Zeigler is a city in Franklin County,

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 ...

United States The United States of America (USA), also known as the United States (U.S.) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It is a federal republic of 50 U.S. state, states and a federal capital district, Washington, D.C. The 48 ...

. The population was 1,484 at the 2020 census.

History

In 1905, fifty men were killed in a coal mining accident in or near the town. Zeigler incorporated in 1914 and was named for Levi Zeigler Leiter, the father of

Joseph Leiter Levi Ziegler Leiter (November 2, 1834 – June 9, 1904) was an American businessman based in Chicago. He co-founded what later became the Marshall Field's, Marshall Field & Company retail empire. Early life Leiter was born to Anne (née Ziegler ...

, the founder of the Zeigler Coal Company.
Franklin County, Illinois, 1818-1997
' (Turner Publishing Company, 1996), p. 27.

Geography

Zeigler is located in southwestern Franklin County at (37.899856, -89.053429). Illinois Route 149 passes through the center of town, leading east to West Frankfort and west to Royalton.

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 ...

is east of Zeigler via Route 149. Illinois Route 148 follows the western border of Zeigler, leading north to

Christopher Christopher is the English language, English version of a Europe-wide name derived from the Greek language, Greek name Χριστόφορος (''Christophoros'' or ''Christoforos''). The constituent parts are Χριστός (''Christós''), "Jesus ...

and south to Herrin. The city is laid out in the shape of a wagon wheel, with the post office, library, and several shops concentrated around a circular park at the center, and streets radiating out from the center. According to the 2021 census gazetteer files, Zeigler has a total area of , of which (or 99.49%) is land and (or 0.51%) is water.

Demographics

As of the 2020 census there were 1,484 people, 662 households, and 400 families residing in the city. The population density was . There were 743 housing units at an average density of . The racial makeup of the city was 94.00%

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 ...

, 0.34%

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 ...

, 0.34% Native American, 0.40% Asian, 0.00%

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 ...

, 0.67% from other races, and 4.25% 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 1.42% of the population. There were 662 households, out of which 26.4% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 35.95% were married couples living together, 16.16% had a female householder with no husband present, and 39.58% were non-families. 32.02% of all households were made up of individuals, and 17.67% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 3.13 and the average family size was 2.61. The city's age distribution consisted of 21.3% under the age of 18, 8.4% from 18 to 24, 24.6% from 25 to 44, 23.2% from 45 to 64, and 22.4% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 41.8 years. For every 100 females, there were 98.8 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 97.5 males. The median income for a household in the city was $44,342, and the median income for a family was $51,563. Males had a median income of $30,598 versus $20,793 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 $17,721. About 15.0% of families and 20.8% 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 24.3% of those under age 18 and 14.8% of those age 65 or over.

Notable people

* Nick Holonyak, invented the first practically useful visible

LED A light-emitting diode (LED) is a semiconductor device that emits light when current flows through it. Electrons in the semiconductor recombine with electron holes, releasing energy in the form of photons. The color of the light (corresp ...

in 1962; born in Zeigler * Babe Martin, outfielder and catcher for the St. Louis Browns and

Boston Red Sox The Boston Red Sox are an American professional baseball team based in Boston. The Red Sox compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the American League (AL) American League East, East Division. Founded in as one of the Ameri ...

; grew up in Zeigler *

Mike Milosevich Michael Milosevich (January 13, 1915 – February 3, 1966) was a shortstop in Major League Baseball player who played from 1944 to 1945 for the New York Yankees. Listed at , , he batted and threw right-handed. External links

* 1915 births ...

, shortstop for the

New York Yankees The New York Yankees are an American professional baseball team based in the Boroughs of New York City, New York City borough of the Bronx. The Yankees compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the American League (AL) Am ...

; born in Zeigler

References

External links

City of Zeigler official website
{{authority control Cities in Franklin County, Illinois Cities in Illinois Populated places in Southern Illinois