[5] It was founded when the Jacksonville Division of the Chicago Alton and St. Louis Railroad was extended westward from Bloomington.

The McLean County town of Covell was founded, within a few months of Allin, as a station on the same railroad.

[6] The original town of what would soon become Stanford had an unusual L-shaped design, with the leg of the "L" extending to the east along the railroad tracks.

The large area in the crook of the "L" was not platted, but remained in the hands of John Armstrong, the town founder, whose residence was near the tracks on the north side of the railroad.

Rather than a central square, the original plat of Stanford, like many towns laid out in the 1850s and 1860s, featured two rectangular public areas labeled as "Depot Grounds" which extended along either side of the tracks.

Illinois Route 122 passes just north of the village, leading northeast to Bloomington and west 5 miles (8 km) to Minier.

According to the U.S. Census Bureau, Stanford has a total area of 0.66 square miles (1.71 km2), all land.

The racial makeup of the village was 97.91% White, 0.90% Native American, 0.15% Asian, and 1.04% from two or more races.