Urbana ( ) is a city in

Champaign County, Illinois Champaign County is a County (United States), county in the U.S. state of Illinois. As of the 2020 United States census, 2020 Census, its population was 205,865, making it the 10th-most populous county in Illinois. Its county seat is Urbana, Ill ...

, United States, and its

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 ...

. As of the 2020 census, Urbana had a population of 38,336. It is a principal city of the

Champaign–Urbana metropolitan area The Champaign–Urbana metropolitan area, also known as Champaign–Urbana and Urbana–Champaign as well as Chambana (colloquially), is a metropolitan area in east-central Illinois. As defined by the Office of Management and Budget (OMB), the me ...

, which had 236,000 residents in 2020. Urbana is notable for sharing the main campus of the

University of Illinois The University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign (UIUC, U of I, Illinois, or University of Illinois) is a public university, public land-grant university, land-grant research university in the Champaign–Urbana metropolitan area, Illinois, United ...

with its twin city of

Champaign Champaign ( ) is a city in Champaign County, Illinois, United States. The population was 88,302 at the 2020 census. It is the tenth-most populous municipality in Illinois and the fourth most populous city in the state outside the Chicago metr ...

History

The Urbana area was first settled by Europeans in 1822, when it was called "Big Grove".McGinty, Alice
"The Story of Champaign-Urbana"
Champaign Public Library When the county of

was organized in 1833, the county seat was located on 40 acres of land, 20 acres donated by William T. Webber and 20 acres by M. W. Busey, considered to be the city's founder, and the name "Urbana" was adopted after

Urbana, Ohio Urbana is a city in Champaign County, Ohio, United States, and its county seat. It is located about northeast of Dayton, Ohio, Dayton and west of Columbus, Ohio, Columbus. The population was 11,115 at the 2020 United States census, 2020 census. ...

, the hometown of State Senator John W. Vance, who authored the Enabling Act creating Champaign County. The creation of the new town was celebrated for the first time on July 4, 1833. Stores began opening in 1834. The first mills were founded in -50. The town's first church, the Methodist Episcopal Church, and the parsonage, was built in 1840 by the Rev. A. Bradshaw, with the Baptist Church following in 1855. The Presbyterian Church was founded in 1856. The city's first school was built in 1854. Urbana suffered a setback when the

Chicago Chicago is the List of municipalities in Illinois, most populous city in the U.S. state of Illinois and in the Midwestern United States. With a population of 2,746,388, as of the 2020 United States census, 2020 census, it is the List of Unite ...

branch of the

Illinois Central Railroad The Illinois Central Railroad , sometimes called the Main Line of Mid-America, is a railroad in the Central United States. Its primary routes connected Chicago, Illinois, with New Orleans, New Orleans, Louisiana, and Mobile, Alabama, and thus, ...

, which had been expected to pass through town, was instead laid down two miles west, where the land was flatter. The town of West Urbana grew up around the train depot built there in 1854; further, in 1861 its name was changed to

. The competition between the two cities provoked Urbana to tear down the ten-year-old County Courthouse and replace it with a much larger and fancier structure, to ensure that the county seat would remain in Urbana. Champaign-Urbana was selected as the site for a new state agricultural school, thanks to the efforts of Clark Griggs. Illinois Industrial University, which would evolve into the

University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign The University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign (UIUC, U of I, Illinois, or University of Illinois) is a public university, public land-grant university, land-grant research university in the Champaign–Urbana metropolitan area, Illinois, United ...

, opened in 1868 with 77 students. A number of efforts to merge Urbana and Champaign have failed at the polls. On October 9, 1871, a fire burned much of downtown Urbana. Children playing with matches started the fire. (It is unrelated to the

Great Chicago Fire The Great Chicago Fire was a conflagration that burned in the American city of Chicago, Illinois during October 8–10, 1871. The fire killed approximately 300 people, destroyed roughly of the city including over 17,000 structures, and left mor ...

that started the day before, though both fires occurred during severe drought and were spread by high winds.)

