Lena, Illinois

1 on Lena Street, while Dr. F. Voightheld owned a log home (which has subsequently been demolished) near the train depot.

The town was originally shaped as a parallelogram covering twenty-six blocks for a total of 304 housing lots.

On New Year's Day 1854, track was laid, and railway cars began running between Freeport and Warren.

During the summer of 1855, Reber & Cheney and Dodds erected a three-story brick building at the corner of Railroad and Schuyler streets.

As growth continued after the Civil War, the first town newspaper called the Lena Star was established in 1867, with Dodds as editor.

During its first year, the newspaper reported a local fire and called for a town water pump.

By 1870, Lena's population had reached 1,295 people and its social and business community continued to grow.

During the early 1870s, structure fires consumed a warehouse, a stable, a rural school and several Lena houses.

[4] A local opera house, constructed in 1879, was featured on the History Channel show American Pickers in February 2010.

Education in Lena is provided by the Lena-Winslow Consolidated School District #202.

The Lena-Winslow Panther Football team won the Class 1A State Championships in 2010, 2013, 2017, 2019, 2021, and 2022.

Map of Illinois highlighting Stephenson County