Stanford, Illinois
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Stanford is a village in McLean 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 600 at the 2020 census. It is part of the BloomingtonNormal Metropolitan Statistical Area.


History


The beginnings of Stanford

Stanford was platted, under the name of "Allin", on December 14, 1867. Its founder was John Armstrong (1820–1912). It was founded when the Jacksonville Division of the Chicago Alton and St. Louis Railroad was extended westward from Bloomington. The McLean County town of Covell was founded, within a few months of Allin, as a station on the same railroad. In 1870 the name of Allin was changed to "Stanford". It was incorporated as a village in June 1874. The town's founder, John Armstrong, was born in
Posey County, Indiana Posey County is the southernmost, southwesternmost, and westernmost County (United States), county in the U.S. state of Indiana. Its southern border is formed by the Ohio River, and its western border by the Wabash River, a tributary to the Ohi ...
. He was first a farmer and then ran a grocery in Stanford, where he continued to live until his death in 1912. For many years after the town was founded, John Armstrong ran a grocery in Stanford.


Original town design and development

The original town of what would soon become Stanford had an unusual L-shaped design, with the leg of the "L" extending to the east along the railroad tracks. The large area in the crook of the "L" was not platted, but remained in the hands of John Armstrong, the town founder, whose residence was near the tracks on the north side of the railroad. Rather than a central square, the original plat of Stanford, like many towns laid out in the 1850s and 1860s, featured two rectangular public areas labeled as "Depot Grounds" which extended along either side of the tracks. The depot itself was on the north side of the tracks and, in 1874, the grain elevator on the south side. As the town developed, most businesses were located south of the tracks. By 1895 these included a hotel, a bank, the Masonic Hall, and several stores. Except for the depot, most of the railroad-related facilities were on the depot ground south of the railroad. These included a stock yard, a lumber yard, and several elevators. This area also held a bandstand. There were two early churches in Stanford: the Christian Church on Boundary Street south of the business district and the Presbyterian Church in the southeastern part of town.


Geography

Stanford is in western McLean County, west-southwest of Bloomington, the
county seat A county seat is an administrative center, seat of government, or capital city of a county or parish (administrative division), civil parish. The term is in use in five countries: Canada, China, Hungary, Romania, and the United States. An equiva ...
. Illinois Route 122 passes just north of the village, leading northeast to Bloomington and west to Minier. 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 ...
, Stanford has a total area of , all land.


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 670 people, 236 households, and 190 families residing in the village. The population density was . There were 253 housing units at an average density of . The racial makeup of the village was 97.91%
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 ...
, 0.90% Native American, 0.15% Asian, and 1.04% 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 0.90% of the population. There were 236 households, out of which 43.6% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 62.3% 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, 14.8% had a female householder with no husband present, and 19.1% were non-families. 16.1% of all households were made up of individuals, and 7.2% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.84 and the average family size was 3.14. In the village, the population was spread out, with 29.9% under the age of 18, 10.4% from 18 to 24, 30.3% from 25 to 44, 20.3% from 45 to 64, and 9.1% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 33 years. For every 100 females, there were 95.3 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 88.8 males. The median income for a household in the village was $49,375, and the median income for a family was $52,639. Males had a median income of $35,500 versus $27,813 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 $18,687. About 2.3% of families and 3.7% 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 3.1% of those under age 18 and none of those age 65 or over.


Education

* Olympia High School


Notable people

* Homer Caton (1887–1958), Illinois state representative and farmer'Illinois Blue Book 1955–1956,' Biographical Sketch of Homer Caton, pg. 252–253 *
Kelly Loeffler Kelly Lynn Loeffler ( ; born November 27, 1970) is an American businesswoman and politician who has served as the 28th administrator of the Small Business Administration since February 20, 2025. A member of the Republican Party, she served as a ...
(born 1970), United States senator from Georgia and businesswoman


References

{{authority control Villages in McLean County, Illinois Populated places established in 1867 Villages in Illinois