Genoa is a city in the north-east corner of

DeKalb County DeKalb County may refer to one of several counties in the United States, all of which were named for Baron Johann de Kalb: * DeKalb County, Alabama DeKalb County is a County (United States), county in the Northeast Alabama, northeastern part ...

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. It is located on the historic Galena-Chicago stagecoach route. At the 2020 census the city had a population of 5,298, up from 5,193 in 2010.

History

Genoa was settled as early as 1835 by

Thomas Madison Thomas Madison may refer to: * Thomas Madison (politician) (1746–1798), soldier and politician in Revolutionary-era Virginia, and second cousin to U.S. President James Madison. * Thomas Madison (settler), first settler of the city of Genoa, Ill ...

, an

American Revolutionary War The American Revolutionary War (April 19, 1775 – September 3, 1783), also known as the Revolutionary War or American War of Independence, was the armed conflict that comprised the final eight years of the broader American Revolution, in which Am ...

soldier from

Ashtabula County, Ohio Ashtabula County ( ) is the northeasternmost county in the U.S. state of Ohio. As of the 2020 census, the population was 97,574. The county seat is Jefferson, while its largest city is Ashtabula. The county was created in 1808 and later organ ...

. He named Genoa after a town of the same name in

New York New York most commonly refers to: * New York (state), a state in the northeastern United States * New York City, the most populous city in the United States, located in the state of New York New York may also refer to: Places United Kingdom * ...

. Genoa was incorporated as 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 1876 and as a city on September 9, 1911.

Geography

According to the 2010 census, Genoa has a total area of , of which (or 97.93%) is land and (or 2.07%) is water.

Demographics

As of the 2020 census there were 5,298 people, 1,919 households, and 1,251 families residing in the city. The population density was . There were 1,993 housing units at an average density of . The racial makeup of the city was 78.84%

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 ...

, 0.91%

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 ...

, 0.42% Native American, 0.72% Asian, 6.70% from other races, and 12.42% 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 18.89% of the population. There were 1,919 households, out of which 35.8% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 55.50% were married couples living together, 6.72% had a female householder with no husband present, and 34.81% were non-families. 28.87% of all households were made up of individuals, and 13.76% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 3.30 and the average family size was 2.65. The city's age distribution consisted of 18.9% under the age of 18, 11.9% from 18 to 24, 29.5% from 25 to 44, 25.2% from 45 to 64, and 14.6% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 39.5 years. For every 100 females, there were 107.4 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 108.4 males. The median income for a household in the city was $72,795, and the median income for a family was $78,625. Males had a median income of $49,523 versus $28,125 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 $31,563. About 6.8% of families and 8.8% 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 8.0% of those under age 18 and 2.1% of those age 65 or over.

Government

Genoa is governed by a

mayor In many countries, a mayor is the highest-ranking official in a Municipal corporation, municipal government such as that of a city or a town. Worldwide, there is a wide variance in local laws and customs regarding the powers and responsibilitie ...

and eight-member

City Council A municipal council is the legislative body of a municipality or local government area. Depending on the location and classification of the municipality it may be known as a city council, town council, town board, community council, borough counc ...

. The city is divided into four wards, with two

aldermen An alderman is a member of a municipal assembly or council in many jurisdictions founded upon English law with similar officials existing in the Netherlands (wethouder) and Belgium (schepen). The term may be titular, denoting a high-ranking membe ...

representing each ward. The mayor and aldermen serve four-year terms. The terms of the City Council are staggered such that one alderman from each ward is elected every two years.

City Council Members

''Term expiration indicated in parentheses'' * Mayor: Jonathon Brust (2029) * Ward 1: Christopher Pulley (2029) * Ward 1: Pam Wesner (2027) * Ward 2: Vacant * Ward 2: Walter Stage (2027) * Ward 3: Kendra Brahen (2027) * Ward 3: Courtney Winter (2029) * Ward 4: Gary Roca (2027) * Ward 4: Dean Gudeman (2029) A

City Clerk A clerk (pronounced "clark" /klɑːk/ in British and Australian English) is a senior official of many municipal governments in the English-speaking world. In some communities, including most in the United States, the position is elected, but in ma ...

is also elected

at-large At large (''before a noun'': at-large) is a description for members of a governing body who are elected or appointed to represent a whole membership or population (notably a city, county, state, province, nation, club or association), rather tha ...

and serves a four-year term. The current city clerk is Becca Stevenson, whose term expires in 2029.

Education

Genoa is part of the Genoa-Kingston (GK) School District with nearby village

Kingston Kingston may refer to: Places * List of places called Kingston, including the six most populated: ** Kingston, Jamaica ** Kingston upon Hull, England ** City of Kingston, Victoria, Australia ** Kingston, Ontario, Canada ** Kingston upon Thames, ...

. The district has four Public Schools: Kingston Elementary School (Grades K-2), Genoa Elementary School (Grades 3–5), Genoa-Kingston Middle School (Grades 6–8) and Genoa-Kingston High School (Grades 9–12). The school district's mascot is a “Cog”, and the school sports teams are the G-K Cogs (Acronym for Community of Genoa Sports) with the colors being royal blue and orange.

Sports

Girls athletics include basketball, cheer leading, cross country, dance team, golf, soccer, softball, track and field, and volleyball. Boys athletics include football, baseball, basketball, cross country, golf, soccer, track and field, and wrestling. The town has three state championships to its name: the football team in 1977, the girls track team in 1989, and the girls volleyball team in 2022. Genoa-Kingston High School competes in the Big Northern Conference (BNC), while Genoa-Kingston Middle School competes in the Mid-Northern Conference (MNC).

Notable person

* Edward D. Shurtleff, Illinois state legislator and jurist, was born in Genoa.'Illinois Blue Book 1909,' Biographical Sketch of Edward D. Shurtleff, pg. 202

References

External links

City website

{{authority control Cities in DeKalb County, Illinois Populated places established in 1835 Cities in Illinois