Cobden is a village in Union County,

Illinois Illinois ( ) is a U.S. state, state in the Midwestern United States, Midwestern United States. Its largest metropolitan areas include the Chicago metropolitan area, and the Metro East section, of Greater St. Louis. Other smaller metropolita ...

United States The United States of America (U.S.A. or USA), commonly known as the United States (U.S. or US) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It consists of 50 states, a federal district, five major unincorporated territorie ...

, within the

Southern Illinois Southern Illinois, also known as Little Egypt, is the southern third of Illinois, principally along and south of Interstate 64. Although part of a Midwestern United States, Midwestern state, this region is aligned in culture more with that of th ...

region informally known as "Little Egypt.” The population as of the 2020 census is 1,034, a decline of 10.63% since the 2010 census. Cobden is regionally known for the mascot of its public school district, Cobden Unit School District #17, called the "Appleknockers,” which has been voted as one of the most unique high school mascots in the country by numerous publications. The area around Cobden is widely known for its many

wineries A winery is a building or property that produces wine, or a business involved in the production of wine, such as a wine company. Some wine companies own many wineries. Besides wine making equipment, larger wineries may also feature warehouses, b ...

and

orchard An orchard is an intentional plantation of trees or shrubs that is maintained for food production. Orchards comprise fruit- or nut-producing trees which are generally grown for commercial production. Orchards are also sometimes a feature of larg ...

s, most notably Flamm Orchards, which is just north of town, and Rendleman Orchard in nearby

Alto Pass, Illinois Alto Pass is a village in Union County, Illinois, United States. The population was 391 at the 2010 census, an increase from 388 in 2000. The Bald Knob Cross and Bald Knob Wilderness are nearby. Alto Pass lies roughly 5.1 miles to the northwest ...

History

The village is named after

British British may refer to: Peoples, culture, and language * British people, nationals or natives of the United Kingdom, British Overseas Territories, and Crown Dependencies. ** Britishness, the British identity and common culture * British English, ...

politician

Richard Cobden Richard Cobden (3 June 1804 – 2 April 1865) was an English Radical and Liberal politician, manufacturer, and a campaigner for free trade and peace. He was associated with the Anti-Corn Law League and the Cobden–Chevalier Treaty. As a young ...

, who visited the town in 1859. An early variant name was "South Pass". Cobden began as an agricultural town and developed around the tracks of a route owned by the

Illinois Central Railroad The Illinois Central Railroad , sometimes called the Main Line of Mid-America, was a railroad in the Central United States, with its primary routes connecting Chicago, Illinois, with New Orleans, Louisiana, and Mobile, Alabama. A line also co ...

(now owned by

Canadian National Railway The Canadian National Railway Company (french: Compagnie des chemins de fer nationaux du Canada) is a Canadian Class I freight railway headquartered in Montreal, Quebec, which serves Canada and the Midwestern and Southern United States. CN i ...

), as well as being along a main highway,

U.S. Highway 51 U.S. Route 51 or U.S. Highway 51 (US 51) is a major south-north United States highway that extends from the western suburbs of New Orleans, Louisiana, to within of the Wisconsin–Michigan state line. As most of the United States Numbered Highw ...

, running through the region.

Geography

Cobden is located at (37.533949, -89.255409). Cobden lies 13.7 miles south of

Carbondale, Illinois Carbondale is a city in Jackson and Williamson Counties, Illinois, United States, within the Southern Illinois region informally known as "Little Egypt". The city developed from 1853 because of the stimulation of railroad construction into the ...

and just north of the towns of

Anna, Illinois Anna is the largest community and retail trade center in Union County, Illinois, United States. Located in Southern Illinois, its population was 4,442 at the 2010 United States Census, a decline from 5,135 in 2000. It is known for being tied to it ...

and

Jonesboro, Illinois Jonesboro is a city in Union County, Illinois, United States. The population was 1,821 at the 2010 census, a decline from 1,853 in 2000. It is the county seat of Union County. The city is known for being tied to its close neighbor Anna, together ...

, along Old U.S Highway 51, which runs straight through town. Nearby

lies 5.1 miles to the northwest. According to the 2010 census, Cobden has a total area of , of which (or 99.27%) is land and (or 0.73%) is water. Cobden is located near the crest of the

Shawnee Hill The Shawnee Hills is a region of southern Illinois that rests mainly in an east-west arc roughly following the outline of the southern end of the Illinois Basin. Whereas Mississippian and Pennsylvania Age rock layers are deep beneath the soil su ...

s. It is in "Cobden Col", a valley cut into rock by water near the summit of this ancient mountain range. Approximately 100,000 years ago, the Illinoian ice sheet covered almost all of Illinois. As it pushed south, the ice sheet climbed the Shawnee Mountains. The height of the ice sheet was much greater than that of the mountains. It stopped before it reached their summits. As it melted, a lake formed between the mountains and the glacier. Cobden Col was the outlet of this lake.