Geography

According to the 2021 census gazetteer files, Urbana has a total area of , of which (or 99.40%) is land and (or 0.60%) is water. Urbana borders the city of

. The main campus of the

is situated on this border. Together, these two cities are often referred to as ''Urbana-Champaign'' (the designation used by the university) or ''Champaign-Urbana'' (the more common usage, due to the larger size of Champaign). With the nearby village of

Savoy Savoy (; )  is a cultural-historical region in the Western Alps. Situated on the cultural boundary between Occitania and Piedmont, the area extends from Lake Geneva in the north to the Dauphiné in the south and west and to the Aosta Vall ...

, they form the

Demographics

2020 census

As of the 2020 census there were 38,336 people, 17,295 households, and 6,680 families residing in the city. The population density was . There were 18,321 housing units at an average density of . The racial makeup of the city including Hispanics in the racial counts was 51.61%

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 ...

, 18.86%

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 ...

, 0.30% Native American, 18.26% Asian, 0.03%

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 ...

, 3.57% from other races, and 7.37% from two or more races. Separately,

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 8.52% of the population. There were 17,295 households, out of which 17.1% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 25.57% were married couples living together, 8.99% had a female householder with no husband present, and 61.38% were non-families. 44.42% of all households were made up of individuals, and 8.10% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.70 and the average family size was 2.06. The city's age distribution consisted of 11.7% under the age of 18, 38.2% from 18 to 24, 26.1% from 25 to 44, 13.4% from 45 to 64, and 10.5% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 25.0 years. For every 100 females, there were 97.8 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 97.2 males. The median income for a household in the city was $35,984, and the median income for a family was $66,955. Males had a median income of $27,150 versus $25,511 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 $25,365. About 11.4% of families and 29.1% 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 19.1% of those under age 18 and 5.6% of those age 65 or over.

Arts and culture

Candlestick Lane

Candlestick Lane is the name of a neighborhood in eastern Urbana. This neighborhood consists of Grant Place and adjacent properties on Fairlawn and Eastern Drives. It is called Candlestick Lane because every year the residents decorate their yards for Christmas with a lot of lights and figures. The tradition began in 1961 (maybe 1960) as a house-decorating contest sponsored by the Illinois Power Company. The neighborhood used its prize money to purchase electric candlesticks for each home. The City of Urbana installs special red and green street signs, reading "Candlestick Lane" and "Grant Place" during the Holiday season. The lights are turned on from around 5:00 to 10:00 p.m. from the third Saturday in December through New Years Day.

Market at the Square

The Market at the Square, also known as the Farmers' Market, has been a community event in Urbana since 1979. Every Saturday morning from some time in May to some time in November, dozens of vendors set up shop in the Lincoln Square parking lot in downtown Urbana. They primarily sell local produce (including corn, tomatoes, lettuce and watermelons), but one can also find local crafts, music, kettle corn and booths for various community and political organizations.

Urbana Sweetcorn Festival

The Urbana Sweetcorn Festival is an annual festival in Urbana. It was first held in August 1975 in the Busey Bank parking lot in downtown Urbana. It was a community event put on by employees of Busey Bank. Since then the Sweetcorn Festival has continued to grow. The Urbana Business Association is now responsible for the planning of the festival, over the years adding a local car show, an expanded family area, live music on multiple stages, food, vendors, beer, in the heart of downtown Urbana. In addition to corn and beverages, the festival has offered a range of activities and events, including a display of antique and other collectors' cars and volksmarches, arts events, a dog show, and a book sale organized by the Friends of the Urbana Free Library.

Urbana Lincoln Hotel

The Urbana Lincoln Hotel is connected to Lincoln Square Mall, an indoor walking mall, in the center of Urbana. The hotel was designed by famed Urbana architect Joseph Royer in 1923 and opened several rooms on November 1, 1923, to accommodate guests for the university's Homecoming game. The original building was built in the Tudor Revival style. A convention center was added in the 1970s in the Bavarian style. While being forced to close twice between 1990 and 2009, the hotel was purchased by a private developer in 2010 and underwent major rehabilitation. The hotel opened under new management and with a new name, Urbana Landmark Hotel, on December 1, 2012, but it closed in July 2015 and sold January 2020 for redevelopment as a Hilton Tapestry hotel.

