Old Shawneetown, Illinois

Old Shawneetown
Village
256px Old Shawneetown Court House in 1937
Country	United States
State	Illinois
County	Gallatin
Coordinates
Area	0.53 sq mi (1 km2)
- land	0.53 sq mi (1 km2)
- water	0.00 sq mi (0 km2)
Population	278 (2000)
Density	531.7 / sq mi (205 / km2)
Timezone	CST (UTC-6)
- summer (DST)	CDT (UTC-5)
Postal code	62984
Area code	618
Location of Old Shawneetown within Illinois
Wikimedia Commons: Old Shawneetown, Illinois

Old Shawneetown is a village in Gallatin County, Illinois, United States. As of the 2000 census, the village had a total population of 278. Located along the Ohio River, Shawneetown served as an important United States government administrative center for the Northwest Territory. The village was devastated by the Ohio River flood of 1937. The village's population was moved several miles inland to New Shawneetown.

File:1937 flood Shawneetown Illinois refugees.jpg

1937 flood Shawneetown Illinois refugees

History

At least one record suggests that a village was established here by the Pekowi Shawnee led by Peter Chartier about 1748. In early November 1803, Lewis and Clark are believed to have stopped at Old Shawneetown on their way to Fort Massac, just down the Ohio River.

After the Revolution, Shawneetown served as an important United States government administrative center for the Northwest Territory. Shawneetown and Washington, D.C., share the distinction of being the only towns chartered by the United States government.

Old Shawneetown is the site of the first bank chartered in Illinois in 1816. Originally in a log cabin it was replaced in 1822 with a brick structure (only the second one in the town) now known as the John Marshall House.

Local legend states that the Shawneetown Bank refused to buy the first bonds issued by the city of Chicago on the grounds that no city located that far from a navigable river could survive.

Another historic bank building, the Bank of Illinois, was constructed in 1839-41 to house the offices of the Bank of Illinois at Shawneetown. It later housed numerous other financial institutions before it was closed in the 1930s. This fine example of Greek Revival architecture survives as the Shawneetown Bank State Historic Site.

Residents long remembered the visit by Gilbert du Motier, marquis de La Fayette of France to the city on May 8, 1825, as a highpoint for the early community's social history.

Notable people

• Peter Chartier (1690-1759), French-Canadian Shawnee chief who led his people from Pennsylvania to resettle in Illinois, and died in Shawneetown in 1759
• Claudia Cassidy (1899-1996), music and drama critic for Chicago Tribune 1942-65; born in Shawneetown
• Robert G. Ingersoll, 19th century orator and agnostic, lived in Shawneetown (1855–1857)
• John Alexander McClernand, Civil War general and U.S. Congressman; grew up in Shawneetown and started the Shawneetown Democrat newspaper (1835)
• Thomas Posey, Revolutionary War officer; died visiting his daughter just outside Shawneetown (1818); buried in the Westwood Cemetery
• Bluford Wilson (1841-1924), Union officer in the American Civil War; Solicitor of the U.S. Treasury; born in or near Shawneetown
• James Harrison Wilson (1837–1925), Union general in the American Civil War; third-generation Shawneetown resident
• John McLean (1791-1830), US Representative, IL State Representative, US Senator lived here (McLean County, IL was named after him).

Geography

Old Shawneetown is located at (37.698197, -88.136857).

According to the 2010 census, Old Shawneetown has a total area of 0.53 square miles (1.37 km²), all land.

Demographics

Historical population
Census	Pop.		%±
1830	446		—
1840	1,900		326.0%
1850	1,764		−7.2%
1860	1,115		−36.8%
1870	1,309		17.4%
1880	1,851		41.4%
1890	1,570		−15.2%
1900	1,698		8.2%
1910	1,863		9.7%
1920	1,368		−26.6%
1930	1,440		5.3%
1940	1,357		−5.8%
1950	578		−57.4%
1960	433		−25.1%
1970	342		−21.0%
1980	396		15.8%
1990	356		−10.1%
2000	278		−21.9%
2010	193		−30.6%
Est. 2014	179		−7.3%
U.S. Decennial Census

As of the census of 2000, there were 278 people, 100 households, and 69 families residing in the village. The population density was 531.7 people per square mile (206.4/km²). There were 146 housing units at an average density of 279.2/sq mi (108.4/km²). The racial makeup of the village was 99.64% White and 0.36% Native American. Hispanic or Latino of any race were 1.08% of the population.

There were 100 households out of which 36.0% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 44.0% were married couples living together, 20.0% had a female householder with no husband present, and 31.0% were non-families. 24.0% of all households were made up of individuals and 7.0% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.78 and the average family size was 3.36.

In the village the population was spread out with 33.8% under the age of 18, 8.3% from 18 to 24, 27.0% from 25 to 44, 22.7% from 45 to 64, and 8.3% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 32 years. For every 100 females there were 98.6 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 93.7 males.

The median income for a household in the village was $18,214, and the median income for a family was $20,625. Males had a median income of $25,625 versus $13,750 for females. The per capita income for the village was $9,379. About 33.3% of families and 39.4% of the population were below the poverty line, including 60.6% of those under the age of eighteen and 33.3% of those sixty five or over.

See also

• List of cities and towns along the Ohio River

Further reading

• 1887. History of Gallatin, Saline, Hamilton, Franklin and Williamson Counties, Illinois. Chicago: Goodspeed Publishing Co.
• Musgrave, Jon, ed. 2002. Handbook of Old Gallatin County and Southeastern Illinois. Marion, Ill.: IllinoisHistory.com. 464 pages.
• Musgrave, Jon. 2004, Rev. ed. 2005. Slaves, Salt, Sex & Mr. Crenshaw: The Real Story of the Old Slave House and America's Reverse Underground R.R.. Marion, Ill.: IllinoisHistory.com. 608 pages.
• Waggoner, Horace Q., interviewer. 1978. "Lucille Lawler Memoir" Shawneetown Bank Project. Sangamon State University. Springfield, Ill.