Beaverville (formerly St. Marie) is a village in Beaverville Township, Iroquois County,

Illinois 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 Rock ...

, United States. The population was 362 at the 2010 census.

History

In 1851, 32 families from the area of

Montreal Montreal ( ; officially Montréal, ) is the second-most populous city in Canada and most populous city in the Canadian province of Quebec. Founded in 1642 as '' Ville-Marie'', or "City of Mary", it is named after Mount Royal, the triple- ...

, Canada, mostly newlywed or single, came up the St. Lawrence River in search of farmland on the prairie. They traveled across the

Great Lakes The Great Lakes, also called the Great Lakes of North America, are a series of large interconnected freshwater lakes in the mid-east region of North America that connect to the Atlantic Ocean via the Saint Lawrence River. There are five lakes ...

and stopped at

Fort Dearborn Fort Dearborn was a United States fort built in 1803 beside the Chicago River, in what is now Chicago, Illinois. It was constructed by troops under Captain John Whistler and named in honor of Henry Dearborn, then United States Secretary of War ...

(Chicago). Then they pushed south through the swamps and frontier until they reached the area that is now Beaverville. The settlement, named "St. Marie," was led by Francis Besse, who became a general merchant. The group consisted of families with names such as Fortin, Dionne, Boudreau, Benoit, Nourie, Lafond, Lemna, and at least six Arseneau families. They settled here because of the good land and the many creeks. In 1905, the village name was changed to "Beaverville", when the village founders realized that there was another town in Illinois named St. Mary. The new name was inspired by the profusion of

beaver Beavers are large, semiaquatic rodents in the genus ''Castor'' native to the temperate Northern Hemisphere. There are two extant species: the North American beaver (''Castor canadensis'') and the Eurasian beaver (''C. fiber''). Beavers a ...

s in the area in the early 19th century, when Beaver Lake right across the border in

Indiana Indiana () is a U.S. state in the Midwestern United States. It is the 38th-largest by area and the 17th-most populous of the 50 States. Its capital and largest city is Indianapolis. Indiana was admitted to the United States as the 19th ...

still existed.

The Cathedral of the Cornfields

Beaverville is home to St. Mary's Catholic Church, known as the "Prairie Cathedral" or the "Cathedral of the Cornfields". Built in 1909, the structure is recorded in the

National Register of Historic Places The National Register of Historic Places (NRHP) is the United States federal government's official list of districts, sites, buildings, structures and objects deemed worthy of preservation for their historical significance or "great artistic ...

and is large enough that its red, clay-tile roof can be seen from several miles away.

Geography

Beaverville is located in northeastern Iroquois County at (40.954567, -87.654016). It is northeast of

Watseka Watseka or Watchekee (c. 1810–1878) was a Potawatomi Native American woman, born in Illinois, and named for the heroine of a Potawatomi legend. Her uncle was Tamin, the chief of the Kankakee Potawatomi Indians. She was also known by the ...

, the

county seat A county seat is an administrative center, seat of government, or capital city of a county or civil parish. The term is in use in Canada, China, Hungary, Romania, Taiwan, and the United States. The equivalent term shire town is used in the US ...

; southeast of Kankakee; and west of the

border. Under Quick Facts, above, in the map of Iroquois County, Beaverville is the northeastern-most town that is colored red, not the northwestern town that (for some reason) is encircled in red. According to the 2010 census, Beaverville has a total area of , of which (or 98.11%) is land and (or 1.89%) is water.

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 inc ...

of 2000, there were 391 people, 151 households, and 104 families residing in the village. The population density was . There were 162 housing units at an average density of . The racial makeup of the village was 99.23%

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 ...

, 0.26% Asian, 0.26% 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 0.26% from two or more races.

Hispanic The term ''Hispanic'' ( es, hispano) refers to people, 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 viceroyalties for ...

or Latino of any race were 0.51% of the population. There were 151 households, out of which 29.8% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 51.7% 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 ...

living together, 10.6% had a female householder with no husband present, and 31.1% were non-families. 25.2% of all households were made up of individuals, and 17.9% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.59 and the average family size was 3.05. In the village, the population was spread out, with 27.6% under the age of 18, 8.2% from 18 to 24, 23.5% from 25 to 44, 21.5% from 45 to 64, and 19.2% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 38 years. For every 100 females, there were 96.5 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 87.4 males. The median income for a household in the village was $30,833, and the median income for a family was $34,821. Males had a median income of $31,667 versus $19,792 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 $13,707. About 6.3% of families and 9.7% 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 7.8% of those under age 18 and 14.5% of those age 65 or over.

References

{{authority control Villages in Iroquois County, Illinois Villages in Illinois Populated places established in 1851 French-Canadian American history 1851 establishments in Illinois