Wenona is a city in

Marshall Marshall may refer to: Places Australia * Marshall, Victoria, a suburb of Geelong, Victoria Canada * Marshall, Saskatchewan * The Marshall, a mountain in British Columbia Liberia * Marshall, Liberia Marshall Islands * Marshall Islands, an i ...

and LaSalle counties in the

U.S. state In the United States, a state is a constituent political entity, of which there are 50. Bound together in a political union, each state holds governmental jurisdiction over a separate and defined geographic territory where it shares its sover ...

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 ...

. The population was 1,056 at the 2010 census, down from 1,065 in 2000. The Marshall County portion of Wenona is part of the Peoria

Metropolitan Statistical Area In the United States, a metropolitan statistical area (MSA) is a geographical region with a relatively high population density at its core and close economic ties throughout the area. Such regions are neither legally Incorporated town, incorporate ...

, while the small portion that lies in LaSalle County is part of the

Ottawa Ottawa (, ; Canadian French: ) is the capital city of Canada. It is located at the confluence of the Ottawa River and the Rideau River in the southern portion of the province of Ontario. Ottawa borders Gatineau, Quebec, and forms the core ...

Micropolitan Statistical Area.

History

Around 1852, the first buildings had been erected within the town, including living quarters for the rail-men, the freight depot, and passenger station. This same year, the house for Gr. W. Goodwell; Wenona's Station Agent and First

Postmaster A postmaster is the head of an individual post office, responsible for all postal activities in a specific post office. When a postmaster is responsible for an entire mail distribution organization (usually sponsored by a national government), ...

, was completed. Along with the Post Office, in June of 1854; the

Presbyterian Church Presbyterianism is a part of the Reformed tradition within Protestantism that broke from the Roman Catholic Church in Scotland by John Knox, who was a priest at St. Giles Cathedral (Church of Scotland). Presbyterian churches derive their nam ...

was set up. During the winter months of 1854, W.M Brown arrived to Wenona with a large stock of goods; A building was built to accommodate his sales. Wenona was laid off by the

Illinois Central Railroad Company Illinois ( ) is a state in the Midwestern United States. Its largest metropolitan areas include the Chicago metropolitan area, and the Metro East section, of Greater St. Louis. Other smaller metropolitan areas include, Peoria and Rockf ...

on May 15th, 1855. At the time, the town had around 9 buildings, and 50 permanent citizens. By 1858 it had grown rapidly, and was now a thrifty village of several hundred inhabitants, with two hotels, a number of stores, and other branches of business in proportion. A great amount of grain was annually shipped at this point, and a considerable amount of trade was carried on with the surrounding country. The largest single industry contributing to the growth and prosperity of Wenona was its coal mine, located in the northeast quarter of the town, east of the Illinois Central tracks. The mine was opened under the Hamilton-Hodge-Monser partnership and was incorporated November 9, 1882, as the Wenona Coal Co. The partnership was soon dissolved and ownership passed on to E. L. Monser with Geo. S. Monser production manager and W. E. Monser sales manager. The vein of coal varied from 3' 6" to 4.' Peak employment numbered 550 miners and the average payroll approximated $30,000 per month, paid to employees in gold coin for a number of years, later cash at the mine and finally by checks at the bank. The mine operated from 1882 to 1924, at which time it was closed never to reopen. A new union scale was said to have made it unprofitable for the company to continue mining such a thin vein. It was during the operation of the mine and World War I that the population of Wenona reached an all-time high of 1892 inhabitants. It was said by old timers that on the day after pay-day at the mines, the

Chicago & Alton The Alton Railroad was the final name of a railroad linking Chicago to Alton, Illinois; St. Louis, Missouri; and Kansas City, Missouri. Its predecessor, the Chicago and Alton Railroad , was purchased by the Baltimore and Ohio Railroad in 1931 a ...

depot was so crowded with people that the railroad could not accommodate its out-of-town passengers. At the height of the

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, the highest spot in town played a role in US defense. Beginning in April 1958, atop the slag pile from the old Wenona coal mine, a radar station was developed which was equipped to detect incoming missiles and enemy airplanes potentially headed to Chicago or Milwaukee. The radar station was manned by approximately 20 troops from the 45th AAA Brigade and the 105th Signal Corps Detachment. It could detect aircraft as far up as 75,000 feet in any direction, and as far away as 200 nautical miles. The Wenona station was one of 10 stations set up in Illinois, Michigan, and Wisconsin within 200 miles of Chicago in the

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

. The radar station included two metal buildings and the radar antenna. The base of the slag pile was surrounded by a six-strand barbed-wire fence. Prior to constructing the buildings on top of the slag pile, 30 feet was graded off the top and a circular roadway was built around the slag pile from bottom to top. The following men served at the Wenona Radar Station and settled in Wenona after completion: Russ Martin, James Brown, and Howard Engler. The

Army An army (from Old French ''armee'', itself derived from the Latin verb ''armāre'', meaning "to arm", and related to the Latin noun ''arma'', meaning "arms" or "weapons"), ground force or land force is a fighting force that fights primarily on ...

left Wenona in 1959, but before leaving town, planted the seeds on the mound which gave way to the beautiful forestry seen today. The Wenona Coal Mine Historical Site was dedicated by members of the Wenona Historical Society on August 10, 2018 during the Wenona Days celebration. It is the hopes of the society that future generations may visit this site to learn about its unique history within the heart of the community.

Geography

Wenona is located at (41.053080, −89.053415). Most of the city lies in Marshall County, although a small portion extends into southern LaSalle County. In the 2000 census, all of Wenona's 1,065 residents lived in Marshall County. As of 2021, Wenona has a total area of , all land. According to the 2010 census, the city has a total area of , all land.

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 2020, there were 974 people, 488 households, and 256 families residing in the city. The population density was . There were 497 housing units at an average density of . The racial makeup of the city was 89.63%

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, 2.67%

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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 ...

, 0.41% Native American, 0.72%

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, 1.85% from some other race and 4.72% from two or more races. 5.85% of the population were

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 ...

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of any race. There were 488 households, out of which 30.1% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 34.8% 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, 15.8% had a female householder with no husband present, and 47.5% were non-families. 38.5% of all households were made up of individuals, and 20.3% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.20 and the average family size was 3.05. In the city, the population was spread out, with 26.6% under the age of 18, 11.0% from 18 to 24, 22.1% from 25 to 44, 22.4% from 45 to 64, and 18.0% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 34.9 years. For every 100 females, there were 82.2 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 78.2 males. The median income for a household in the city was $35,179, and the median income for a family was $55,833. Males had a median income of $42,917 versus $22,917 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 city was $24,417. About 18.4% of families and 19.6% 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 15.7% of those under age 18 and 18.0% of those age 65 or over.

References

External links

{{authority control Cities in Marshall County, Illinois Cities in Illinois Peoria metropolitan area, Illinois Ottawa, IL Micropolitan Statistical Area Cities in LaSalle County, Illinois