Tuscola, Illinois

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Template:Use American English Template:Use mdy dates Template:Infobox settlement Tuscola is the largest city and the county seat of Douglas County, Illinois, United States. The population was 4,636 at the 2020 census.<ref name="ExploreCensus" /><ref name="GR6">Template:Cite web</ref>

History

The city of Tuscola's name came from an unknown Native American tribe's word for "flat plain."<ref>Template:Cite book</ref>

The founding Supervisor of Tuscola township was O. C. Hackett, who was elected in 1868. Hackett was elected Supervisor with a majority of only one vote over W. B. Ervin.<ref name="History of Douglas County, Illinois">History of Douglas County, Illinois</ref> O. C. Hackett was the grandson of noted Kentucky frontiersman and Boonsborough resident Peter Hackett. O. C. planted Hackett's Grove, a sassafras grove situated on Section 31, Township 16, Range 9, on the east side of the township. This Template:Convert grove is traversed by a branch of Scattering Fork of the Embarrass River, long known as Hackett's Run. According to the History of Douglas County (1884), the grove had been owned by the Hacketts long before Douglas County came into existence.<ref name="History of Douglas County, Illinois"/> O.C. Hackett's father, John Hackett, settled in nearby Coles County in 1835.<ref>History of Coles County, Illinois.</ref> Family legend holds that Abraham Lincoln stayed at the Hackett farm during the Lincoln-Douglas debates of 1858.

From the 1890s to the 1940s, Tuscola had a sizeable number of African-American citizens, including Arthur Anderson, the "most graceful walker" at the 1898 Colored Folks Cake Walk in Tuscola; his partner Cozy Chavous; the musician Cecil "Pete" Bridgewater, father of internationally known musicians Cecil Bridgewater and Ronnie Bridgewater; the educator and musician Ruth Calimese, daughter of automobile worker "Big Jim" Calimese; musician Solomon "Sol" Chavous; mail carrier and war veteran Bruce Hayden (father of distinguished violinist Bruce Hayden Jr.); Lemuel and Nettie Riley; football star and garage owner Tommy Wright; and dozens of other people. Tuscola had two churches with mainly black congregations, the African Methodist Episcopal Church on North Niles, and the White Horse Riders church on Houghton Street. Unlike the neighboring town of Arcola, Tuscola did not have the ordinance, common in small Illinois towns at the time, that an African-American person could not be on the streets after sundown. The black and white people of Tuscola got along well.<ref>Template:Cite web Adapted from The Cabin Chatter, April 1997, Douglas County Museum.</ref><ref>Template:Cite journal</ref> However, between 1922 and 1924 two large Ku Klux Klan gatherings were held in Tuscola. The 1924 rally consisted of nearly 2,000 Klan cars, a hundred marching Klansmen, burning crosses, and a naturalization ceremony in Tuscola's Ervin Park.Template:Citation needed

Geography

File:Tuscola Illinois Post Office.jpg
Tuscola, Illinois, post office

According to the 2021 census gazetteer files, Tuscola has a total area of Template:Convert, of which Template:Convert (or 99.66%) is land and Template:Convert (or 0.34%) is water.<ref name="gaz2021">Template:Cite web</ref>

Climate

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Demographics

Template:US Census populationAs of the 2020 census<ref name="ExploreCensus">Template:Cite web</ref> there were 4,636 people, 2,007 households, and 1,157 families residing in the city. The population density was Template:Convert. There were 2,218 housing units at an average density of Template:Convert. The racial makeup of the city was 91.98% White, 0.56% African American, 0.17% Native American, 1.19% Asian, 1.64% from other races, and 4.47% from two or more races. Hispanic or Latino of any race were 3.34% of the population.

There were 2,007 households, out of which 29.9% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 46.39% were married couples living together, 7.52% had a female householder with no husband present, and 42.35% were non-families. 37.32% of all households were made up of individuals, and 15.15% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.87 and the average family size was 2.28.

The city's age distribution consisted of 22.2% under the age of 18, 8.9% from 18 to 24, 27.8% from 25 to 44, 27.8% from 45 to 64, and 13.3% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 38.6 years. For every 100 females, there were 110.7 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 107.1 males.

The median income for a household in the city was $65,827, and the median income for a family was $88,309. Males had a median income of $52,143 versus $26,309 for females. The per capita income for the city was $33,316. About 10.3% of families and 11.5% of the population were below the poverty line, including 18.5% of those under age 18 and 8.3% of those age 65 or over.

Education

Tuscola is home to Tuscola Community Unit School District 301 which includes:

Parks and recreation

Tuscola is home to two parks.

  • Ervin Park
  • Wimple Park

Infrastructure

Highways

Airport

Tuscola is served by the Tuscola Airport. Which is approximately Template:Convert southwest of Tuscola.

Transit

Dial-A-Ride Public Transportation provides dial-a-ride bus transit service to the city.

Rail

Tuscola, has extensive railway service provided by several major railroads that intersect in the area, including Union Pacific Railroad, CSX Transportation, and Canadian National Railway. The Decatur & Eastern Illinois Railroad (DREI), a subsidiary of Watco, also operates in Tuscola and is an important rail link for various commodities, with connections to Union Pacific. While Tuscola does not have its own passenger rail station, the nearest Amtrak service is available in nearby Mattoon or Champaign.

Healthcare

Tuscola is served by three walk-in clinics: Carle Tuscola, SBL Tuscola (Sarah Bush Lincoln), and Christie Clinic. Each of these providers has a hospital located within 30 miles of Tuscola.

Notable people

References

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Template:Douglas County, Illinois Template:Illinois county seats

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