Centralia is a city in Clinton, Jefferson,

Marion Marion or MARION may refer to: Arts and entertainment *Marion (band), a British alternative rock group * ''Marion'' (miniseries), a 1974 miniseries * ''Marion'' (1920 film), an Italian silent film * ''Marion'' (2024 film), a UK short People a ...

, and

Washington Washington most commonly refers to: * George Washington (1732–1799), the first president of the United States * Washington (state), a state in the Pacific Northwest of the United States * Washington, D.C., the capital of the United States ** A ...

counties in the U.S. state of

Illinois Illinois ( ) is a U.S. state, state in the Midwestern United States, Midwestern United States. It borders on Lake Michigan to its northeast, the Mississippi River to its west, and the Wabash River, Wabash and Ohio River, Ohio rivers to its ...

with the largest portion in Marion County. The city is the largest in three counties, Clinton, Marion, and Washington, but it is not a county seat for any of them. The population was 12,182 as of the 2020 census, down from 13,032 in

2010 The year saw a multitude of natural and environmental disasters such as the 2010 Haiti earthquake, the Deepwater Horizon oil spill, and the 2010 Chile earthquake. The 2009 swine flu pandemic, swine flu pandemic which began the previous year ...

History

Centralia is named for the

Illinois Central Railroad The Illinois Central Railroad , sometimes called the Main Line of Mid-America, is a railroad in the Central United States. Its primary routes connected Chicago, Illinois, with New Orleans, New Orleans, Louisiana, and Mobile, Alabama, and thus, ...

, built in 1853. The city was founded where the two original branches of the railroad converged. Centralia was first chartered as a city in 1859. Now

Canadian National The Canadian National Railway Company () is a Canadian Class I freight railway headquartered in Montreal, Quebec, which serves Canada and the Midwestern and Southern United States. CN is Canada's largest railway, in terms of both revenue an ...

owns the line. The intersection of the Third Principal Meridian and its baseline is in the southern city limits. This initial point was established in 1815, and it governs land surveys for about 60% of the state of Illinois, including

Chicago Chicago is the List of municipalities in Illinois, most populous city in the U.S. state of Illinois and in the Midwestern United States. With a population of 2,746,388, as of the 2020 United States census, 2020 census, it is the List of Unite ...

. The original monument is at the junction of Highway 51 and the Marion-Jefferson County Line Road; today there is a small easement situated in the northeast corner of this intersection, which contains a monument and historical marker. Production of the PayDay candy bar began here in 1938.

Michael Moore Michael Francis Moore is an American film director, producer, screenwriter, and author. Moore's work frequently addresses various Social issue, social, political, and economic topics. He first became publicly known for his award-winning debut ...

's documentary, ''The Big One'' (1998), opens with the closing of this candy bar plant in the late 20th century. It addresses similar economic woes in other cities. The town of Centerville, Washington, was renamed

Centralia, Washington Centralia () is a city in Lewis County, Washington, Lewis County, Washington (state), Washington, United States. It is located along Interstate 5 in Washington, Interstate 5 near the midpoint between Seattle and Portland, Oregon. The city had a ...

to avoid being confused with another Centerville in that state. A former resident of the Illinois town suggested the change. Centralia's city flag was designed in 1924 by Wendell Bauer, whose design was awarded first prize in a community-wide design competition. A broad red stripe through the center of the flag represents the railroads to which the city owes its existence. A gold star above and below the stripe signifies the area's mining and agricultural industries. Lastly, a triangle pyramid with a sphinx head design is symbolic of Egypt, a tribute to Southern Illinois’ nickname, “Little Egypt”. The Centralia mine disaster occurred in 1947 when the nearby Centralia No. 5 coal mine exploded, killing 111 people. The disaster was memorialized in folk singer

Woody Guthrie Woodrow Wilson Guthrie (; July 14, 1912 – October 3, 1967) was an American singer, songwriter, and composer widely considered to be one of the most significant figures in American folk music. His work focused on themes of American Left, A ...