Points of interest

* American Football House * University of Illinois Arboretum * University of Illinois Conservatory and Plant Collection *

Krannert Center for the Performing Arts The Krannert Center for the Performing Arts is an educational and performing arts complex located at 500 South Goodwin Avenue in Urbana, Illinois and on the campus of the University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign. Herman C. Krannert, an industria ...

Spurlock Museum The William R. and Clarice V. Spurlock Museum, better known as the Spurlock Museum, is an ethnographic museum at the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign. The Spurlock Museum's permanent collection includes portions of collections from other ...

* Station Theatre

Parks and recreation

Carle Park, established in 1909, is located at Indiana and Garfield, just west of Urbana High School in central Urbana. Measuring , it contains a statue entitled '' Lincoln the Lawyer'' by

Lorado Taft Lorado Zadok Taft (April 29, 1860 – October 30, 1936) was an American sculptor, writer and educator. Part of the American Renaissance movement, his monumental pieces include, ''Fountain of Time'', ''Spirit of the Great Lakes'', and ''The ...

and more than 50 well-established trees that are part of the Hickman Tree Walk. The Lincoln statue was previously sited in front of the Urbana Lincoln Hotel, but was moved after only a few months. Meadowbrook Park is located southeast of the Race Street and Windsor Road intersection. The park covers , including 80 of recreated Illinois

tallgrass prairie The tallgrass prairie is an ecosystem native to central North America. Historically, natural and Historical ecology#Anthropogenic fire, anthropogenic fire, as well as grazing by large mammals (primarily bison) provided periodic disturbances to th ...

. Around the prairie restoration center of the park loops three miles of wide concrete path suitable for walking, running, and bicycling. In addition, for an off the beaten path experience, the park offers two miles of unpaved trails which wind through the prairie grass. Several small hills make the path unsuitable for inexperienced inline skaters. The path is adorned by about twenty large sculptures from local artists. A playground, shelter, and parking lot are located near the Windsor Road entrance. A

community garden A community garden is a piece of land gardened or cultivated by a group of people individually or collectively. Normally in community gardens, the land is divided into individual plots. Each individual gardener is responsible for their own plot ...

, an herbal garden, the Timpone Ornamental Tree Grove and a shelter are located near the Race Street entrance. The park also contains many streams which are among the first tributaries of the Embarras River. Lincoln by Taft

The Urbana Dog Park, located on East Perkins Road, is a place to walk one's dog without a leash. The Anita Purves Nature Center, located on the north end of Crystal Lake Park, offers nature education programs. The "Art in the Park", just north of the Urbana City Hall (400 S. Vine St.) dedicated October 2012, took 22 years of struggle and efforts of three mayors. The environmental and sculptural artists/curator of the park, John David Mooney designed the plantings, walkways, a 12-foot high fountain sculpture (Falling Leaf), and a 33-foot high light sculpture (Spirit Tree). The Spirit Tree specifically gives new meaning to Urbana's designation as a "Tree City" and to trees as landmarks or beacons. Mooney, an internationally acclaimed artist, is a native to Champaign-Urbana.

Swimming pools

The Urbana Indoor Aquatic Center is a public indoor pool operated by the Urbana Park District and Urbana School District. It is located between Urbana High School and Urbana Middle School. Crystal Lake Pool is a public outdoor pool. It is located on Broadway Street, across from the Anita Purves Nature Center. It was closed after the summer 2008 season due to deteriorating conditions and concomitant safety issues, it was rebuilt and reopened in 2013. Campus Recreation Center East (CRCE) has an indoor leisure pool with a hot tub. CRCE is owned by the

University of Illinois Urbana–Champaign The University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign (UIUC, U of I, Illinois, or University of Illinois) is a public land-grant research university in the Champaign–Urbana metropolitan area, Illinois, United States. Established in 1867, it is the fo ...

