Gravel, Construction | Producer | ||
| Sheely Pit & Mill | Sand and Gravel, Construction | Plant | ||
| C.J. Kutz Quarry | Stone, Crushed/Broken | Producer | ||
| F. Coffman Quarry | Stone, Crushed/Broken | Past Producer | ||
| Seifken Quarry | Stone, Crushed/Broken | Past Producer | ||
| Sheely Quarry No. 1 | Stone, Crushed/Broken | Past Producer | ||
| Swalve Quarry | Stone, Crushed/Broken | Past Producer | ||
| Unnamed Limestone Quarry | Stone, Crushed/Broken | Past Producer | ||
| Unnamed Limestone Quarry | Stone, Crushed/Broken | Past Producer | ||
| Unnamed Limestone Quarry | Stone, Crushed/Broken | Past Producer |
Storms near this place
17 since 1998Regional context, not property-specific evidence. The National Weather Service names Forreston in 17 storm reports between 1998 and 2024: 8 thunderstorm wind, 6 hail, 2 flash flood, 1 tornado. The reports record 5 injuries. Each account below is quoted exactly as the forecast office filed it, from the NOAA Storm Events Database, and each date opens the federal record of that event.
| When | Event | Place named | Harm | What the report says |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| August 2020 | Thunderstorm Wind | Forreston | 5 hurt | Straight line winds gusting to 100 mph hit the town of Forreston producing widespread tree and power line damage. Tree and power line damage occurred across 48 blocks of the village and structural damage occurred across 13 blocks. Several mobile homes were damaged or destroyed in two mobile home parks and five people were injured. At least 50 people were displaced. Significant damage occurred to a large metal building near a gas station with associated debris blown toward the northeast. The gas station had its heating and cooling unit ripped off the roof, leaving a hole in the roof. A cinder block wall was blown out of the east side of a building causing minor damage to a parked semi truck. A garage partially collapsed from a fallen tree. Several other roofs suffered some damage from falling tree limbs. A car was damaged by a falling tree limb. |
| May 2011 | Tornado (EF1) | Forreston | $50,000 | A tornado touched down just east of Forreston, on Columbine Road near Illinois Route 72 in Ogle County. The tornado continued to the northeast with a near continuous path into Winnebago County. A mobile home lost part of its roof with walls partially collapsed in Adeline. Another double wide home lost a portion of its roof on Leaf River Road at Myrtle road. A couple of utility poles were also snapped or leaning over. The tornado crossed into Winnebago County on East Montague Road near South Conger Road. |
| July 2024 | Thunderstorm Wind | Forreston | - | Tree damage was reported in Forreston. |
| August 2022 | Flash Flood | Forreston | - | The intersection of W West Grove Road and NW Branch Road was closed due to water flowing over the road. |
| June 2019 | Flash Flood | Forreston | - | A vehicle became stranded in flowing flood waters 1 to 2 feet deep and the driver had to be rescued. |
| September 2015 | Thunderstorm Wind | Forreston | - | Flattened corn on Townline Rd. |
| June 2011 | Thunderstorm Wind | Forreston | - | Trees and power lines were reported down by Ogle County Sheriff. |
| June 2008 | Thunderstorm Wind | Forreston | - | Several trees were blown down. |
| July 2006 | Thunderstorm Wind | Forreston | - | Three to four foot diameter tree split down the middle in Forreston. Trees blown down across all of northern Ogle County. |
| August 2011 | Hail | Forreston | - | no account filed |
| April 2010 | Hail | Forreston | - | no account filed |
| March 2006 | Hail | Forreston | - | no account filed |
| April 2002 | Hail | Forreston | - | no account filed |
| September 2000 | Hail | Forreston | - | no account filed |
| May 1999 | Thunderstorm Wind | Forreston | - | no account filed |
| May 1999 | Hail | Forreston | - | no account filed |
| August 1998 | Thunderstorm Wind | Forreston | - | no account filed |
Nearest settlements
The eight closest, with where each one stands in the county. Distances are straight-line, computed from the Geographic Names Information System coordinates.
| Map | Place | Distance | Sheets |
|---|---|---|---|
| Harper | 3.8 miles | 14 | |
| Haldane | 4.4 miles | 14 | |
| Maryland | 4.5 miles | 14 | |
| Adeline | 4.9 miles | 14 | |
| Baileyville | 5.0 miles | 14 | |
| Brookville | 7.7 miles | 14 | |
| Leaf River | 9.3 miles | 14 | |
| Lightsville | 9.4 miles | 14 |
Elsewhere
Matched on this settlement's Geographic Names Information System number rather than its name, so it cannot be a different place of the same name in another state.
| Wikipedia article on Forreston | An encyclopaedic summary. Its text is share-alike, so it is linked here rather than copied. |
| Wikidata item Q2013199 | The structured record the population and elevation above come from. Public domain (CC0). |
Provenance
This settlement is recorded in the Geographic Names Information System as feature 408540. The sheet list is computed by point-in-boundary test against the United States Geological Survey's historical topographic inventory. Both are works of the United States government and carry no copyright under 17 U.S.C. 105.
Wildfire. Short, Karen C. 2022. Spatial wildfire occurrence data for the United States, 1992-2020 [FPA_FOD_20221014]. 6th Edition. Fort Collins, CO: Forest Service Research Data Archive. https://doi.org/10.2737/RDS-2013-0009.6 Collected with United States Government funding and usable without additional permissions or fees.
Mines and quarries. USGS Mineral Resources Data System (MRDS) https://mrdata.usgs.gov/mrds/ A work of the United States government, no copyright under 17 U.S.C. 105.
Storms. NOAA National Centers for Environmental Information, Storm Events Database https://www.ncei.noaa.gov/stormevents/ A work of the United States government, no copyright under 17 U.S.C. 105. Narratives are quoted verbatim from the National Weather Service report and are not edited or summarised.







