Litchfield, Illinois

For other places with the same name, see Litchfield (disambiguation).

Litchfield
City
256px Cars in a "66" formation at the SkyView Drive-In.
Motto: "Many pleasant surprises!"
Country	United States
State	Illinois
County	Montgomery
Elevation	693 ft (211 m)
Coordinates
Area	6.82 sq mi (18 km2)
- land	6.45 sq mi (17 km2)
- water	0.38 sq mi (1 km2)
Population	6,939 (2010)
Density	1,363.3 / sq mi (526 / km2)
Founded	1896
Mayor	Steve Dougherty
Timezone	CST (UTC-6)
- summer (DST)	CDT (UTC-5)
Postal code	62056
Area code	217
Location of Litchfield within Illinois
Wikimedia Commons: Litchfield, Illinois
Website: The City of Litchfield, Illinois

Litchfield is a city in Montgomery County, Illinois, United States. The population was 6,939 at the 2010 census, and 6,588 in 2009 and 7,012 in 2015. It is located in south central Illinois, south of Springfield and northeast of Metro-East.

History

In 1853, the town was developed when the Terre Haute, Alton and St. Louis Railroad came through the area. It was named for E. B. Litchfield, a founder. Litchfield was incorporated on May 6, 1896.

Geography

Litchfield is located at (39.176741, -89.653721).

According to the 2010 census, Litchfield has a total area of 6.825 square miles (17.68 km²), of which 6.45 square miles (16.71 km²) (or 94.51%) is land and 0.375 square miles (0.97 km²) (or 5.49%) is water.

Demographics

Historical population
Census	Pop.		%±
1860	1,609		—
1870	3,852		139.4%
1880	4,326		12.3%
1890	5,811		34.3%
1900	5,918		1.8%
1910	5,971		0.9%
1920	6,215		4.1%
1930	6,612		6.4%
1940	7,048		6.6%
1950	7,208		2.3%
1960	7,330		1.7%
1970	7,190		−1.9%
1980	7,204		0.2%
1990	6,883		−4.5%
2000	6,815		−1.0%
2010	6,939		1.8%
Est. 2014	6,930		−0.1%
U.S. Decennial Census

As of the census of 2000, there were 6,815 people, 2,772 households, and 1,785 families residing in the city. The population density was 1,338.5 people per square mile (517.0/km²). There were 3,011 housing units at an average density of 591.4 per square mile (228.4/km²). The racial makeup of the city was 98.31% White, 0.37% African American, 0.18% Native American, 0.26% Asian, 0.01% Pacific Islander, 0.22% from other races, and 0.65% from two or more races. Hispanic or Latino of any race were 0.95% of the population.

There were 2,772 households out of which 31.3% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 48.7% were married couples living together, 11.9% had a female householder with no husband present, and 35.6% were non-families. 32.5% of all households were made up of individuals and 17.0% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.37 and the average family size was 2.97.

The Ariston Cafe, a popular stop along U.S. Route 66.

In the city the population was spread out with 25.6% under the age of 18, 7.5% from 18 to 24, 26.6% from 25 to 44, 20.0% from 45 to 64, and 20.3% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 38 years. For every 100 females there were 86.1 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 80.3 males.

The median income for a household in the city was $28,717, and the median income for a family was $34,139. Males had a median income of $26,238 versus $19,545 for females. The per capita income for the city was $14,612. About 15.7% of families and 16.6% of the population were below the poverty line, including 22.9% of those under age 18 and 11.2% of those age 65 or over.

Arts and culture

Attractions

The Ariston Cafe is one of the oldest restaurants along the historic U.S. Route 66, commonly known as Old Route 66, though the cafe itself claims it could possibly be the oldest [1]. The Ariston Café was founded in 1924 in the town of Carlinville, Illinois, but was later moved to its present location. The cafe was inducted into the Route 66 Hall of Fame in 1992. Another landmark is Litchfield's Lake Lou Yaeger, located northeast of town.[2]. The SkyView Theater is a member of the Route 66 Hall of Fame and has been in operation since 1951. It is among the last drive-in theaters still operating along Route 66 [3].

The grand opening of the Litchfield Museum and Route 66 Welcome Center was June 1, 2013. The museum is located across from the Ariston Café at 334 North Historic Route 66. The museum is owned by the Litchfield Museum and Route 66 Welcome Center Association and is maintained mainly through donations.In 1934 The Belvidere Motel opened in Lichfield IL and is one of the oldest motels around

Infrastructure

Transportation

Litchfield Municipal Airport is located two nautical miles (3.7 km) southwest of the central business district of Litchfield.

Litchfield is served by Interstate 55 and Illinois Route 16.

Two Class 1 railroad lines (Burlington Northern Santa Fe and Norfolk Southern) cross at the south edge of Litchfield after running parallel through town from north to south.

Notable people

• Jackie Mayo, professional baseball player who appeared in 139 Major League games for the Philadelphia Phillies; born in Litchfield
• Paul Martin Pearson, author, professor, governor of Virgin Islands, father of columnist Drew Pearson; born in Litchfield

See also

• Sunshine (magazine)

External links

• The City of Litchfield, Illinois
• Ariston Cafe
• The SkyView theater
• Litchfield Illinois, Historical Society of Montgomery County Illinois
• City-Data.com