. In Urbana, the pools in Freer Hall, formerly a 25-yard and 6-lane lap pool, and

Kenney Gym The Kenney Gym and the Kenney Gym Annex are two buildings located at 1402-06 Springfield Avenue in Urbana, Illinois, on the campus on the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign. Although the two buildings have been physically connected since ...

have been closed and filled, the former redeveloped as research and teaching spaces.

Sports

Illinois Fighting Illini

The

fields ten men and eleven women varsity sports.

Minor league

Urbana has been home to several separate minor league baseball clubs in conjunction with Champagin. The Champaign-Urbana Velvets played in the

Illinois–Missouri League The Illinois–Missouri League was an American minor league baseball league. The Class D (baseball), Class D league began operations in 1908, and continued through 1914 with teams located in Illinois and Missouri. The Lincoln Abes won consecutive ...

from 1911 until the league disbanded after 1914. The city's most recent minor league team was the Champaign-Urbana Bandits who played during the single 1994 season of the Great Central League. The Bandits played at Illinois Field. Prior to holding postseason play, the league folded. The Champaign-Urbana Colts played in the

Central Illinois Collegiate League The Central Illinois Collegiate League (CICL) was a collegiate wooden bat summer baseball league. It was composed of five teams from Illinois and Indiana. The CICL was founded in 1963 as a charter member of National Collegiate Athletic Associatio ...

from 1990 until the team folded in 1996.

Government

Urbana has

Mayor–council government A mayor–council government is a system of local government in which a mayor who is directly elected by the voters acts as chief executive, while a separately elected city council constitutes the legislative body. It is one of the two most comm ...

, of the strong-mayor form. The city council has seven members, each elected from a different ward. The mayor is elected in a citywide vote.

Education

Primary and secondary

Urbana High School's current building was built in 1914. It was designed by architect Joseph Royer who also designed many other area buildings such as the Urbana Free Library and the Champaign County Court House. The architecture is of the Tudor style defined primarily by the towers over the main entrance and flattened point arches over the doors. Not part of the Urbana School District, University Laboratory High School, locally known as Uni High, is a publicly funded

laboratory school A laboratory school or demonstration school is an elementary or secondary school operated in association with a university, college, or other teacher education institution and used for the training of future teachers, educational experimentatio ...

located on the campus of the

in Urbana. It was founded in 1921. It is a research project of the University of Illinois College of Education. Urbana Middle School was first known as Urbana Junior High School in 1953. In 2003 the school was renovated for space. The school currently serves 954 students from grades 6 to 8. The Elementary schools in Urbana are Leal, Dr. Martin Luther King Jr., Dr. Preston L. Williams Jr., Thomas Paine, and Yankee Ridge. Urbana Early Childhood School is the former Washington Early Childhood Center and is located on the Prairie Campus next to Dr. Preston L. Williams Elementary.

Colleges and universities

Most of the

campus lies in this city. It is a

public In public relations and communication science, publics are groups of individual people, and the public (a.k.a. the general public) is the totality of such groupings. This is a different concept to the sociology, sociological concept of the ''Öf ...

land-grant A land grant is a gift of real estate—land or its use privileges—made by a government or other authority as an incentive, means of enabling works, or as a reward for services to an individual, especially in return for military service. Grants ...

research university A research university or a research-intensive university is a university that is committed to research as a central part of its mission. They are "the key sites of Knowledge production modes, knowledge production", along with "intergenerational ...

and the

flagship A flagship is a vessel used by the commanding officer of a group of navy, naval ships, characteristically a flag officer entitled by custom to fly a distinguishing flag. Used more loosely, it is the lead ship in a fleet of vessels, typically ...

institution of the University of Illinois system. It is one of the largest public universities by enrollment in the United States with over 50,000 students enrolled annually, giving Urbana a large student population throughout the year.

