Lewistown, Illinois

Lewistown
City
Country	United States
State	Illinois
County	Fulton
Coordinates	40°23′47″N 90°9′17″W / 40.39639°N 90.15472°W / 40.39639; -90.15472Coordinates: 40°23′47″N 90°9′17″W / 40.39639°N 90.15472°W / 40.39639; -90.15472
Area	2.00 sq mi (5 km2)
- land	2.00 sq mi (5 km2)
- water	0.00 sq mi (0 km2)
Population	2,522 (2000)
Density	1,372.2 / sq mi (530 / km2)
Timezone	CST (UTC-6)
- summer (DST)	CDT (UTC-5)
Postal code	61542
Area code	309
Location of Lewistown within Illinois
Wikimedia Commons: Lewistown, Illinois

Lewistown is a city in Fulton County, Illinois, United States. It was named by its founder, Ossian M. Ross, after his oldest son, Lewis W. Ross.^[1] The population was 2,522 at the 2000 census. It is the county seat of Fulton County.^[2] Located in central Illinois, it is southwest of Peoria. It is the source of Spoon River Anthology by Edgar Lee Masters, who lived there. Native American burial mounds are nearby at Dickson Mounds on Illinois Route 97.

History

The city was named for Lewis Ross, the son of a first settler.^[3] The Lewistown post office has been in operation since 1831.^[4] It contains a tempera on canvas mural titled Lewiston Milestones, painted by Ida Abelman in 1941, depicting the Lincoln-Douglas debates.^[5] Murals were produced from 1934 to 1943 in the United States through the Section of Painting and Sculpture, later called the Section of Fine Arts, of the Treasury Department.

Geography

Lewistown is located at 40°23′47″N 90°9′17″W / 40.39639°N 90.15472°W / 40.39639; -90.15472 (40.396254, -90.154609).^[6]

According to the 2010 census, Lewistown has a total area of 2 square miles (5.18 km²), all land.^[7]

Tourist attractions

Oak Hill Cemetery is located in Lewistown. This cemetery was made famous by Edgar Lee Masters in his book titled Spoon River Anthology.

The Emiquon National Wildlife Refuge, a 7,000 acres (30 km²) wetland restoration, is located on the Illinois River just on the outskirts of Lewistown. It is one of the largest floodplain restoration projects in the United States outside the Florida Everglades.

Dickson Mounds Museum is an archaeological museum dedicated to American Indian artifacts. It is one of the major archaeological museums in the United States.

The Rasmussen Blacksmith Shop Museum is located on Main Street of Lewistown. It is one of the few blacksmith shops left in the United States. It has been run by the Rasmussen family since 1880.

The Spoon River Valley Scenic Drive is a huge tourist attraction as well. Once a year in the fall, Lewistown as well as the rest of Fulton County hold a scenic drive. It includes a plethora of shops and stands that sell a variety of products.

Lewistown Music in the Park is held every Thursday night 7-9pm for 10 weeks during the summer in Porter Park at the gazebo. Music in the park features local talent. Admission is free just bring your own lawn chair or blanket. Food and beverage available during performance.

Demographics

As of the census^[10] of 2000, there were 2,522 people, 1,092 households, and 661 families residing in the city. The population density was 1,372.2 people per square mile (529.2/km²). There were 1,182 housing units at an average density of 643.1 per square mile (248.0/km²). The racial makeup of the city was 98.93% White, 0.08% African American, 0.20% Native American, 0.04% Asian, 0.08% Pacific Islander, 0.20% from other races, and 0.48% from two or more races. Hispanic or Latino of any race were 1.07% of the population.

There were 1,092 households out of which 25.8% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 48.4% were married couples living together, 9.7% had a female householder with no husband present, and 39.4% were non-families. 36.5% of all households were made up of individuals and 21.1% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.23 and the average family size was 2.89.

In the city the population was spread out with 21.6% under the age of 18, 7.3% from 18 to 24, 26.2% from 25 to 44, 20.9% from 45 to 64, and 24.1% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 41 years. For every 100 females there were 88.5 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 83.9 males.

The median income for a household in the city was $30,943, and the median income for a family was $40,431. Males had a median income of $31,979 versus $19,569 for females. The per capita income for the city was $15,620. About 4.8% of families and 7.1% of the population were below the poverty line, including 5.9% of those under age 18 and 8.7% of those age 65 or over.

Notable people

• Reed F. Cutler, Illinois legislator and lawyer, practiced law in Lewistown.^[11]
• Edgar Lee Masters, poet, writer, lawyer. lived in Lewistown.

References

External links

Wikimedia Commons has media related to Lewistown, Illinois.

• City of Lewistown, Illinois

Municipalities and communities of Fulton County, Illinois, United States County seat: Lewistown Cities Canton Cuba Farmington Lewistown Town Astoria Villages Avon Banner Bryant Dunfermline Ellisville Fairview Ipava Liverpool London Mills‡ Marietta Norris Smithfield St. David Table Grove Vermont Townships Astoria Banner Bernadotte Buckheart Canton Cass Deerfield Ellisville Fairview Farmers Farmington Harris Isabel Joshua Kerton Lee Lewistown Liverpool Orion Pleasant Putman Union Vermont Waterford Woodland Young Hickory Unincorporated communities Babylon Beaty Bernadotte Blyton Breeds Brereton Checkrow Depler Springs Duncan Mills Enion Fiatt Gilchrist Leesburg Little America Manley Maples Mill Marbletown Middlegrove Monterey Poverty Ridge Rawalts Sepo Seville Summum Ghost towns Buckeye Bybee Civer Forty Acres Fulton Center Howard Keeler Midway Otto Pleasant Ridge Sugarville Troy Tuscumbia Virgil Waterford Footnotes ‡This populated place also has portions in an adjacent county or counties