's song "The Dying Miner".

Geography

Centralia is located approximately east of

St. Louis, Missouri St. Louis ( , sometimes referred to as St. Louis City, Saint Louis or STL) is an Independent city (United States), independent city in the U.S. state of Missouri. It lies near the confluence of the Mississippi River, Mississippi and the Miss ...

. Most of the city, including its downtown, is in southwestern Marion County, but the city extends west into Clinton County and south into Washington and Jefferson counties. The city is north of exit 61 of

Interstate 64 Interstate 64 (I-64) is an east–west Interstate Highway in the Eastern United States. Its western terminus is at Interstate 70, I-70, U.S. Route 40 (US 40), and U.S. Route 61, US 61 in Wentzville, Missouri. Its eastern ter ...

and west of exit 109 of

Interstate 57 Interstate 57 (I-57) is a north–south Interstate Highway that exists in two segments. It runs through Arkansas, Missouri, and Illinois. I-57 parallels the old Illinois Central Railroad for much of its route north of Interstate 55, I-55. T ...

. Centralia is one of three Illinois cities with portions in four counties, the others being Barrington Hills and

Aurora An aurora ( aurorae or auroras), also commonly known as the northern lights (aurora borealis) or southern lights (aurora australis), is a natural light display in Earth's sky, predominantly observed in high-latitude regions (around the Arc ...

. Because of its unique location within multiple counties, portions of Centralia are associated with different

Core Based Statistical Area A core-based statistical area (CBSA) is a U.S. geographic area defined by the Office of Management and Budget (OMB). It contains a large population nucleus, or urban area, and adjacent communities that have a high degree of integration with t ...

s (CBSAs). The Centralia Micropolitan Statistical Area includes all of Marion County. The Clinton County portion of the city is considered part of the

St. Louis St. Louis ( , sometimes referred to as St. Louis City, Saint Louis or STL) is an independent city in the U.S. state of Missouri. It lies near the confluence of the Mississippi and the Missouri rivers. In 2020, the city proper had a populatio ...

, MO–IL Metropolitan Statistical Area, while the Jefferson County portion lies within the Mt. Vernon Micropolitan Statistical Area. The portion of Centralia in Washington County is not considered part of any metropolitan or micropolitan area. According to the 2021 census gazetteer files, Centralia has a total area of , of which (or 88.81%) is land and (or 11.19%) is water.

Demographics

2020 census

As of the 2020 census there were 12,182 people, 5,458 households, and 2,776 families residing in the city. The population density was . There were 5,900 housing units at an average density of . The racial makeup of the city was 77.92%

White White is the lightest color and is achromatic (having no chroma). It is the color of objects such as snow, chalk, and milk, and is the opposite of black. White objects fully (or almost fully) reflect and scatter all the visible wa ...

, 11.01%

African American African Americans, also known as Black Americans and formerly also called Afro-Americans, are an Race and ethnicity in the United States, American racial and ethnic group that consists of Americans who have total or partial ancestry from an ...

, 0.24% Native American, 2.09% Asian, 0.01%

Pacific Islander Pacific Islanders, Pasifika, Pasefika, Pacificans, or rarely Pacificers are the peoples of the list of islands in the Pacific Ocean, Pacific Islands. As an ethnic group, ethnic/race (human categorization), racial term, it is used to describe th ...

, 1.33% from other races, and 7.41% from two or more races.

