Oblong is a village in

Crawford County Crawford County is the name of eleven counties in the United States: * Crawford County, Arkansas * Crawford County, Georgia * Crawford County, Illinois * Crawford County, Indiana * Crawford County, Iowa * Crawford County, Kansas * Crawford 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 ...

. The population was 1,466 at the 2010 census, and then was later recorded to be 1,371 in the 2020 census.

History

Oblong was incorporated in 1883. The original town site was on a naturally occurring

oblong An oblong is a non-square rectangle. Oblong may also refer to: Places * Oblong, Illinois, a village in the United States * Oblong Township, Crawford County, Illinois, United States * A strip of land on the New York-Connecticut border in the Unit ...

ular prairie, hence the name. The crossroads at the town site was the location of a general store owned by Henry Peck. The prominent sign "Hen. Peck" gave rise to the village's original moniker, Henpeck.

Geography

Oblong is located at (39.001274, -87.908470). According to the 2021 census gazetteer files, Oblong has a total area of , of which (or 99.36%) is land and (or 0.64%) is water.

Demographics

As of the 2020 census there were 1,371 people, 766 households, and 433 families residing in the village. The population density was . There were 663 housing units at an average density of . The racial makeup of the village was 95.62%

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 ...

, 0.66%

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 ...

, 0.29% Native American, 0.07%

Asian Asian may refer to: * Items from or related to the continent of Asia: ** Asian people, people in or descending from Asia ** Asian culture, the culture of the people from Asia ** Asian cuisine, food based on the style of food of the people from Asi ...

, 0.07%

Pacific Islander Pacific Islanders, Pasifika, Pasefika, 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 the original p ...

, 0.22% 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 3.06% 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 1.09% of the population. There were 766 households, out of which 32.11% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 40.60% were married couples living together, 10.84% had a female householder with no husband present, and 43.47% were non-families. 30.81% of all households were made up of individuals, and 12.01% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.39 and the average family size was 1.90. The village's age distribution consisted of 20.8% under the age of 18, 8.0% from 18 to 24, 32.6% from 25 to 44, 19.3% from 45 to 64, and 19.1% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 34.9 years. For every 100 females, there were 92.4 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 81.3 males. The median income for a household in the village was $47,560, and the median income for a family was $49,279. Males had a median income of $33,208 versus $14,938 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 $21,621. About 10.2% of families and 20.1% 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 16.7% of those under age 18 and 12.4% of those age 65 or over.

Arts and culture

It is the home of the Illinois Oil Field Museum and Resource Center, a collection of early oilfield artifacts from the early days of the oil industry in the Illinois Basin and a resource center featuring a collection of early oil field records and resource books.

Education

Oblong has one public four year high school and one public grade school.

References

External links

Oblong Chamber of Commerce
{{authority control Villages in Crawford County, Illinois Villages in Illinois Populated places established in 1883 1883 establishments in Illinois Sundown towns in Illinois