Mount Carroll is a city in and the county seat of Carroll County, Illinois, United States. The population was 1,479 at the 2020 census.
Mount Carroll, Illinois | |
|---|---|
 | |
| Motto: Where we take the time to care | |
 Interactive map of Mount Carroll, Illinois | |
  Mount Carroll  Mount Carroll | |
| Coordinates: 42°05′41″N 89°58′37″W / 42.09472°N 89.97694°W | |
| Country | United States |
| State | Illinois |
| County | Carroll |
| Named after | Charles Carroll of Carrollton |
| Area | |
• Total | 2.00 sq mi (5.19 km2) |
| • Land | 2.00 sq mi (5.19 km2) |
| • Water | 0 sq mi (0 km2) |
| Elevation | 794 ft (242 m) |
| Population (2020) | |
• Total | 1,479 |
| • Density | 738.3/sq mi (285.04/km2) |
| Time zone | UTC-6 (CST) |
| • Summer (DST) | UTC-5 (CDT) |
| ZIP code | 61053 |
| Area code | 815 |
| FIPS code | 17-50881 |
| GNIS feature ID | 2395121[2] |
| Website | www |
History
edit
Mount Carroll began life as a mill town around 1841. In 1843, a referendum moved the county seat from nearby Savanna to Mount Carroll. The town was incorporated in 1855 and became a city in 1867; the first mayor was Nathaniel Halderman, a prominent local businessman and co-founder of the mill.[3]
Shimer College was established in Mt. Carroll in 1853, but mounting debts forced a move to Waukegan in 1979 and subsequently to Chicago in 2006. The campus now is home to several organizations, most notably the Campbell Center for Historic Preservation Studies.
Geography
editMount Carroll is located slightly northwest of the center of Carroll County. U.S. Route 52 passes through the southern part of the city, leading east 7 miles (11 km) to Lanark and west 10 miles (16 km) to Savanna on the Mississippi River.
According to the 2021 census gazetteer files, Mount Carroll has a total area of 2 square miles (5.18 km2), all land.[4]
Climate
editMt. Carroll has a humid continental climate (Köppen climate classification: Dfa), with cold winters, hot summers, and four seasons.[5] Annual precipitation is about 40 inches.
Due to its elevation and northwesterly location, Mount Carroll is subject to unusually cold winter weather. From 1930 to 1999, Mount Carroll held the record for the lowest temperature ever recorded in Illinois, −35 °F (−37 °C), recorded on January 22, 1930.[6][7] The record was beaten by Congerville in 1999, by one degree Fahrenheit. 20 years later, on January 31, 2019, during an extreme cold snap, Mount Carroll regained the title of coldest city in Illinois when a new Illinois state record low temperature of −38 °F (−39 °C) was officially recorded.[8]
| Climate data for Mount Carroll, Illinois (1991–2020 normals, extremes 1897–present) | |||||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Month | Jan | Feb | Mar | Apr | May | Jun | Jul | Aug | Sep | Oct | Nov | Dec | Year |
| Record high °F (°C) | 61 (16) |
73 (23) |
85 (29) |
92 (33) |
104 (40) |
104 (40) |
108 (42) |
103 (39) |
99 (37) |
91 (33) |
79 (26) |
69 (21) |
108 (42) |
| Mean daily maximum °F (°C) | 30.7 (−0.7) |
35.3 (1.8) |
47.5 (8.6) |
60.6 (15.9) |
72.3 (22.4) |
81.7 (27.6) |
84.9 (29.4) |
83.3 (28.5) |
76.9 (24.9) |
63.9 (17.7) |
48.5 (9.2) |
35.8 (2.1) |
60.1 (15.6) |
| Daily mean °F (°C) | 20.8 (−6.2) |
24.8 (−4.0) |
36.6 (2.6) |
48.2 (9.0) |
59.8 (15.4) |
69.4 (20.8) |
72.6 (22.6) |
70.7 (21.5) |
63.3 (17.4) |
51.1 (10.6) |
38 (3) |
26.4 (−3.1) |
48.5 (9.2) |
| Mean daily minimum °F (°C) | 10.9 (−11.7) |
14.3 (−9.8) |
25.7 (−3.5) |
35.8 (2.1) |
47.3 (8.5) |
57 (14) |
60.4 (15.8) |
58.1 (14.5) |
49.6 (9.8) |
38.3 (3.5) |
27.4 (−2.6) |
17.1 (−8.3) |
36.8 (2.7) |
| Record low °F (°C) | −38 (−39) |
−36 (−38) |
−16 (−27) |
2 (−17) |
15 (−9) |
31 (−1) |
35 (2) |
32 (0) |
14 (−10) |
4 (−16) |