Hispanic The term Hispanic () are people, Spanish culture, cultures, or countries related to Spain, the Spanish language, or broadly. In some contexts, Hispanic and Latino Americans, especially within the United States, "Hispanic" is used as an Ethnici ...

or Latino of any race were 3.29% of the population. There were 5,458 households, of which 25.9% had children under 18 living with them, 35.36% were married couples living together, 12.59% had a female householder with no husband present, and 49.14% were non-families. 40.67% of all households comprised individuals, and 19.59% had someone who was 65 or older living alone. The average household size was 2.92, and the average family size was 2.20. The city's age distribution consisted of 24.1% under 18, 7.5% from 18 to 24, 23.8% from 25 to 44, 22.8% from 45 to 64, and 21.9% who were 65 or older. The median age was 40.8 years. For every 100 females, there were 92.4 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 89.5 males. The median income for a household in the city was $39,117, and the median income for a family was $60,754. Males had a median income of $38,632 versus $25,986 for females. The

per capita income Per capita income (PCI) or average income measures the average income earned per person in a given area (city, region, country, etc.) in a specified year. In many countries, per capita income is determined using regular population surveys, such ...

for the city was $25,141. About 15.7% of families and 23.1% of the population were below the

poverty line The poverty threshold, poverty limit, poverty line, or breadline is the minimum level of income deemed adequate in a particular country. The poverty line is usually calculated by estimating the total cost of one year's worth of necessities for ...

, including 36.9% of those under age 18 and 10.0% of those age 65 or over.

Arts and culture

Centralia Cultural Society

The Centralia Cultural Society is a community arts center. The center hosts the Centralia Philharmonic Orchestra (an amateur orchestra), the Little Theatre Players, the Choral Society, Bronze Expressions Handbell Ensemble; and periodically hosts galleries by the Light and Lens photography club, and Palette and Brush club, and student art shows. The Little Theatre Players was established in 1961, and performs plays and musicals.

Local features

Foundation Park is the site of the annual Balloon Fest. Recent events have had about forty balloons and drew 40,000 visitors. The Annual Centralia Balloon Festival was the event in which the second "Space Shuttle" hot air balloon crashed and burned due to a fuel line defect. Foundation Park also hosts the Fantasy of Lights drive-through holiday light display during November and December. In addition to Foundation Park, the Centralia Foundation supports the Centralia Carillon. Completed in 1983, with 65

bell A bell /ˈbɛl/ () is a directly struck idiophone percussion instrument. Most bells have the shape of a hollow cup that when struck vibrates in a single strong strike tone, with its sides forming an efficient resonator. The strike may be m ...

s, the

carillon A carillon ( , ) is a pitched percussion instrument that is played with a musical keyboard, keyboard and consists of at least 23 bells. The bells are Bellfounding, cast in Bell metal, bronze, hung in fixed suspension, and Musical tuning, tu ...

is ranked as the eighth-largest in the world. The largest bell, Great Tom, weighs tons. Currently, the tower is under renovation and looking for a carillonneur. One of only two remaining 2500-class steam locomotives from the Illinois Central Railroad is preserved on static display at Centralia's Fairview Park. The Age of Steam Memorial non-profit organization maintains the locomotive. A 9415 caboose and a rare

Republic F-105 Thunderchief The Republic F-105 Thunderchief is an American fighter-bomber that served with the United States Air Force from 1958 to 1984. Capable of Mach 2, it conducted the majority of strike bombing missions during the early years of the Vietnam War. It ...

aircraft are also on display in the park.

Historic downtown

Centralia's downtown features historic architecture and has seen recent development, including the addition of a Splash Pad near the Centralia Carillon.

Commercial Historic District

In 2012, the downtown area of Centralia was added to the

National Register of Historic Places The National Register of Historic Places (NRHP) is the Federal government of the United States, United States federal government's official United States National Register of Historic Places listings, list of sites, buildings, structures, Hist ...

. Notable historic buildings include the former Langenfeld Hotel, Centralia House restaurant, Old National Bank buildings, Sadler Opera House, Centralia Sentinel Building, and the Illinois Theater. The Langenfeld Hotel was "established in 1912 by John Langenfield" and "became the premier hotel in the area." Images of the Langenfield Hotel have been used for postcards featuring Centralia. The name Langenfield was also connected to the historic Langenfield Motor Company buildings. The Centralia Sentinel Building houses the Centralia Morning Sentinel newspaper and features

Egyptian Revival Egyptian Revival is an architectural style that uses the motifs and imagery of ancient Egypt. It is attributed generally to the public awareness of ancient Egyptian monuments generated by Napoleon's French campaign in Egypt and Syria, invasion of ...

style architecture. This may be connected to Southern Illinois' nickname of "Egypt," or "Little Egypt." The Illinois Theater in downtown Centralia used to be a vaudeville and movie theater and is currently undergoing renovations that will enable it to seat 500 and hold professional entertainment performances.

