Old Shawneetown is a

village A village is a clustered human settlement or community, larger than a hamlet but smaller than a town (although the word is often used to describe both hamlets and smaller towns), with a population typically ranging from a few hundred to ...

in Gallatin 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 ...

. As of the 2010 census, the village had a population of 193, down from 278 at the 2000 census. Located along the

Ohio River The Ohio River is a long river in the United States. It is located at the boundary of the Midwestern and Southern United States, flowing southwesterly from western Pennsylvania to its mouth on the Mississippi River at the southern tip of Illino ...

, Shawneetown served as an important United States government administrative center for the

Northwest Territory The Northwest Territory, also known as the Old Northwest and formally known as the Territory Northwest of the River Ohio, was formed from unorganized western territory of the United States after the American Revolutionary War. Established in 1 ...

. The village was devastated by the

Ohio River flood of 1937 The Ohio River flood of 1937 took place in late January and February 1937. With damage stretching from Pittsburgh to Cairo, Illinois, 385 people died, one million people were left homeless and property losses reached $500 million ($10.2 billion ...

. The village's population was moved several miles inland to New Shawneetown. 1937 flood Shawneetown Illinois refugees

History

At least one record suggests that a village was established here by the Pekowi Shawnee led by

Peter Chartier Peter Chartier (16901759) (Anglicized version of Pierre Chartier, sometimes written Chartiere, Chartiers, Shartee or Shortive) was a fur trader of mixed Shawnee and French parentage. Multilingual, he later became a leader and a band chief among ...

about 1758.Thwaites, Reuben Gold. ''The French Regime in Wisconsin and the Northwest,'' Vol I 1634-1760. State Historical Society of Wisconsin, 1908
/ref> In early November 1803,

Lewis and Clark Lewis may refer to: Names * Lewis (given name), including a list of people with the given name * Lewis (surname), including a list of people with the surname Music * Lewis (musician), Canadian singer * "Lewis (Mistreated)", a song by Radiohead ...

are believed to have stopped at Old Shawneetown on their way to

Fort Massac Fort Massac (or Fort Massiac) was a French colonial and early National-era fort on the Ohio River in Massac County, Illinois, United States. Its site was listed on the National Register of Historic Places in 1971. History The Spanish explorer ...

, just down the Ohio River. After the

American Revolution The American Revolution was an ideological and political revolution that occurred in British America between 1765 and 1791. The Americans in the Thirteen Colonies formed independent states that defeated the British in the American Revolut ...

, Shawneetown served as an important United States government administrative center for the

. Shawneetown and

Washington, D.C. ) , image_skyline = , image_caption = Clockwise from top left: the Washington Monument and Lincoln Memorial on the National Mall, United States Capitol, Logan Circle, Jefferson Memorial, White House, Adams Morgan, ...

, share the distinction of being the only towns chartered by the United States government. Old Shawneetown is the site of the first

bank A bank is a financial institution that accepts deposits from the public and creates a demand deposit while simultaneously making loans. Lending activities can be directly performed by the bank or indirectly through capital markets. Because ...

chartered in Illinois, in 1816. Originally in a log cabin, it was replaced in 1822 with a brick structure (only the second one in the town) now known as the

John Marshall House The John Marshall House is a historic house museum and National Historic Landmark at 818 East Marshall Street in Richmond, Virginia. It was the home of Chief Justice of the United States John Marshall, who was appointed to the court in 1801 ...

. Local legend states that the Shawneetown Bank refused to buy the first bonds issued by the city of

Chicago (''City in a Garden''); I Will , image_map = , map_caption = Interactive Map of Chicago , coordinates = , coordinates_footnotes = , subdivision_type = Country , subdivision_name ...

on the grounds that no city located that far from a navigable river could survive. Another historic bank building, the Bank of Illinois, was constructed in 1839-41 to house the offices of the Bank of Illinois at Shawneetown. It later housed numerous other financial institutions before it was closed in the 1930s. This fine example of

Greek Revival architecture The Greek Revival was an architectural movement which began in the middle of the 18th century but which particularly flourished in the late 18th and early 19th centuries, predominantly in northern Europe and the United States and Canada, but ...

survives as the Shawneetown Bank State Historic Site. Residents long remembered the visit by

Gilbert du Motier, Marquis de Lafayette Marie-Joseph Paul Yves Roch Gilbert du Motier, Marquis de La Fayette (6 September 1757 – 20 May 1834), known in the United States as Lafayette (, ), was a French aristocrat, freemasonry, freemason and military officer who fought in the Ameri ...

of France to the city on May 8, 1825, as a high point for the early community's social history.1887. ''History of Gallatin, Saline, Hamilton, Franklin and Williamson Counties, Illinois''. Chicago: Goodspeed Publishing Company. 96-97. After the

Great Flood of 1937 The Ohio River flood of 1937 took place in late January and February 1937. With damage stretching from Pittsburgh to Cairo, Illinois, 385 people died, one million people were left homeless and property losses reached $500 million ($10.2 billion ...

, many residents moved to the current location of

Shawneetown Shawneetown is a city in Gallatin County, Illinois, United States. The population was 1,239 at the 2010 census, down from 1,410 at the 2000 census. It is the county seat of Gallatin County. Geography Shawneetown is located southeast of the cent ...

