Oblong, Illinois

Coordinates: 39°0′5″N 87°54′30″W / 39.00139°N 87.90833°W / 39.00139; -87.90833

Oblong
Village
Country	United States
State	Illinois
County	Crawford
Coordinates	39°0′5″N 87°54′30″W / 39.00139°N 87.90833°W / 39.00139; -87.90833
Area	1.0 sq mi (3 km2)
- land	1.0 sq mi (3 km2)
Population	1,580 (2000)
Density	1,662.8 / sq mi (642 / km2)
Timezone	CST (UTC-6)
- summer (DST)	CDT (UTC-5)
Postal code	62449
Area code	618
Location of Oblong within Illinois
Wikimedia Commons: Oblong, Illinois

Oblong is a village in Crawford County, Illinois, United States. The population was 1,580 at the 2000 census. The village boasts itself as being "The Only Oblong" in the world. It is the home of the Illinois Oil Field Museum and Resource Center at Oblong, Illinois, a collection of early oilfield artifacts from the early days of the oil industry in the Illinois Basin and a resource center featuring a collection of early oil field records and resource books.

Oblong also boasts the largest nighttime marching band parade competition in the state of Illinois. The annual parade caps off the Oblong "Fall Follies" fall festival and the event is attended each year by large crowds of people from all around the surrounding areas.

Oblong was also featured in a prominent headline in the Chicago Tribune - "Oblong Man Marries Normal Woman" - referring to the matrimony of a man from Oblong, Illinois and woman from Normal, Illinois.

Oblong has one public four year high school and one public grade school. In athletics, Oblong High School's teams are nicknamed the "Panthers" for boys and "Lady Panthers" for the girls. Oblong Grade School touts "Tigers" as the nickname for its athletic teams.

According to the United States Census Bureau, the village has a total area of 1.0 square mile (2.6 km²), of which, 0.9 square miles (2.3 km²) of it is land and 1.04% is water.

History

Oblong was incorporated in 1883.^[1] The village was originally a crossroads, notable only for its general store, owned by Henry Peck. The store featured a prominent sign, "Hen. Peck" and people of the area referred to the crossroads as "Henpeck." When the village decided to incorporate, it was decided that Henpeck would be a terrible name for their fair village. While surveying the area in conjunction with the incorporation, a rectangular prairie was identified on the outskirts of the community - and thus, Oblong was born.

Demographics

As of the census^[2] of 2000, there were 1,580 people, 681 households, and 439 families residing in the village. The population density was 1,662.8 people per square mile (642.1/km²). There were 761 housing units at an average density of 800.9 per square mile (309.3/km²). The racial makeup of the village was 98.92% White, 0.19% African American, 0.25% Native American, 0.13% Asian, and 0.51% from two or more races. Hispanic or Latino of any race were 0.57% of the population. Oblong is mentioned by James Loewen^[3] as a sundown town.

There were 681 households out of which 27.6% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 48.9% were married couples living together, 12.3% had a female householder with no husband present, and 35.4% were non-families. 32.3% of all households were made up of individuals and 18.5% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.25 and the average family size was 2.81.

In the village the population was spread out with 22.8% under the age of 18, 7.7% from 18 to 24, 24.9% from 25 to 44, 20.8% from 45 to 64, and 23.9% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 41 years. For every 100 females there were 81.2 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 80.5 males.

The median income for a household in the village was $27,409, and the median income for a family was $36,532. Males had a median income of $27,135 versus $20,560 for females. The per capita income for the village was $14,926. About 7.0% of families and 9.9% of the population were below the poverty line, including 15.0% of those under age 18 and 5.6% of those age 65 or over.

References

1. ^ Columbia-Lippincott Gazeteer. 1952 Edition, p. 1362
2. ^ "American FactFinder". United States Census Bureau. http://factfinder.census.gov. Retrieved 2008-01-31. 
3. ^ Loewen, James W. (2005). Sundown Towns: A Hidden Dimension of American Racism. New Press. ISBN 1-56584-887-X.

External links

• Oblong Chamber of Commerce