The Centralia Area Historical Museum

The Centralia Area Historical Museum is free and contains three stories of photographs and artifacts from Centralia's extensive history as a major railway hub and mining town. The museum accepts items either as donations or through loans. In addition to the displays, the museum also contains the George Ross Library, which holds city history books, newspapers, periodicals, family histories, and genealogies.

Parks and recreation

Centralia's Foundation Park is a scenic park that features hiking trails, an exercise trail, an ice skating pond, and two fishing ponds stocked with bass, bluegill, and catfish. The park also sports a restored prairie, a 36-hole disc-golf course, a Chapel in the Woods, the Hall Shelter, the Sentinel Shelter, The Bowl (an outdoor amphitheater), Moose Oven, and the Miner's Memorial. Fairview Park includes baseball and softball fields, tennis and sand volleyball courts, a skate park, a swimming pool complex, playgrounds, and picnic shelters. The Centralia Recreational Complex is a 60,000-square-foot recreational facility with a walking track, indoor basketball courts, competition and leisure swimming pools, weight rooms, and exercise classrooms. Two lakes near Centralia offer water sports and fishing recreation. Raccoon Lake is a 970-acre man-made lake. It was built in 1942 and is a water

reservoir A reservoir (; ) is an enlarged lake behind a dam, usually built to water storage, store fresh water, often doubling for hydroelectric power generation. Reservoirs are created by controlling a watercourse that drains an existing body of wa ...

. Boating and fishing are permitted on Raccoon Lake with the appropriate licenses and permits. The lake hosts the annual Outboard Power Boat Races (as sponsored by the National Boat Racing Association and Outboard Drivers Association). Lake Centralia is a 412-acre man-made lake constructed in 1910. It is a reservoir and location for water sports activities such as boating and fishing. It has an average depth of 10 feet. It is located slightly northeast of Centralia.

Largemouth bass The largemouth bass (''Micropterus nigricans'') is a carnivorous, freshwater fish, freshwater, ray-finned fish in the Centrarchidae (sunfish) family, native to the eastern United States, eastern and central United States, southeastern Canada an ...

bluegill The bluegill (''Lepomis macrochirus''), sometimes referred to as "bream", "brim", "sunny", or, in Texas, "copper nose", is a species of North American freshwater fish, native to and commonly found in streams, rivers, lakes, ponds and wetlands ea ...

crappie Crappies () are two species of North American freshwater fish of the genus ''Pomoxis'' in the family Centrarchidae (sunfishes). Both species of crappies are popular game fish among recreational anglers. Etymology The genus name ''Pomoxi ...

, and

channel catfish The channel catfish (''Ictalurus punctatus''), known informally as the "channel cat", is a species of catfish native to North America. They are North America's most abundant catfish species, and the official state fish of Kansas, Missouri, Nebra ...

populate the lake. Fishing licenses and boating permits are required. Fishermen are limited to two pole and line fishing. Largemouth bass fishing tournaments are held on Centralia Lake, with 28 tournaments being held in 2018.