Mascot

Cobden's claim to fame is its unique

mascot A mascot is any human, animal, or object thought to bring luck, or anything used to represent a group with a common public identity, such as a school, professional sports team, society, military unit, or brand name. Mascots are also used as fi ...

, an Appleknocker, or a man with freckles wearing overalls, a flannel shirt, a straw hat, and chewing on a piece of straw. This nickname originated when the

high school A secondary school describes an institution that provides secondary education and also usually includes the building where this takes place. Some secondary schools provide both '' lower secondary education'' (ages 11 to 14) and ''upper seconda ...

first began to compete in athletics. It did not yet have a mascot, so other schools made up this derogatory term to insult the new school because of their large industry in

peach The peach (''Prunus persica'') is a deciduous tree first domesticated and cultivated in Zhejiang province of Eastern China. It bears edible juicy fruits with various characteristics, most called peaches and others (the glossy-skinned, non-fu ...

and

apple An apple is an edible fruit produced by an apple tree (''Malus domestica''). Apple fruit tree, trees are agriculture, cultivated worldwide and are the most widely grown species in the genus ''Malus''. The tree originated in Central Asia, wh ...

s. However, when Cobden High School played for and lost the state

basketball Basketball is a team sport in which two teams, most commonly of five players each, opposing one another on a rectangular Basketball court, court, compete with the primary objective of #Shooting, shooting a basketball (ball), basketball (appr ...

championship in 1964, this name was cemented in the town's history and became part of its cultural identity.

Demographics

As of the

census A census is the procedure of systematically acquiring, recording and calculating information about the members of a given population. This term is used mostly in connection with national population and housing censuses; other common censuses incl ...

of 2000, there were 1,116 people, 421 households, and 276 families residing in the village. The population density was . There were 457 housing units at an average density of . The racial makeup of the village was 90.68%

White White is the lightest color and is achromatic (having no hue). It is the color of objects such as snow, chalk, and milk, and is the opposite of black. White objects fully reflect and scatter all the visible wavelengths of light. White on ...

, 1.43%

African American African Americans (also referred to as Black Americans and Afro-Americans) are an ethnic group consisting of Americans with partial or total ancestry from sub-Saharan Africa. The term "African American" generally denotes descendants of ens ...

, 0.63% Native American, 5.73% from

other races Other often refers to: * Other (philosophy), a concept in psychology and philosophy Other or The Other may also refer to: Film and television * ''The Other'' (1913 film), a German silent film directed by Max Mack * ''The Other'' (1930 film), a ...

, and 1.52% from two or more races.

Hispanic The term ''Hispanic'' ( es, hispano) refers to people, Spanish culture, cultures, or countries related to Spain, the Spanish language, or Hispanidad. The term commonly applies to countries with a cultural and historical link to Spain and to Vic ...

Latino Latino or Latinos most often refers to: * Latino (demonym), a term used in the United States for people with cultural ties to Latin America * Hispanic and Latino Americans in the United States * The people or cultures of Latin America; ** Latin A ...

of any race were 12.90% of the population. There were 421 households, out of which 30.6% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 49.9% were

married couples Marriage, also called matrimony or wedlock, is a culturally and often legally recognized union between people called spouses. It establishes rights and obligations between them, as well as between them and their children, and between t ...

living together, 12.1% had a female householder with no husband present, and 34.4% were non-traditional families. 30.6% of all households were made up of individuals, and 14.5% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.47 and the average family size was 3.16. In the village, the population was spread out, with 25.2% under the age of 18, 8.0% from 18 to 24, 23.8% from 25 to 44, 25.1% from 45 to 64, and 17.9% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 40 years. For every 100 females, there were 83.9 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 83.1 males. The median income for a household in the village was $26,364, and the median income for a family was $32,500. Males had a median income of $25,938 versus $19,423 for females. The

per capita income Per capita income (PCI) or total income measures the average income earned per person in a given area (city, region, country, etc.) in a specified year. It is calculated by dividing the area's total income by its total population. Per capita i ...

for the village was $13,978. About 13.7% of families and 22.1% 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 t ...

, including 21.5% of those under age 18 and 14.7% of those age 65 or over.

Notable people

Mary Tracy Earle Mary Tracy Earle (October 21, 1864 – September 7, 1955) was an American fiction writer. She contributed short stories and occasional essays to various periodicals. Among her published works can be counted ''The Wonderful Wheel'' (1896), ''The Ma ...

(1864-1955), author * Thomas Oscar Freeman (1947-1982), murderer and murder victim

References

Sources

*"History of Cobden," History Committee of the Cobden Community Development Program, 1955 {{authority control Villages in Union County, Illinois Villages in Illinois Mexican-American history