Village of Indianola, Illinois

The history of the Village of Indianola began in 1836. Early settlers William Swank and David Baird (a veteran of the Revolutionary War) laid out the streets for a village named Chillicothe. Their plat was recorded at the county courthouse on Sept. 6th. The village is the third oldest town in Vermilion County with only Danville and Georgetown (both in1827) preceding it.

In 1844, when a post office was applied for, it was discovered that there was already a Chillicothe. So, the name Dallas was chosen by the villagers. However, postal confusion still arose with a town named Dallas City.

In 1850, the postmaster at that time changed the name to Indianola, without approval of the townspeople. The name of Indianola was not accepted by the community until 1869, when the county was petitioned to make the name of Indianola official.

The 1870s were a booming time for the village, despite the fact, that no railroad had reached it yet. Unlike other towns which owed their existence and/or growth to the coming of a railroad, Indianola did not get a railroad until the last day of 1881.

The following year, in 1882, the Village of Indianola was incorporated. At its first official meeting on October 25th, Dr. J. W. Ralston was elected as the first president of the Board of Trustees.