Education

Public elementary schools in Centralia include Schiller Elementary (PK–1st grade), Jordan Elementary (2nd–3rd grade), and Centralia Junior High School (4th–8th grade). According to the 2018–2019 Illinois Report Card for school districts, Schiller Elementary scored as a Lowest Performing school, Jordan Elementary as a Commendable school, and Centralia Jr. High as an Underperforming school. Private elementary schools in Centralia include Trinity Lutheran School (K–8), affiliated with Trinity Lutheran Church, St. Mary School (Preschool and K–8), affiliated with St. Mary Catholic Church, and New Horizon Christian School (Preschool and K–8), affiliated with Greenview Christian Church. Centralia's public high school is Centralia High School. Its sports teams are called the Orphans and Annies. The Centralia boys basketball team won its 2,000th game during the 2007–08 season, becoming the first high school basketball team in the nation to achieve that milestone. The Centralia Orphans were the State Runner-Up in the 2011 Class 3A. The Orphans got their unique nickname during the early 1900s when the boys basketball team made it to the state tournament. The school was low on funds then, and the team was forced to pick its uniforms from a pile of non-matching red uniforms. At the state tournament, an announcer commented that the team looked like a bunch of orphans on the court because of their mismatched uniforms. The name stuck. Previously, the team had gone by nicknames such as the Reds and Cardinals. In 2013 and 2014, the Centralia Orphans were named the Most Unique Mascot in the nation by ''USA Today''. The private Christ Our Rock Lutheran High School first opened its doors in August 2004 with nine students. As of 2013, the student body has grown to over 100 students. Christ Our Rock is the home of the Silver Stallions. Post-secondary education is available at

Kaskaskia College Kaskaskia College is a public community college in Centralia, Illinois. Kaskaskia College's Community College District 501 serves all or part of nine counties, including Bond, Clinton, Fayette, Marion, Washington, Jefferson, St. Clair, Madison, ...

, a community college serving the Centralia region. Kaskaskia College has extension centers in the surrounding towns of Vandalia, Salem, Greenville, Trenton, and

Nashville Nashville, often known as Music City, is the capital and List of municipalities in Tennessee, most populous city in the U.S. state of Tennessee. It is the county seat, seat of Davidson County, Tennessee, Davidson County in Middle Tennessee, locat ...

. The Harry L. Crisp Technology Center, located on the east side of Centralia, houses occupational and technical programs. Kaskaskia College and its education centers also offer non-degree community education courses on subjects such as photography, gardening, and beekeeping. Kaskaskia College is the site of the Jim Beasley Veterans Tribute, honoring veterans connected to the Kaskaskia College District 501. The Airgo International Flight School is a professional flight training school located at the Centralia Municipal Airport.

Government

Mayors of Centralia

Infrastructure

Transportation

IL 161 runs east and west directly through Centralia, and US Highway 51 runs north and south through the city.

South Central Transit South Central Illinois Mass Transit District is a provider of mass transportation in Clinton, Franklin, Jefferson, Marion, Perry and Washington counties in Illinois, with deviated fixed-routes serving numerous cities, as well as demand-re ...

is the public transportation system for Centralia and surrounding areas. The City of Centralia owns and operates the Centralia Municipal Airport, a general aviation facility that can accommodate corporate and private aircraft. The runway is 5001 feet long. Airgo, Inc. is the

fixed-base operator A fixed-base operator (FBO) is an organization granted the right by an airport to operate at the airport and provide aeronautical services such as fueling, hangaring, tie-down, and parking, aircraft rental, aircraft maintenance, flight instruction ...

at the Centralia Municipal Airport.

Rail transportation

Amtrak The National Railroad Passenger Corporation, Trade name, doing business as Amtrak (; ), is the national Passenger train, passenger railroad company of the United States. It operates intercity rail service in 46 of the 48 contiguous United Stat ...

, the national passenger rail system, provides service to Centralia. Amtrak Train 59, the southbound '' City of New Orleans'', departs Centralia at 12:25 am daily with service to Carbondale, Fulton, Newbern- Dyersburg,

Memphis Memphis most commonly refers to: * Memphis, Egypt, a former capital of ancient Egypt * Memphis, Tennessee, a major American city Memphis may also refer to: Places United States * Memphis, Alabama * Memphis, Florida * Memphis, Indiana * Mem ...

