Fairmont City is a

village A village is a human settlement or community, larger than a hamlet but smaller than a town with a population typically ranging from a few hundred to a few thousand. Although villages are often located in rural areas, the term urban v ...

in St. Clair and Madison counties,

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 2,265 at the 2020 census, down from 2,635 in 2010. In the 1990s Fairmont City's Hispanic population doubled, and as of 2020, over 79% of the population was of Hispanic descent.

Geography

Fairmont City is located in northwestern St. Clair County at (38.651200, -90.099788). A small part of the village extends north into southwestern Madison County. The community is bordered to the northwest by

Brooklyn Brooklyn is a Boroughs of New York City, borough of New York City located at the westernmost end of Long Island in the New York (state), State of New York. Formerly an independent city, the borough is coextensive with Kings County, one of twelv ...

, to the north by Madison, to the northeast by Pontoon Beach, to the east by Collinsville, to the southeast by Caseyville, to the south by Washington Park, and to the southwest by East St. Louis. The village limits extend west from the main portion of Fairmont City to touch the

Mississippi River The Mississippi River is the main stem, primary river of the largest drainage basin in the United States. It is the second-longest river in the United States, behind only the Missouri River, Missouri. From its traditional source of Lake Ita ...

directly across from

St. Louis St. Louis ( , sometimes referred to as St. Louis City, Saint Louis or STL) is an independent city in the U.S. state of Missouri. It lies near the confluence of the Mississippi and the Missouri rivers. In 2020, the city proper had a populatio ...

. According to the

U.S. Census Bureau The United States Census Bureau, officially the Bureau of the Census, is a principal agency of the U.S. federal statistical system, responsible for producing data about the American people and economy. The U.S. Census Bureau is part of the U ...

, Fairmont City has a total area of , of which are land and , or 5.22%, are water. Fairmont City is built atop portions of the

Cahokia Cahokia Mounds ( 11 MS 2) is the site of a Native American city (which existed 1050–1350 CE) directly across the Mississippi River from present-day St. Louis. The state archaeology park lies in south-western Illinois between East St. L ...

Mounds, a UNESCO

World Heritage Site World Heritage Sites are landmarks and areas with legal protection under an treaty, international treaty administered by UNESCO for having cultural, historical, or scientific significance. The sites are judged to contain "cultural and natural ...

. Sam Chucalo Mound, one of the mounds, is in the western part of the village. Other mounds are in the eastern part of the village within

Cahokia Mounds State Historic Site Cahokia Mounds ( 11 MS 2) is the site of a Native American city (which existed 1050–1350 CE) directly across the Mississippi River from present-day St. Louis. The state archaeology park lies in south-western Illinois between East St. L ...

. In April 2016, the

US Environmental Protection Agency The Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) is an independent agency of the United States government tasked with environmental protection matters. President Richard Nixon proposed the establishment of EPA on July 9, 1970; it began operation on De ...

added the Old American Zinc Fairmont City site to the

National Priorities List The National Priorities List (NPL) is the priority list of hazardous waste sites in the United States eligible for long-term remedial investigation and remedial action (cleanup) financed under the federal Superfund program. Environmental Protec ...

following the Illinois EPA discovering high levels of lead, arsenic, cadmium and zinc in soil samples. Collected soil samples from properties and alleyways showed residue of arsenic, cadmium and zinc. Fairmont City is east of the

Gateway Arch The Gateway Arch is a monument in St. Louis, Missouri, United States. Clad in stainless steel and built in the form of a weighted catenary Catenary arch, arch, it is the world's tallest arch and List of tallest buildings in Missouri, Missouri's ...

of St. Louis. Sunset often provides picturesque views of the arch and St. Louis' skyline. Collinsville Road runs the length of the village. This route once contained an accumulation of vintage, in situ roadside Americana advertising signage, most of which has not been removed or destroyed over time. National City, a former company town to the west of Fairmont City, was dissolved in 1997, and annexed by Fairmont City.

Demographics

As of the

census A census (from Latin ''censere'', 'to assess') is the procedure of systematically acquiring, recording, and calculating population information about the members of a given Statistical population, population, usually displayed in the form of stati ...

of 2000, there were 2,436 people, 871 households, and 580 families residing in the village. The population density was . There were 939 housing units at an average density of . The racial makeup of the village was 41.54%

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 ...

, 1.23%

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 ...

, 0.94% Native American, 0.08% Asian, 27.50% from other races, and 3.69% 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 55.38% of the population. There were 871 households, out of which 29.9% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 45.9% were

married couples Marriage, also called matrimony or wedlock, is a culturally and often legally recognised union between people called spouses. It establishes rights and obligations between them, as well as between them and their children (if any), and b ...

living together, 11.7% had a female householder with no husband present, and 33.4% were non-families. Of all households, 29.2% were made up of individuals, and 14.7% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.80 and the average family size was 3.45. In the village, the population was spread out, with 26.7% under the age of 18, 11.7% from 18 to 24, 28.7% from 25 to 44, 18.6% from 45 to 64, and 14.2% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 32 years. For every 100 females, there were 116.0 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 114.7 males. The median income for a household in the village was $27,070, and the median income for a family was $31,296. Males had a median income of $21,766 versus $21,576 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 village was $12,203. About 14.7% of families and 18.4% 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 ...

, including 26.5% of those under age 18 and 10.7% of those age 65 or over.

Village services

The Fairmont City Library was International Grand Prize First Place for the Libraryaware for Library-community interaction in 2017, beating out the Kansas City Public Library and Catawba County Library in North Carolina.

Notable people

* Johnny Wyrostek, baseball player and Fairmont City Mayor from 1967 till his death in 1986.Johnny Wyrostek
at the Society for American Baseball Research

References

External links

* {{Authority control Villages in Madison County, Illinois Villages in St. Clair County, Illinois Villages in Illinois