−15 (−26) |
−28 (−33) |
−38 (−39) |
| Average precipitation inches (mm) | 1.66 (42) |
1.83 (46) |
2.51 (64) |
3.9 (99) |
4.57 (116) |
5.49 (139) |
4.89 (124) |
3.91 (99) |
3.71 (94) |
3.02 (77) |
2.6 (66) |
2.21 (56) |
40.3 (1,020) |
| Average snowfall inches (cm) | 10.2 (26) |
7.9 (20) |
3.6 (9.1) |
0.8 (2.0) |
0 (0) |
0 (0) |
0 (0) |
0 (0) |
0 (0) |
0.4 (1.0) |
1.7 (4.3) |
8.8 (22) |
33.4 (85) |
| Average precipitation days (≥ 0.01 in) | 8.9 | 7.6 | 8.9 | 11.4 | 12.7 | 11.6 | 8.9 | 8.7 | 8.6 | 8.7 | 8.1 | 9.2 | 113.3 |
| Average snowy days (≥ 0.1 in) | 5.2 | 4.2 | 1.9 | 0.3 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0.2 | 0.8 | 4.7 | 17.3 |
| Source: NOAA[9][10] | |||||||||||||
Demographics
edit| Census | Pop. | Note | %± |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1850 | 462 | — | |
| 1860 | 1,323 | 186.4% | |
| 1870 | 1,756 | 32.7% | |
| 1890 | 1,836 | — | |
| 1900 | 1,965 | 7.0% | |
| 1910 | 1,759 | −10.5% | |
| 1920 | 1,806 | 2.7% | |
| 1930 | 1,775 | −1.7% | |
| 1940 | 1,845 | 3.9% | |
| 1950 | 1,950 | 5.7% | |
| 1960 | 2,056 | 5.4% | |
| 1970 | 2,143 | 4.2% | |
| 1980 | 1,936 | −9.7% | |
| 1990 | 1,726 | −10.8% | |
| 2000 | 1,832 | 6.1% | |
| 2010 | 1,717 | −6.3% | |
| 2020 | 1,479 | −13.9% | |
| U.S. Decennial Census[11] | |||
2020 census
editAs of the 2020 census, Mount Carroll had a population of 1,479. The median age was 51.5 years. 16.0% of residents were under the age of 18 and 28.9% of residents were 65 years of age or older. For every 100 females there were 94.3 males, and for every 100 females age 18 and over there were 94.8 males age 18 and over.[12][13]
The population density was 738.39 inhabitants per square mile (285.09/km2). There were 812 housing units at an average density of 405.39 per square mile (156.52/km2). There were 403 families residing in the city.[14]
0.0% of residents lived in urban areas, while 100.0% lived in rural areas.[15]
Among households, 20.7% had children under the age of 18 living in them. Of all households, 43.2% were married-couple households, 21.3% were households with a male householder and no spouse or partner present, and 26.0% were households with a female householder and no spouse or partner present. About 34.8% of all households were made up of individuals and 17.6% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older.[12]
Of housing units, 17.2% were vacant. The homeowner vacancy rate was 2.2% and the rental vacancy rate was 21.2%.[12]
| Race | Number | Percent |
|---|---|---|
| White | 1,408 | 95.2% |
| Black or African American | 5 | 0.3% |
| American Indian and Alaska Native | 0 | 0.0% |
| Asian | 3 | 0.2% |
| Native Hawaiian and Other Pacific Islander | 0 | 0.0% |
| Some other race | 6 | 0.4% |
| Two or more races | 57 | 3.9% |
| Hispanic or Latino (of any race) | 42 | 2.8% |
Income and poverty
editThe median income for a household in the city was $54,821, and the median income for a family was $62,788. Males had a median income of $42,396 versus $30,387 for females. The per capita income for the city was $27,966. About 6% of families and 10.3% of the population were below the poverty line, including 19.7% of those under age 18 and 5.5% of those age 65 or over.[14]
Arts and culture
edit
Mount Carroll enjoys a remarkable concentration of historically and architecturally significant structures. The bulk of the town's downtown and older residential area are included in the Mount Carroll Historic District, which encompasses 118 acres (48 ha) and was entered into the National Register of Historic Places in 1980. Mount Carroll is also home to the Campbell Center for Historic Preservation Studies, located on the historic former Shimer College campus near the south edge of town.
