About Mahomet
In early Connecticut history, the family of Dr. Daniel T. Porter, ancestor of our
village founder by the same name, Daniel T. Porter, was among those that
settled in a small village along the Connecticut River named Mattabeseck. That
emerging settlement became known to those settlers as Middletown. Another
influence in Porter family history, was the Mohegan Sachem named Mamohet
Weyonomon, great-grandson of the Mohegan, Sachem Uncas. Mamohet Weyonomon
became well known to the colonists as “Mahomet”, an ally and negotiator for the
Mohegan. The Porter families of Connecticut carried the legend of these
historical names throughout their westward migration.
In the spring of 1832, a band of settlers, including the Daniel T. Porter family,
traveled from Indiana to put down roots in this Sangamon timber. They would
be the first to settle along this section of the primitive trail that would become
our village. It was not, though, until March 10, 1836 that Daniel T. Porter, a
descendant of the Connecticut Porter family, would obtain the services of
surveyor, Garrett Moore, to lay out the plat of a new village on this site consisting
of 38 lots straddling the ancient trail that had become known as the Fort Clark
Road. He would name this new village “Middletown” after the Middletown
known by his ancestors.
Four years later, in 1840, Porter in his application for a post office, chose to call the
post office “Mahomet” after the family’s historical knowledge of the Sachem known
as “Mahomet.” The existence of Middletown as our village name and Mahomet as
our post office name remained in place until 1871 when the newly arrived railroad
insisted that the name of Middletown could not be used for the depot name
due to its policy not allowing duplicate names within the same state.
As a result, on March 7, 1871, Supervisor, Theodore M. Brown, presented a petition
to the Board to change the name of our village. The report was unanimously
approved, giving our village its historical name of Mahomet.
Village of Mahomet Administration Building
503 E. Main Street
Mahomet, IL 61853
(Phone): (217)586-4456
(Fax): (217)586-5696
(Email): villageofmahomet@mahomet-il.gov
Office Hours are: Monday - Friday - 8:00 a.m. - 4:30 p.m.
Vision Statement: Preserve, protect and enhance our community’s quality of life.
Mission Statement: Provide for the needs of today and prepare for the demands of tomorrow
while remaining mindful and respectful of the past.