Greenwood Green wood is unseasoned wood. Greenwood or Green wood may also refer to: People * Greenwood (surname) Settlements Australia * Greenwood, Queensland, a locality in the Toowoomba Region * Greenwood, Western Australia, a suburb of Perth ...

Yazoo City Yazoo City is the county seat of Yazoo County, Mississippi, United States. It was named after the Yazoo River, which, in turn was named by the French explorer Robert La Salle in 1682 as "Rivière des Yazous" in reference to the Yazoo tribe livi ...

Jackson Jackson may refer to: Places Australia * Jackson, Queensland, a town in the Maranoa Region * Jackson North, Queensland, a locality in the Maranoa Region * Jackson South, Queensland, a locality in the Maranoa Region * Jackson oil field in Durham, ...

, Hazlehurst, Brookhaven, McComb,

Hammond Hammond may refer to: People * Hammond Innes (1913–1998), English novelist * Hammond (surname) * Justice Hammond (disambiguation) Places Antarctica * Hammond Glacier, Antarctica Australia *Hammond, South Australia, a small settlement in Sout ...

and

New Orleans New Orleans (commonly known as NOLA or The Big Easy among other nicknames) is a Consolidated city-county, consolidated city-parish located along the Mississippi River in the U.S. state of Louisiana. With a population of 383,997 at the 2020 ...

. Amtrak Train 58, the northbound ''City of New Orleans'', departs Centralia at 4:10 am daily with service to Effingham, Mattoon, Champaign-Urbana, Kankakee, Homewood and

. Centralia is also served by Amtrak Train 390/391, the ''Saluki'', daily in the morning, and Amtrak Train 392/393, the ''Illini'', daily in the afternoon/evening. Both the ''Saluki'' and the ''Illini'' operate between Chicago and Carbondale.

Correctional center

The Centralia Correctional Center is a medium security prison for adult males opened in 1980. With an operating capacity of 1,572, its population in 2019 was 1,281.

Notable people

Chad Beguelin Chad Beguelin (born September 24, 1969) is an American playwright and lyricist. He wrote the lyrics and co-wrote the book for '' The Prom''. He also wrote the book for Disney's ''Aladdin'', as well as additional lyrics for the score. He was nomi ...

, playwright and four-time Tony Award nominee * Warren Billhartz, state legislator, businessman, and lawyer *

David Blackwell David Harold Blackwell (April 24, 1919 – July 8, 2010) was an American statistician and mathematician who made significant contributions to game theory, probability theory, information theory, and statistics. He is one of the eponyms of the ...

, statistician and first black member of

National Academy of Sciences The National Academy of Sciences (NAS) is a United States nonprofit, NGO, non-governmental organization. NAS is part of the National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine, along with the National Academy of Engineering (NAE) and the ...

James Brady James Scott Brady (August 29, 1940 – August 4, 2014) was an American public official who served as assistant to the U.S. president and the 17th White House Press Secretary, serving under President Ronald Reagan. In 1981, John Hinckley J ...

, press secretary to President

Ronald Reagan Ronald Wilson Reagan (February 6, 1911 – June 5, 2004) was an American politician and actor who served as the 40th president of the United States from 1981 to 1989. He was a member of the Republican Party (United States), Republican Party a ...

Gilbert Bundy Gilbert Bundy (1911 – November 21, 1955) was an American cartoonist and illustrator, particularly for ''Esquire'', ''Life'', ''Judge'', and ''The Saturday Evening Post'' magazines. He killed himself on the 12th anniversary of a deeply traumat ...

(1911–1955), cartoonist and illustrator, born in Centralia *

Roland Burris Roland Wallace Burris (born August 3, 1937) is an American politician and attorney who served as Attorney General of Illinois from 1991 to 1995 and as a United States senator from Illinois from 2009 until 2010. A member of the Democratic Party, ...

, Illinois Attorney General, comptroller, United States senator * Brian Dinkelman, second baseman with the

Minnesota Twins The Minnesota Twins are an American professional baseball team based in Minneapolis. The Twins compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the American League (AL) American League Central, Central Division. The team is named afte ...