Urbana Free Library

The Urbana Free Library, one of the first public libraries in Illinois, was founded in 1874 and is located in the downtown area. The historic building which houses the library was built in 1918. A major new addition was opened in 2005. The library houses historical archives of Champaign County, which can be used for genealogical research. Established in 1956, the Champaign County Historical Archives is a department of the Urbana Free Library that maintains a research-level collection on the history and genealogy of Champaign County. In 1987 it was designated the official repository for non-current Champaign County records. Although it focuses on Champaign County, the Archives holds extensive collections of works dealing with the rest of Illinois and those states that document the significant migration routes of the communities that comprise Champaign County. The CCHA is also home to the Local History Online database. Local History Online gives access to holdings (books and journals, Champaign County records, City of Urbana municipal records, newspapers, directories, school yearbooks, images, maps, oral histories, local organization newsletters, and other special collections) of the Champaign County Historical Archives, including digital content. The catalog is frequently updated. The library is publicly funded and receives additional support from about 600 people who have joined the Friends of the Urbana Free Library.

Media

FM radio * 88.1 W201CK (Translates 90.7 KHRI) "

Air 1 Air1 is an American Christian radio network owned by the Educational Media Foundation (EMF), a non-profit Christian ministry. It primarily broadcasts contemporary worship music, and is a sister to the EMF's K-Love network. History On July 15, ...

Christian CHR Christian contemporary hit radio (sometimes abbreviated as Christian CHR, also known as contemporary Christian hits, Christian hit list, current Christian hits, Christian hit music, Christian top 40, or Christian pop radio) is a radio format that i ...

* 88.7 WPCD,

College Radio Campus radio (also known as college radio, university radio or student radio) is a type of radio station that is run by the students of a college, university or other educational institution. Programming may be exclusively created or produced ...

* 89.3 WGNJ, Religious * 90.1

WEFT In the manufacture of cloth, warp and weft are the two basic components in weaving to transform thread (yarn), thread and yarn into textile fabrics. The vertical ''warp'' yarns are held stationary in tension on a loom (frame) while the horizo ...

Community Radio Community radio is a radio service offering a third model of radio broadcasting in addition to commercial broadcasting, commercial and public broadcasting. Community broadcasting, Community stations serve geographic communities and communities o ...

Variety Variety may refer to: Arts and entertainment Entertainment formats * Variety (radio) * Variety show, in theater and television Films * ''Variety'' (1925 film), a German silent film directed by Ewald Andre Dupont * ''Variety'' (1935 film), ...

* 90.9

WILL-FM WILL-FM ( 90.9 MHz) is a public, listener-supported radio station owned by the University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign and licensed to Urbana, Illinois, United States. It is operated by Illinois Public Media, with studios located at Campbel ...

Classical music Classical music generally refers to the art music of the Western world, considered to be #Relationship to other music traditions, distinct from Western folk music or popular music traditions. It is sometimes distinguished as Western classical mu ...

Public Radio Public broadcasting (or public service broadcasting) is radio, television, and other electronic media outlets whose primary mission is public service with a commitment to avoiding political and commercial influence. Public broadcasters receive ...

, ( RDS), broadcasting from Urbana * 91.7 WBGL,

Christian AC Christian adult contemporary, also known as Christian AC, CAC, or Christian Adult Contemporary Airplay, is a form of radio-played contemporary Christian music, ranging from 1960s Jesus music and 1970s Christian soft rock music to predominately w ...

(RDS) * 92.5

WREE WREE (92.5 MHz) is a commercial FM radio station broadcasting a classic hits format. Licensed to Urbana, Illinois, United States, the station serves the Champaign-Urbana area. The station is owned by Saga Communications under licensee Saga ...

"Rewind 92.5", Classic Hits (RDS – Artist/Title) * 93.5 WSJK "ESPN Radio"

Sports Sport is a physical activity or game, often competitive and organized, that maintains or improves physical ability and skills. Sport may provide enjoyment to participants and entertainment to spectators. The number of participants in ...

(RDS) * 94.5

WLRW WLRW (94.5 FM broadcasting, FM) is a radio station broadcasting a hot adult contemporary radio format. It is licensed to Champaign, Illinois, and serves Central Illinois. The station is owned by Saga Communications, and operates as part of its I ...

