Vandalia, Illinois Explained

Vandalia
Settlement Type:City
Motto:"Oldest Existing Illinois Capital City"
Image Map1:Illinois in United States (US48).svg
Map Caption1:Location of Illinois in the United States
Coordinates:38.9753°N -89.1117°W
Subdivision Type:Country
Subdivision Name: United States
Subdivision Type1:State
Subdivision Type2:County
Subdivision Name2:Fayette
Subdivision Type3:Townships
Subdivision Name3:Vandalia, Bear Grove, Sharon
Established Title:Founded
Established Date:1819
Leader Title:Mayor
Leader Name:Ricky J. Gottman
Leader Title1:Mayor
Unit Pref:Imperial
Area Footnotes:[1]
Area Total Km2:21.14
Area Total Sq Mi:8.16
Area Land Km2:21.10
Area Land Sq Mi:8.15
Area Water Km2:0.04
Area Water Sq Mi:0.02
Elevation Ft:518
Population As Of:2020
Population Total:7458
Population Density Km2:353.46
Population Density Sq Mi:915.43
Timezone1:CST
Utc Offset1:−6
Timezone1 Dst:CDT
Utc Offset1 Dst:−5
Postal Code Type:ZIP Code
Postal Code:62471
Area Code:618
Blank Name:FIPS code
Blank Info:17-77317
Blank1 Name:GNIS feature ID
Blank1 Info:2397119

Vandalia is a city in and the county seat of Fayette County, Illinois, United States.[2] At the 2020 Census, the population was 7,458. Vandalia is on the Kaskaskia River, and 60miles northeast of the St. Louis area. The city served as the state capital of Illinois from 1819 until 1839, when the seat of state government moved closer to the center of the state in Springfield. In the early 19th century, Vandalia was the western terminus of the National Road from the East Coast. Since 1933, the Vandalia State House State Historic Site has sought to preserve and interpret the State House building and grounds, originally constructed in 1836.

History

Vandalia was founded in 1819 as a new capital city for Illinois.[3] The previous capital, Kaskaskia, was unsuitable because it was under the constant threat of flooding. The townsite, located in Bond County at the time,[4] was hastily prepared for the 1820 meeting of the Illinois General Assembly. In 1821, Fayette County was created, including Vandalia.

The history of the name Vandalia is uncertain. Different theories can be found in almost all of the books written about Vandalia over the years. In her book Vandalia: Wilderness Capital of Lincoln's Land, Mary Burtschi tells of a conversation between one of the original surveyors of the town and a Vandalia resident. The surveyor, Colonel Greenup, explained that Van was suggested by one of the men. He recommended this as an abbreviation to the word vanguard meaning the forefront of an advancing movement. Another suggestion was made for the term dalia, derived from the Anglo-Saxon word dale which means a valley between hills. Greenup takes credit in the conversation for connecting the two terms to form the name Vandalia.

Another possible source of the name is the Vandalia colony, a failed attempt to establish a fourteenth colony in part of what is now West Virginia and Kentucky. The Vandalia colony was named in honor of Queen Charlotte, who claimed descent from the Wendish tribe of Obodrites, also called the Vandals.

Another theory put forth is that Vandalia was named by those who located the state capital in the town; according to the story, they mistakenly thought the Vandals were a brave Native American tribe, rather than of Germanic origins.[5] [6]

The law under which Vandalia was founded included a provision that the capital would not be moved for twenty years.[7] Even before the end of this period, the population center of the state had shifted far north of Vandalia.[8] In 1837, the General Assembly voted to move the capital to Springfield.

On November 21, 1915, the Liberty Bell passed through Vandalia on its nationwide tour, while being returned to Philadelphia, Pennsylvania from the Panama-Pacific International Exposition in San Francisco.[5] [9]

In the early 1960s the sociologist Joseph Lyford examined the social structure of Vandalia in a book-length study that revealed the essentially corporatist nature of decision-making in the city; this work was recently revisited by the Economist newspaper.[10]

Education

The city has a Board of Education.[11] Among the public schools in the city are Jefferson Elementary School and former Central School, which was condemned in 1980. The city's first high school was established in 1858.[12] Vandalia is home to the Okaw Valley Area Vocational Center,[13] which trains high school students in vocational trades. It also serves vocational students from nearby high schools such as those in Greenville and Mulberry Grove. The building trades class at the center each year purchases property in Vandalia, builds a house, and sells the improved property. They have sold 33 homes constructed by students.[14]

Geography

According to the 2010 census, Vandalia has a total area of 8.116sqmi, of which 8.1sqmi (or 99.8%) is land and 0.016sqmi (or 0.2%) is water.[15]

Vandalia is situated on Interstate 70, U.S. Route 40 (the National Road) and U.S. Route 51.

Climate

Demographics

As of the 2020 census[16] there were 7,458 people, 2,253 households, and 1,247 families residing in the city. The population density was 913.63PD/sqmi. There were 2,629 housing units at an average density of 322.06/sqmi. The racial makeup of the city was 83.70% White, 10.24% African American, 0.86% Native American, 0.48% Asian, 0.00% Pacific Islander, 1.98% from other races, and 2.74% from two or more races. Hispanic or Latino of any race were 6.91% of the population.