* Dike Eddleman, small forward with the Tri-Cities Blackhakws/Milwaukee Hawks and

Fort Wayne Pistons The Detroit Pistons are an American professional basketball team based in Detroit. The Pistons compete in the National Basketball Association (NBA) as a member of the Central Division of the Eastern Conference. The team plays its home games at ...

Bryan Eversgerd Bryan David Eversgerd (born February 11, 1969) is an American professional baseball coach and former pitcher. He played in Major League Baseball (MLB) for the St. Louis Cardinals, Montreal Expos, and Texas Rangers, and was the bullpen coa ...

, pitcher with

St. Louis Cardinals The St. Louis Cardinals are an American professional baseball team based in St. Louis. The Cardinals compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the National League (baseball), National League (NL) National League Central, Centra ...

and coach * Dwight Friedrich, state legislator and businessman *

Gary Gaetti Gary Joseph Gaetti (, ; born August 19, 1958), is an American former professional baseball third baseman. He played in Major League Baseball (MLB) for the Minnesota Twins (1981–1990), California Angels (1991–1993), Kansas City Royals (1993– ...

, third baseman with the 1987

World Series The World Series is the annual championship series of Major League Baseball (MLB). It has been contested since between the champion teams of the American League (AL) and the National League (NL). The winning team, determined through a best- ...

champion

and five other

MLB Major League Baseball (MLB) is a professional baseball league composed of 30 teams, divided equally between the National League (baseball), National League (NL) and the American League (AL), with 29 in the United States and 1 in Canada. MLB i ...

teams *

Dick Garrett Eldo "Dick" Garrett (born January 31, 1947) is an American former professional basketball player who played five seasons in the National Basketball Association (NBA). He played college basketball for the Southern Illinois Salukis. Career A 6'3" ...

, guard with

Southern Illinois Southern Illinois is a region of the U.S. state of Illinois comprising the southern third of the state, principally south of Interstate 70. Part of downstate Illinois, it is bordered by the two List of U.S. rivers by discharge, most voluminous ri ...

and NBA's

Los Angeles Lakers The Los Angeles Lakers are an American professional basketball team based in Los Angeles. The Lakers compete in the National Basketball Association (NBA) as a member of the Pacific Division (NBA), Pacific Division of the Western Conference (NBA ...

Buffalo Braves The Buffalo Braves were an American professional basketball team based in Buffalo, New York. The Braves competed in the National Basketball Association (NBA) as a member of the Atlantic Division (NBA), Atlantic Division of the Eastern Conference ...

New York Knicks The New York Knickerbockers, shortened and more commonly referred to as the New York Knicks, are an American professional basketball team based in the Boroughs of New York City, New York City borough of Manhattan. The Knicks compete in the Na ...

, and

Milwaukee Bucks The Milwaukee Bucks are an American professional basketball team based in Milwaukee. The Bucks compete in the National Basketball Association (NBA) as a member of the Central Division (NBA), Central Division of the Eastern Conference (NBA), East ...

* Adruitha Lee, Academy Award-winning hairstylist for her work in the film ''

Dallas Buyers Club ''Dallas Buyers Club'' is a 2013 American biographical drama film written by Craig Borten and Melisa Wallack, and directed by Jean-Marc Vallée. The film tells the story of Ron Woodroof (Matthew McConaughey), a cowboy diagnosed with AIDS in ...

'' (along with Robin Mathews) * Mary Lee, actress *

Jean Madeira Jean Madeira, née Jean Browning (November 14, 1918 – July 11, 1972) was an American contralto, particularly known for her work in late-romantic German repertoire such as the operas of Richard Wagner and Richard Strauss. Madeira was born in Ch ...