"Mix 94.5"

Hot AC Adult contemporary music (AC) is a form of radio-played popular music, ranging from 1960s vocal and 1970s soft rock music to predominantly ballad-heavy music of the 1980s to the present day, with varying degrees of easy listening, pop, soul, ...

(RDS – Artist/Title) (

HD Radio HD Radio (HDR) is a trademark for in-band on-channel (IBOC) digital radio broadcast technology. HD radio generally simulcast, simulcasts an existing analog radio station in digital format with less noise and with additional text information. HD R ...

) * 95.3

WJEK WJEK (95.3 FM broadcasting, FM) is a commercial radio, commercial radio station broadcasting a Christian Adult Contemporary radio format, known as "Christian FM 95.3." city of license, Licensed to Rantoul, Illinois, United States, the station s ...

"Sunny 95.3"

Adult contemporary Adult contemporary music (AC) is a form of radio-played popular music, ranging from 1960s vocal and 1970s soft rock music to predominantly ballad-heavy music of the 1980s to the present day, with varying degrees of easy listening, pop, soul ...

(RDS) * 96.1 WQQB "Q 96", CHR/Pop (RDS) * 97.5 WHMS-FM "Lite Rock 97.5"

Adult Contemporary Adult contemporary music (AC) is a form of radio-played popular music, ranging from 1960s vocal and 1970s soft rock music to predominantly ballad-heavy music of the 1980s to the present day, with varying degrees of easy listening, pop, soul ...

* 99.1

WYXY WYXY (99.1 FM) is a radio station licensed for Savoy, Illinois. It is owned by Saga Communications, and operated as part of its Illini Radio Group. WYXY formerly had the callsigns WIAI then WXLS. It was sold from IAI Broadcasting to Saga Co ...

"Extra 99.1"

Rock Rock most often refers to: * Rock (geology), a naturally occurring solid aggregate of minerals or mineraloids * Rock music, a genre of popular music Rock or Rocks may also refer to: Places United Kingdom * Rock, Caerphilly, a location in Wale ...

(RDS – Artist/Title) * 99.7 WQQBbr>"Hits 99.7"

Popular and Hip hop Popularity or social status is the quality of being well liked, admired or well known to a particular group. Popular may also refer to: In sociology * Popular culture * Popular fiction * Popular music * Popular science * Populace, the total ...

* 100.3

WIXY WIXY (100.3 FM) is a commercial radio station broadcasting a country music radio format. Licensed to Champaign, Illinois, United States, the station serves the Champaign-Urbana area. The station is owned by Saga Communications under licen ...

"WIXY 100.3"

Country A country is a distinct part of the world, such as a state, nation, or other political entity. When referring to a specific polity, the term "country" may refer to a sovereign state, state with limited recognition, constituent country, ...

(RDS – Artist/Title) * 100.9 WHPO "100.9 WHPO"

* 101.1 W266AF (Translates 90.9

HD2), 24-hour

* 102.5 WGNN, Religious * 103.9 W280DE (Translates 102.5 WGNN), Religious * 104.5 WRFU-LP "Radio Free Urbana", Community/Political Activism( Low-power 100 watts FM) * 105.5

WCZQ WKIO (105.5 MHz) is a classic rock FM radio station serving Champaign, Illinois. WKIO broadcasts with an ERP of 6 kW and is licensed to Monticello, Illinois. They are owned by Champaign Multimedia Group. The station has been through multipl ...

"Hot 105.5"

Hip Hop Hip-hop or hip hop (originally disco rap) is a popular music genre that emerged in the early 1970s from the African-American community of New York City. The style is characterized by its synthesis of a wide range of musical techniques. Hip- ...

and R&B * 105.9 WGKC "Classic Rock 105.9 WGKC" Classic Rock * 107.1

WPGU WPGU (107.1 FM) is a fully commercial, student-run college radio station on the campus of the University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign in Champaign, Illinois. It broadcasts an alternative rock radio format and other programming throughout Champ ...

Alternative Alternative or alternate may refer to: Arts, entertainment and media * Alternative (Kamen Rider), Alternative (''Kamen Rider''), a character in the Japanese TV series ''Kamen Rider Ryuki'' * Alternative comics, or independent comics are an altern ...