. The old courthouse was torn down and a new Gallatin County Courthouse was constructed in 1939.

Geography

Old Shawneetown is located in southeastern Gallatin County at (37.698197, -88.136857), on the northwest bank of the

Illinois Route 13 Illinois Route 13 (IL 13) is a major east–west state route in southern Illinois. Illinois 13 has its western terminus at Centreville at Illinois Route 157 and its eastern terminus at the Kentucky state line and the Ohio River, at Kentucky ...

passes through the village. To the east it crosses the

Shawneetown Bridge The Earle C. Clements Bridge, commonly known as the Shawneetown Bridge, is a cantilever truss bridge carrying Kentucky Route 56 and Illinois Route 13 across the Ohio River. Clements was a former governor of Kentucky. The bridge connects Old Shaw ...

over the Ohio, becoming

Kentucky Route 56 Kentucky Route 56 (KY 56) is a state highway in Kentucky that runs from Illinois Route 13 (IL 13) near Old Shawneetown, Illinois, on the Shawneetown Bridge at the Kentucky-Illinois state line to KY 81 near Owensboro Owensboro ...

and leading to

Morganfield, Kentucky Morganfield is a home rule-class city in Union County, Kentucky, in the United States. It is the seat of its county. The population was 3,285 as of the year 2010 U.S. census. Name The city was named for Revolutionary War General Daniel Morga ...

. To the west, IL 13 leads to

, the Gallatin County seat, and to

Harrisburg Harrisburg is the capital city of the Pennsylvania, Commonwealth of Pennsylvania, United States, and the county seat of Dauphin County, Pennsylvania, Dauphin County. With a population of 50,135 as of the 2021 census, Harrisburg is the List of c ...

. According to the 2010 census, Old Shawneetown has a total area of , all land. In 2019, Old Shawneetown was featured on PBS News Hour in a segment on communities subjected to repeated flooding. Because of the town's historically flood-prone location, it is prohibitively difficult to insure, and some researchers have recommended a total relocation of the remaining residents as a preventative policy.

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 278 people, 100 households, and 69 families residing in the village. The population density was . There were 146 housing units at an average density of . The racial makeup of the village was 99.64%

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 ...

and 0.36% Native American.

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 1.08% of the population. There were 100 households, out of which 36.0% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 44.0% 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, 20.0% had a female householder with no husband present, and 31.0% were non-families. 24.0% of all households were made up of individuals, and 7.0% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.78 and the average family size was 3.36. In the village, the population was spread out, with 33.8% under the age of 18, 8.3% from 18 to 24, 27.0% from 25 to 44, 22.7% from 45 to 64, and 8.3% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 32 years. For every 100 females, there were 98.6 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 93.7 males. The median income for a household in the village was $18,214, and the median income for a family was $20,625. Males had a median income of $25,625 versus $13,750 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 $9,379. About 33.3% of families and 39.4% 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 60.6% of those under the age of eighteen and 33.3% of those 65 or over.

Notable people

Claudia Cassidy Claudia Cassidy (1899 – July 21, 1996), was an influential, 20th-century American performing arts critic. She was a long-time critic for the ''Chicago Tribune.'' Starting in 1925 she was music and drama critic for The Journal of Commerce. Sh ...

, music and drama critic for the ''

Chicago Tribune The ''Chicago Tribune'' is a daily newspaper based in Chicago, Illinois, United States, owned by Tribune Publishing. Founded in 1847, and formerly self-styled as the "World's Greatest Newspaper" (a slogan for which WGN radio and television ar ...

'' *

, Shawnee Indian chief *

Robert G. Ingersoll Robert Green Ingersoll (; August 11, 1833 – July 21, 1899), nicknamed "the Great Agnostic", was an American lawyer, writer, and orator during the Golden Age of Free Thought, who campaigned in defense of agnosticism. Personal life Robert Inge ...

, orator * Michael Kelly Lawler, Union Army officer *

John Alexander McClernand John Alexander McClernand (May 30, 1812 – September 20, 1900) was an American lawyer and politician, and a Union Army general in the American Civil War. He was a prominent Democratic politician in Illinois and a member of the United States H ...

, Union Army general and U.S. congressman *

John McLean John McLean (March 11, 1785 – April 4, 1861) was an American jurist and politician who served in the United States Congress, as U.S. Postmaster General, and as a justice of the Ohio and U.S. Supreme Courts. He was often discussed for ...

, U.S. senator and congressman *

William W. Wilshire William W. Wilshire (born William Wallace Wilshire; September 8, 1830 – August 19, 1888)Arkansas CourtsA Self-Guided Tour of Justice Building Portraits(2016), p. 8. was an American politician who served as the U.S. representative for ( ...

, U.S. congressman *

Bluford Wilson Bluford Wilson (November 30, 1841 – July 15, 1924) was a Union Army officer in the Civil War and a government official who served as Solicitor of the United States Treasury. Early life Bluford Wilson was born near Shawneetown, Illinois on No ...

, Union Army officer *

James Harrison Wilson James Harrison Wilson (September 2, 1837 – February 23, 1925) was a United States Army topographic engineer and a Union Army Major General in the American Civil War. He served as an aide to Maj. Gen. George B. McClellan during the Maryland Cam ...

, Union Army general

History

Geography

Demographics

Notable people

See also

References

Further reading