Knoxville, Illinois

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

'Knoxville' (formerly named Henderson) is a city in Knox County, Illinois, United States. The population was 3,183 at the 2000 census.

1 Geography
2 Demographics
3 History
4 Famous People From Knoxville
5 External links

[edit] Geography

Knoxville is located at 40°54′27″N, 90°16′58″W (40.907526, -90.282691)^GR1.

According to the United States Census Bureau, the city has a total area of 5.7 km² (2.2 mi²), all land.

[edit] Demographics

As of the census^GR2 of 2000, there were 3,183 people, 1,210 households, and 878 families residing in the city. The population density was 558.6/km² (1,448.0/mi²). There were 1,260 housing units at an average density of 221.1/km² (573.2/mi²). The racial makeup of the city was 98.59% White, 0.35% African American, 0.13% Native American, 0.06% Asian, 0.13% from other races, and 0.75% from two or more races. Hispanic or Latino of any race were 0.57% of the population.

There were 1,210 households out of which 33.2% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 57.5% were married couples living together, 12.0% had a female householder with no husband present, and 27.4% were non-families. 24.4% of all households were made up of individuals and 13.2% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.45 and the average family size was 2.89.

In the city the population was spread out with 23.7% under the age of 18, 6.8% from 18 to 24, 24.0% from 25 to 44, 23.4% from 45 to 64, and 22.2% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 42 years. For every 100 females there were 85.7 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 79.9 males.

The median income for a household in the city was $43,438, and the median income for a family was $49,688. Males had a median income of $31,442 versus $23,939 for females. The per capita income for the city was $18,643. About 1.9% of families and 3.1% of the population were below the poverty line, including 3.7% of those under age 18 and 0.8% of those age 65 or over.

[edit] History

Knoxville was established on January 15, 1831, and called Henderson until its name was changed to Knoxville on December 22, 1832. It was one of the first 10 municipalities incorporated in the state and is the oldest town in Knox County.

Knoxville was the county seat until 1873, when the county seat was moved to Galesburg. The first Knox County Courthouse, completed in 1839, and second Knox County jail, completed in 1845, still stand in Knoxville and are registered on the National Register of Historic Places. The two buildings and Knoxville's first general store, the Sanburn Log Cabin, build in 1832, have been restored and are open to the public. The county's Hall of Records, built in 1854, is used as Knoxville's City Hall.

The Old Knox County Jail was the location of the only legal hanging in Knox County when John Osborne was hung March 14, 1873, for the murder of Adelia M. Mathews, Yates City.

[edit] Famous People From Knoxville

Armando Ghitalla was a famous trumpet player who graduated from Knoxville High School in 1942. He traveled around the world during his 28 years with the Boston Symphony and 15 years with the Boston Pops. He later taught trumpet at various universities. In 1958, then Boston Pops conductor Arthur Fiedler called Ghitalla "absolutely the greatest (trumpeter) in the world." Ghitalla died December 14, 2001 in Houston, Texas.

Actor Justin Hartley, who appeared on the soap opera Passions for three years, will be on the television show Smallville for seven episodes during its sixth season, and has three movies due out in theaters, was born in Knoxville January 29, 1977, and lived on Westview Drive for several years.

Jazz drummer Matt Wilson was born in Knoxville September 27, 1964. He began playing drums at an early age and after graduating from Knoxville High School, studied percussion at Wichita State College. He formed the Matt Wilson Quartet in 1996 and now lives in New York City.

Aaron King is a famous runner for the University of Illinois from the city of Knoxville. He was an Illinois state champion while attending Knoxville High School before moving on to the University of Illinois where he became a star.