* 107.9

WKIO WDWS-FM (107.9 FM broadcasting, FM, "107.9 The Rooster") is a commercial radio, commercial radio station broadcasting a country music format. City of license, Licensed to Arcola, Illinois, the station is owned by ''The News-Gazette (Champaign-Urb ...

"Classic Rock 107 9"

Classic rock Classic rock is a radio format that developed from the album-oriented rock (AOR) format in the early 1980s. In the United States, it comprises rock music ranging generally from the mid-1960s through the early-1990s, primarily focusing on comm ...

AM radio * 580

WILL Will may refer to: Common meanings * Will and testament, instructions for the disposition of one's property after death * Will (philosophy), or willpower * Will (sociology) * Will, volition (psychology) * Will, a modal verb - see Shall and will ...

, broadcasting from Urbana * 1400

WDWS WDWS (1400 AM broadcasting, AM) is a commercial radio, commercial radio station in Champaign, Illinois, calling itself "Newstalk 1400 & 93.9FM DWS." It airs a talk radio, news/talk radio format and is owned by ''The News-Gazette (Champaign-Urban ...

News/Talk Talk radio is a radio format containing discussion about topical issues and consisting entirely or almost entirely of original spoken word content rather than outside music. They may feature monologues, dialogues between the hosts, interviews ...

(

AM Stereo AM stereo is a term given to a series of mutually incompatible techniques for radio broadcasting stereo audio in the AM band in a manner that is compatible with standard AM receivers. There are two main classes of systems: independent sideban ...

) * 1460

WJCI WJCI is an FM radio station located in Fort Wayne, Indiana. The station operates on the FM radio frequency of 102.9 MHz. It broadcasts a Christian radio format and is an affiliate of Calvary Radio Network. History The station signed on as ...

Analog television * 3

WCIA WCIA (channel 3) is a television station licensed to Champaign, Illinois, United States, serving as the CBS affiliate for the Central Illinois region. It is owned by Nexstar Media Group alongside Springfield, Illinois, Springfield-licensed My ...

CBS CBS Broadcasting Inc., commonly shortened to CBS (an abbreviation of its original name, Columbia Broadcasting System), is an American commercial broadcast television and radio network serving as the flagship property of the CBS Entertainme ...

* 7 W07DD, Three Angels Network * 12

WILL-TV WILL-TV (channel 12) is a PBS member television station licensed to Urbana, Illinois, United States, serving the Central Illinois region. Owned by the University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign as part of Illinois Public Media, it is sister t ...

PBS The Public Broadcasting Service (PBS) is an American public broadcaster and non-commercial, free-to-air television network based in Arlington, Virginia. PBS is a publicly funded nonprofit organization and the most prominent provider of educat ...

* 15 WICD "NewsChannel 15",

ABC ABC are the first three letters of the Latin script. ABC or abc may also refer to: Arts, entertainment and media Broadcasting * Aliw Broadcasting Corporation, Philippine broadcast company * American Broadcasting Company, a commercial American ...

* 17

WAND A wand is a thin, light-weight rod that is held with one hand, and is traditionally made of wood, but may also be made of other materials, such as metal, bone or stone. Long versions of wands are often styled in forms of staves or sceptres, whi ...

NBC The National Broadcasting Company (NBC) is an American commercial broadcast television and radio network serving as the flagship property of the NBC Entertainment division of NBCUniversal, a subsidiary of Comcast. It is one of NBCUniversal's ...

* 23

WBUI WBUI (channel 23) is a television station licensed to Decatur, Illinois, United States, serving the Central Illinois region as an affiliate of The CW. It is owned by GOCOM Media, LLC, alongside Springfield-licensed Fox affiliate WRSP-TV, ch ...

The CW The CW Network, LLC (commonly referred to as The CW or simply CW) is an American commercial broadcast television network which is controlled by Nexstar Media Group through a 75% ownership interest. The network's name is derived from the firs ...

