El Paso, Illinois should not be confused with El Paso, Texas.
| El Paso, Illinois | |
| Settlement Type: | City |
| Pushpin Map: | USA |
| Pushpin Label Position: | left |
| Pushpin Label: | El Paso |
| Pushpin Map Caption: | Location in the United States |
| Coordinates: | 40.7406°N -89.0183°W |
| Subdivision Type: | Country |
| Subdivision Name: | United States |
| Subdivision Type1: | State |
| Subdivision Name1: | Illinois |
| Subdivision Type2: | Counties |
| Subdivision Name2: | Woodford, McLean |
| Subdivision Type3: | Townships |
| Subdivision Name3: | El Paso, Gridley |
| Established Title: | Founded |
| Leader Title: | Mayor |
| Leader Name: | JW Price |
| Leader Title1: | Mayor |
| Unit Pref: | Imperial |
| Area Footnotes: | [1] |
| Area Total Km2: | 5.56 |
| Area Total Sq Mi: | 2.15 |
| Area Land Km2: | 5.56 |
| Area Land Sq Mi: | 2.15 |
| Area Water Km2: | 0.00 |
| Area Water Sq Mi: | 0.00 |
| Elevation Ft: | 748 |
| Population As Of: | 2020 |
| Population Footnotes: | [2] |
| Population Total: | 2756 |
| Population Density Km2: | 496.04 |
| Population Density Sq Mi: | 1284.85 |
| Timezone1: | CST |
| Utc Offset1: | -6 |
| Timezone1 Dst: | CDT |
| Utc Offset1 Dst: | -5 |
| Postal Code Type: | ZIP code |
| Postal Code: | 61738 |
| Area Code: | 309 |
| Blank Name: | FIPS code |
| Blank Info: | 17-23737 |
| Blank Name Sec2: | FIPS code |
| Blank1 Name Sec2: | GNIS ID |
| Blank1 Info Sec2: | 2394632 |
| Blank2 Name Sec2: | Wikimedia Commons |
| Blank2 Info Sec2: | El Paso, Illinois |
El Paso is a city in Woodford and McLean counties in the U.S. state of Illinois. The population was 2,756 at the 2020 census.[2] The Woodford County portion of El Paso is part of the Peoria Metropolitan Statistical Area.
El Paso is a small community in central Illinois that took on more characteristics of a highway community after the construction of Interstate 39, which supplanted the older alignment of U.S. Highway 51.
El Paso was founded by George Gibson and James Wathen. Gibson gave it the Spanish name El Paso, either after El Paso, Texas,[3] or because of a nearby railroad junction.[4]
El Paso is located in southeastern Woodford County at 40.7389°N -89.0161°W (40.738800, -89.016034).[5] A small portion of the city limits extends east along U.S. Route 24 into northern McLean County. US 24 leads east to Interstate 55 in Chenoa and west to Peoria. Interstate 39 crosses the west side of El Paso, with access from Exit 14 (US 24); the Interstate highway leads south to Interstate 55 in Normal and north to La Salle. Illinois Route 251 follows the former alignment of U.S. Route 51 through the center of El Paso, leading north 11miles to Minonk and south 5miles to Kappa.
According to the U.S. Census Bureau, El Paso has a total area of 2.15sqmi, all land.[1] The city sits on high ground that drains north to the East Branch of Panther Creek and south to the headwaters of Wolf Creek. Both creek systems are south-flowing tributaries of the Mackinaw River and part of the Illinois River watershed.
As of the 2000 United States Census,[6] there were 2,695 people, 980 households, and 686 families residing in the city. The population density was 1743.9sp=usNaNsp=us. There were 1,022 housing units at an average density of 661.3sp=usNaNsp=us. The racial makeup of the city was 98.89% White, 0.15% African American, 0.15% Native American, 0.22% Asian, 0.22% from other races, and 0.37% from two or more races. Hispanic or Latino of any race were 0.71% of the population.
There were 980 households, out of which 35.9% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 57.9% were married couples living together, 8.6% had a female householder with no husband present, and 29.9% were non-families. 25.2% of all households were made up of individuals, and 13.1% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.58 and the average family size was 3.12.
In the city, the population was spread out, with 26.6% under the age of 18, 8.6% from 18 to 24, 28.7% from 25 to 44, 19.8% from 45 to 64, and 16.3% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 36 years. For every 100 females, there were 92.1 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 87.7 males.
The median income for a household in the city was $47,745, and the median income for a family was $55,286. Males had a median income of $36,406 versus $25,174 for females. The per capita income for the city was $21,730. About 1.6% of families and 3.2% of the population were below the poverty line, including 2.1% of those under age 18 and 6.6% of those age 65 or over.
El Paso's school district, CUSD #11,[7] is the product of a consolidation with the school district of Gridley, IL. CUSD #11's schools are split between El Paso and Gridley:[8]