Its name was fabricated by J.B. Calhoun, land commission of the Illinois Central Railroad, who wrote about it simply: "[I] placed the vowel o three times, thus o-o-o, and filling in with the consonants t-l-n."[2][3] Tolono is located at 39°59′10″N 88°15′35″W / 39.98611°N 88.25972°W / 39.98611; -88.25972 (39.986046, -88.259727).

[4] According to the history of Champaign County: A surveyor for the Illinois Central who was looking for a division headquarters, surveyed the Tolono area and wrote on a map 'too low, No.'

[5] Tolono at one time had two or three companies making tile used to drain the land around the town, resulting in swamps on the east side of the town both on the north and south side of the Wabash Railroad.

According to the 2021 census gazetteer files, Tolono has a total area of 2.06 square miles (5.34 km2),all land.

The original homes in the community were small and narrow filling half lots adjacent to the railroad tracks.

With the intersection of an east-west railway, Tolono became a featured stop for early rail passengers.

The district is located in a rural agricultural setting 10 miles (16 km) south of Champaign-Urbana, minutes from both Parkland College and the University of Illinois.