, opera singer * Bobby Joe Mason, basketball player,

Bradley University Bradley University is a private university in Peoria, Illinois, United States. Founded in 1897, Bradley University enrolls 5,200 students who are pursuing degrees in more than 100 undergraduate programs and more than 30 graduate programs in fiv ...

and

Harlem Globetrotters The Harlem Globetrotters is an American Exhibition game, exhibition basketball team. They combine athleticism, theater, entertainment, and comedy in their style of play. Over the years, they have played more than 26,000 exhibition games in 124 ...

Harlem globetrotter all time roster. http://www.harlemglobetrotters.com/harlem-globetrotters-all-time-roster . Access date 5 June 2014 * Ken "Preacher" McBride, Harlem Globetrotter * Florence McClure, Nevada activist * Ora A. Oldfield, Illinois state senator and businessman'Illinois Blue Book 1947–1948,' Biographical Sketch of Ora A. Oldfield, pg. 258-29 * Gene Paulette, infielder for four

Major League Baseball Major League Baseball (MLB) is a professional baseball league composed of 30 teams, divided equally between the National League (baseball), National League (NL) and the American League (AL), with 29 in the United States and 1 in Canada. MLB i ...

teams; born in Centralia *

Smiley Quick Lyman Loren "Smiley" Quick (March 19, 1909 – December 23, 1979) was an American professional golfer who played on the PGA Tour in the 1940s and 1950s. Quick was born in Centralia, Illinois, but lived most of his life in southern California in ...

, golfer with the PGA Tour * Charles W. Root, Minnesota state legislator and lawyer *

Kirk Rueter Kirk Wesley Rueter ( ; born December 1, 1970), nicknamed "Woody", is an American former professional baseball pitcher who played 13 seasons in Major League Baseball (MLB), primarily for the San Francisco Giants. He also played for the Montreal Ex ...

, left-handed pitcher for thirteen seasons, for the

Montreal Expos The Montreal Expos () were a Canadian professional baseball team based in Montreal. The Expos were the first Major League Baseball (MLB) franchise located outside the United States. They played in the National League (baseball), National League ...

and

San Francisco Giants The San Francisco Giants are an American professional baseball team based in San Francisco. The Giants compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the National League (baseball), National League (NL) National League West, West Div ...

Nancy Scranton Nancy Scranton (born April 26, 1961) is an American professional golfer. Scranton was born in Centralia, Illinois. She attended Florida State University and the University of Kentucky. Her rookie season on the LPGA Tour was 1985. She has three t ...

, golfer with the

LPGA The Ladies Professional Golf Association (LPGA) is an American organization for female golfers. The organization is headquartered at LPGA International in Daytona Beach, Florida, and is best known for running the LPGA Tour, a series of weekly ...

Tour * June C. Smith, Chief Justice of the Illinois Supreme Court * Tom Wargo, golfer with the

Senior PGA Tour PGA Tour Champions (formerly the Senior PGA Tour and the Champions Tour) is a men's professional senior golf tour, open to golfers age 50 and over, administered as a branch of the PGA Tour. History and format The Senior PGA Championship, f ...

Dottie Wham Dorothy Wham (née Stonecipher; January 5, 1925 – October 20, 2019) was an American politician from the state of Colorado. Early life Wham was born on January 5, 1925, as Dorothy Stonecipher, in Centralia, Illinois. She graduated from MacMurray ...

, Colorado state legislator *

Robert Wham Robert Shanklin Wham (January 18, 1926 – December 21, 2011) was an American lawyer and politician. Background Wham was born in Centralia, Illinois. He married Dorothy Stonecipher in 1947. Wham graduated from University of Illinois College of ...

, lawyer and Colorado state legislator

References

49. https://www.ilga.gov/legislation/ilcs/ilcs4.asp?DocName=006500050HArt%2E+6&ActID=802&ChapterID=14&SeqStart=60100000&SeqEnd=64500000

External links

City of Centralia official website
{{authority control Cities in Clinton County, Illinois Cities in Jefferson County, Illinois Cities in Washington County, Illinois Cities in Marion County, Illinois Cities in Illinois Populated places established in 1853