Oregon (Illinois)

Oregon
	; Downtown Oregon
Location in Illinois
	Oregon
	Oregon
Basic data
Foundation :	1833
State :	United States
State :	Illinois
County :	Ogle County
Coordinates :	42 ° 1 ′ N , 89 ° 20 ′ W Coordinates: 42 ° 1 ′ N , 89 ° 20 ′ W
Time zone :	Central ( UTC − 6 / −5 )
Residents :	4,129 (as of 2009)
Population density :	794 inhabitants per km 2
Area :	5.4 km 2 (approx. 2 mi 2 ) of; which 5.2 km 2 (approx. 2 mi 2 ) is land
Height :	216 m
Postcodes :	61061
Area code :	+1 815
FIPS :	17-56484
GNIS ID :	415165
Website :	www.oregonil.com
Mayor :	Thomas R. Stone
	; Ogle County Courthouse, Oregon

Oregon is a city and administrative center of Ogle County in the north of the US -amerikanischen state of Illinois . In 2000, Oregon had 4,060 residents; the estimate in 2009 showed an increase in the population to 4,129.

geography

Oregon is located on the Rock River and extends over 5.44 km², which is spread over 5.18 km² of land and 0.26 km² of water.

Illinois State Route 64 , which crosses the Rock River, runs through Oregon . In the city center, Illinois State Route 2 crosses the Rock River .

A few kilometers below the road bridge over the Rock River, a railway line of the BNSF Railway crosses the river and runs through the city in a west-east direction.

The nearest major cities are Rockford (41.6 km northeast), Chicago (100 miles east), Ottawa, Illinois (122 km southeast), the Quad Cities (138 km southeast), Clinton , Iowa (84.3 km west) and Dubuque (149 km west-northwest).

history

Before white settlers came to the area, Indians from the Potawatomi and Winnebago tribes lived here. After the conquest, many mounds from the Mississippi culture era were found. The name Oregon means River of the West .

Oregon City Hall

Black Hawk statue by Lorado Taft

The first white settler in the area was John Phelps , who first came here in 1829 and finally settled here in 1833. More pioneers followed, so that soon afterwards a church, a school, a general store, a forge and a post office were opened. In 1838 the settlement was officially registered as an Oregon City by the Ogle County Administration .

In 1847 the town had a grocery store, sawmill, ferry across the Rock River, and 44 households for a total population of 225. During the 1850s and 1860s, the city continued to grow, which was also reflected in the increase in church buildings.

In 1870 the official conferment of the status "City" took place, which was decided on April 1, 1869 by the Illinois General Assembly . With James Gale , the first mayor was elected in March 1870.

In 1871 Oregon was connected to the railroad network, which allowed rapid industrialization. A mill, furniture factory, and foundry was built in Oregon and existed until the 1960s. In the 1870s, Oregon had a population of around 2,000.

The Oregon City Hall, which is still in use today, was built in 1920.

In 1891, the Ogle County Courthouse was constructed at the intersection of Washington Street (Illinois State Route 64) and Fourth Street (Illinois State Route 2) in downtown Oregon.

Between 1908 and 1911, the sculptor Lorado Taft erected a 15 m high Black Hawk statue north of Oregon on a hill above the Rock River valley . Originally, the statue was called The Eternal Indian (dt .: The everlasting Indians ), while the day after Black Hawk, the formerly living in the area chief Sauk is named.

Culture

Oregon Public Library

In 1898, the sculptor Lorado Taft founded the Eagle's Nest Art Colony north of the city. Taft and his artist colony began to influence the city of Oregon and its culture. As a result, the Oregon Public Library , built in 1908, was given a second floor to house an art gallery. The artists of the colony inspired the cultural life of the city of Oregon in the most diverse areas of the arts.

In 1904, Taft created The Blind statue , after which work began on his more monumental Black Hawk statue. There are a number of other works by Lorado Taft in the Oregon region.

Demographic data

Population development
Census	Residents	± in%
1880	1088	-
1890	1566	43.9%
1900	1577	0.7%
1910	2180	38.2%
1920	2227	2.2%
1930	2376	6.7%
1940	2825	18.9%
1950	3205	13.5%
1960	3732	16.4%
1970	3539	-5.2%
1980	3559	0.6%
1990	3891	9.3%
2000	4060	4.3%
Decennial US Census

In the official census in 2000 , the population was 4,060. These were distributed over 1,667 households in 1,066 families. The population density was 783.8 inhabitants per square kilometer. There were 1,794 residential buildings, which corresponded to a building density of 346.3 buildings per square kilometer.

The population in 2000 was 96.0 percent white , 1.0 percent African American , 0.1 percent Native American , 0.6 percent Asian, and 0.9 percent other. 1.3 percent said they came from at least two of these groups. 2.3 percent of the population were Hispanics belonging to any of the above groups.

23.8 percent were under 18 years of age, 7.9 percent between 18 and 24, 28.7 percent from 25 to 44, 22.0 percent from 45 to 64 and 17.6 percent 65 and over. The mean age was 38 years. For every 100 women there were statistically 93.8 men, 93.0 for those over 18 years of age.

The median income per household was 34,842 US dollars (USD), the median family income 41,250 USD. The median income for men was $ 35,247 and that for women was $ 20,652. The per capita income was $ 19,019. Around 10.8 percent of families and 15.9 percent of the total population had their income below the poverty line .

literature

Behrens, Marsha, et al. " Oregon Public Library ," ( PDF ), National Register of Historic Places Nomination Form, March 27, 2003, HAARGIS Database, Illinois Historic Preservation Agency . Retrieved July 4, 2007.
Novak, Alice. " Oregon Commercial Historic District ," ( PDF ), National Register of Historic Places Nomination Form, July 12, 2006, HAARGIS Database, Illinois Historic Preservation Agency . Retrieved July 4, 2007.
Ogle County Chamber of Commerce.