There were 2,253 households, out of which 27.0% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 40.21% were married couples living together, 10.30% had a female householder with no husband present, and 44.65% were non-families. 39.28% of all households were made up of individuals, and 18.20% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.97 and the average family size was 2.25.

The city's age distribution consisted of 16.2% under the age of 18, 11.4% from 18 to 24, 29% from 25 to 44, 27.4% from 45 to 64, and 16.0% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 38.5 years. For every 100 females, there were 144.5 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 148.2 males.

The median income for a household in the city was $35,862, and the median income for a family was $48,454. Males had a median income of $28,600 versus $23,833 for females. The per capita income for the city was $17,994. About 16.8% of families and 20.1% of the population were below the poverty line, including 22.9% of those under age 18 and 11.2% of those age 65 or over.

Government

Vandalia is governed using the mayor council system. The council consists of eight members elected from one of four wards with each ward electing two members. The mayor along with the city clerk and treasurer are elected in a citywide vote.[17]

Notable people

In fiction and popular culture

External links

Notes and References

  1. Web site: 2020 U.S. Gazetteer Files. United States Census Bureau. March 15, 2022.
  2. Web site: Find a County. 2011-06-07. National Association of Counties. https://web.archive.org/web/20110531210815/http://www.naco.org/Counties/Pages/FindACounty.aspx. 2011-05-31. live.
  3. Web site: Vandalia, Illinois History. Vandalia, Illinois. City of Vandalia. 10 July 2015. https://web.archive.org/web/20150508094603/http://www.vandaliaillinois.com/history.html. 8 May 2015. dead.
  4. Book: Documentary History of Vandalia, Illinois. October 1954. Internet Archive.
  5. Allan H. Keith, Historical Stories: About Greenville and Bond County, IL . Consulted on August 15, 2007.
  6. News: Place Names Have Colorful History . The Southeast Missourian . January 11, 1963 . 27 April 2015 . Allen, John W. . 6 . https://web.archive.org/web/20150904110828/https://news.google.com/newspapers?id=2MwfAAAAIBAJ&sjid=mNgEAAAAIBAJ&pg=1176%2C754300 . 4 September 2015 . live .
  7. News: Springfield's Long Nine. 10 July 2015. the New York Times. 1 December 1900. https://web.archive.org/web/20160117214900/http://timesmachine.nytimes.com/timesmachine/1900/12/01/102436998.html?pageNumber=3. 17 January 2016. live.
  8. Book: Power. John Carroll. History of the early settlers of Sangamon County, Illinois : centennial record. 1876. Edwin A. Wilson & Co.. Springfield, Illinois. 46. 10 July 2015. https://web.archive.org/web/20160118004643/https://archive.org/stream/historyofearlyse00powe#page/46/mode/2up. 18 January 2016. live.
  9. News: Liberty Bell Attracts Crowd in Greenville During 1915 Stop . Greenville Advocate . July 3, 2007 .
  10. News: The view from Vandalia: A half century on, a much-studied small city has lessons to teach . The Economist . December 22, 2012 . September 17, 2017 . https://web.archive.org/web/20171019232213/https://www.economist.com/news/united-states/21568724-half-century-much-studied-small-city-has-lessons-teach-view-vandalia . October 19, 2017 . live .
  11. News: Scaled-down school addition considered. Petrina. David. December 19, 1980. Herald & Review. Lee Enterprises. 298. Decatur, Illinois. 101. A5. Newspapers.com. https://web.archive.org/web/20190607012037/https://www.newspapers.com/clip/31188032/scaleddown_school_addition_considered/. June 7, 2019. live.
  12. Book: Belting, Paul E.. Development of the Free Public High School in Illinois to 1860. Illinois State Journal Press. 1919. Springfield, Illinois. 523. Internet Archive.
  13. Book: 2000-2001 Directory: Illinois Public Schools, Public School Districts, Other Education Units. 1989. Illinois State Board of Education. 153. Okaw Area Vocational Center. Internet Archive.
  14. News: BUILDING TRADES CLASS BUILDS 33RD HOME . WGEL . May 21, 2007 . 2007-08-14 . dead . https://web.archive.org/web/20070823002906/http://www.wgel.com/daily/2007/5-21-07.htm . August 23, 2007 .
  15. Web site: G001 - Geographic Identifiers - 2010 Census Summary File 1 . 2015-12-27 . . https://archive.today/20200213064904/http://factfinder.census.gov/bkmk/table/1.0/en/DEC/10_SF1/G001/1600000US1777317 . February 13, 2020 . dead .
  16. Web site: Explore Census Data . 2022-06-28 . data.census.gov.
  17. Web site: Elected Officials. City of Vandalia, IL. en-US. 2020-01-10.
  18. Web site: Google Scholar . 2015-03-10 . https://web.archive.org/web/20160120203640/https://scholar.google.com/scholar_case?case=11476101964234248941&hl=en&as_sdt=6&as_vis=1&oi=scholarr . 2016-01-20 . live .
  19. Web site: DANFS . 2022-12-29 . US Navy Dictionary of American Naval Fighting Ships . en-US.