The Timber Lake Playhouse, the oldest semiprofessional summer stock theater company in Illinois, is located 4 miles (6 km) southeast of Mount Carroll. The Mount Carroll post office contains an oil on canvas mural, Rural Scene - Wakarusa Valley, painted by Irene Bianucci in 1941. Federally commissioned murals were produced from 1934 to 1943 in the United States through the Section of Painting and Sculpture, later called the Section of Fine Arts, of the Treasury Department.[16]
Transportation
edit
U.S. Route 52 and Illinois Route 64 (concurrent with US 52), east towards Lanark, west towards Savanna and the Mississippi River
Illinois Route 40, south towards Chadwick, Milledgeville and Sterling-Rock Falls
Illinois Route 78, north towards Stockton, south towards Morrison
The former Milwaukee Road line from Chicago to Omaha runs through Mount Carroll.
Education
editIt is in the West Carroll Community Unit School District 314[17]
Notable people
edit- Neva Burright, Illinois harness racing driver and first woman to win a Grand Circuit race
- Samuel James Campbell, banker and philanthropist; born in Mount Carroll
- John L. Griffith, college coach, first commissioner of the Big Ten Conference
- Dr. Blanche Moore Haines, physician; Michigan State chair of the National Woman Suffrage Association; graduated Mount Carroll High School
- Felix A. Kremer, Wisconsin State Assemblyman; born in Mount Carroll
- Howard Kyle (née Vandergrift), noted actor, Union School class of 1879 valedictorian
- Suzanna W. Miles, archaeologist, anthropologist, ethnohistorian and Mayanist; born in Mount Carroll
- Ward Miller, outfielder for five Major League Baseball teams; born in Mount Carroll.
- James Shaw, Illinois state representative, lawyer, judge, and geologist; practiced law in Mount Carroll
- Neta Snook, pioneer female aviator and aviation instructor
- Emmert L. Wingert, Wisconsin Supreme Court justice; born in Mount Carroll
Photos
edit
Downtown Market Street
Downtown Market Street
Downtown hotel
Downtown Main Street
References
edit- ↑ "2020 U.S. Gazetteer Files". United States Census Bureau. Retrieved March 15, 2022.
- 1 2 U.S. Geological Survey Geographic Names Information System: Mount Carroll, Illinois
- ↑ History of Carroll County. 1878. p. 358.
- ↑ "Gazetteer Files". Census.gov. United States Census Bureau. Retrieved June 29, 2022.
- ↑ Peel, M. C.; Finlayson, B. L.; McMahon, T. A. "World Map of Köppen-Geiger Climate Classification". The University of Melbourne. Archived from the original on January 13, 2015. Retrieved November 26, 2014.
- ↑ Paul T. Hellman (2013). "Mount Carroll". Historical Gazetteer of the United States. p. 293. ISBN 978-1135948597.
- ↑ Hilyard, Scott (February 28, 2019). "Congerville about to lose its extreme cold state record". PJStar.com. Peoria, Illinois. Retrieved May 1, 2019.
- ↑ "Illinois State Record Minimum Temperature at Mt. Carroll" (PDF). National Centers for Environmental Information. National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration. March 5, 2019. Retrieved May 1, 2019.
- ↑ "NowData – NOAA Online Weather Data". National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration. Retrieved July 11, 2021.
- ↑ "Station: MT Carroll, IL". U.S. Climate Normals 2020: U.S. Monthly Climate Normals (1991–2020). National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration. Retrieved July 11, 2021.
- ↑ "Census of Population and Housing". Census.gov. Retrieved June 4, 2015.
- 1 2 3 "2020 Decennial Census Demographic Profile (DP1)". United States Census Bureau. 2021. Retrieved May 1, 2026.
- 1 2 "2020 Decennial Census Redistricting Data (Public Law 94-171)". United States Census Bureau. 2021. Retrieved May 1, 2026.
- 1 2 "Explore Census Data". data.census.gov. Retrieved June 28, 2022.
- ↑ "2020 Decennial Census Demographic and Housing Characteristics (DHC)". United States Census Bureau. 2023. Retrieved May 1, 2026.
- ↑ "Post Office Mural". livingnewdeal.org. Living New Deal. Retrieved June 13, 2016.
- ↑ Geography Division (December 22, 2020). 2020 CENSUS - SCHOOL DISTRICT REFERENCE MAP: Carroll County, IL (PDF) (Map). U.S. Census Bureau. Retrieved June 18, 2025. - Text list
External links
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