* 27 WCCU "Fox 55/27" * 34 W33AY,

Trinity Broadcast Network The Trinity Broadcasting Network (TBN; legally Trinity Broadcasting of Texas, Inc.) is an international Christianity, Christian-based terrestrial television, broadcast television network and the world's largest religious television network. TBN ...

* 44 WBXC-CA,

MTV 2 MTV2 (formerly M2) is an American pay television channel owned by the Paramount Media Networks division of Paramount Global, through PMN’s MTV Entertainment Group Subdivision. The channel launched initially as an all-music video service, onc ...

* 49

WCIX WCIX (channel 49) is a television station licensed to Springfield, Illinois, United States, serving the Central Illinois region as an affiliate of MyNetworkTV. It is owned by Nexstar Media Group alongside Champaign-licensed CBS affiliate WCIA ...

"My WCFN TV",

My Network TV MyNetworkTV (stylized as mynetworkTV; unofficially abbreviated MNT or MNTV) is an American commercial broadcast television syndication service and former television network owned by Fox Corporation, operated by its Fox Television Stations divi ...

* 51 WEIU,

Digital television (DTV) * 9 WILL-DT, PBS * 18 WAND-DT, NBC * 22 WBUI-DT, WB * 26 WCCU-DT, Fox * 41 WICD-DT, ABC * 48 WCIA-DT, CBS * 50 WEIU-DT, PBS Print * The News-Gazette, daily local newspaper *

Daily Illini Daily or The Daily may refer to: Journalism * Daily newspaper, newspaper issued on five to seven day of most weeks * ''The Daily'' (podcast), a podcast by ''The New York Times'' * ''The Daily'' (News Corporation), a defunct US-based iPad new ...

* Buzz Weekly * The Public I indie media newspaper

Transportation

Downtown Urbana is located southwest of the intersection of its two busiest streets: U.S. 150 (University Avenue) and U.S. 45 (Vine Street-Cunningham Avenue). Most of Urbana lies south of

I-74 Interstate 74 (I-74) is an Interstate Highway in the Midwestern and Southeastern United States. Its western end is at an interchange with I-80 in Davenport, Iowa; the eastern end of its Midwest segment is at an interchange with I-75 ...

. There are three exits (from west to east): Lincoln (I-74 milepost 183), Cunningham (184) and University (185). The Lincoln exit is closest to the University of Illinois, while the Cunningham exit goes to downtown Urbana. The university exit goes to downtown Urbana as well as

Illinois Route 130 Illinois Route 130 is a north–south state highway in eastern Illinois. It runs from Illinois Route 1 in Grayville north to Interstate 74 in Urbana. This is a distance of . Illinois 130 is the main north–south highway through Charl ...

Philo Philo of Alexandria (; ; ; ), also called , was a Hellenistic Jewish philosopher who lived in Alexandria, in the Roman province of Egypt. The only event in Philo's life that can be decisively dated is his representation of the Alexandrian J ...

. Local bus service is primarily provided by the

Champaign–Urbana Mass Transit District The Champaign–Urbana Mass Transit District (colloquially known as the MTD) is a mass transit system that operates in the Champaign–Urbana metropolitan area in central-eastern Illinois. MTD is headquartered in Urbana, Illinois, Urbana and operat ...

, although limited service is available from Champaign County Area Rural Transit System and Danville Mass Transit, operators which primarily serve Rantoul and Danville respectively. The

Norfolk Southern The Norfolk Southern Railway is a Class I freight railroad operating in the Eastern United States. Headquartered in Atlanta, the company was formed in 1982 with the merger of the Norfolk and Western Railway and Southern Railway. The comp ...

operates an east to west line through Urbana. The NS line connects industries in eastern Urbana to the Norfolk Southern main line at

Mansfield, Illinois Mansfield is a village in Piatt County, Illinois in the United States. The population was 906 at the 2010 census. History Mansfield was originally incorporated around 1870. The village may have been named for John Mansfield, an officer in the Ci ...

, west of Champaign. The line now operated by Norfolk Southern is the former Peoria & Eastern Railway, later operated as part of the Big Four ( Cleveland, Cincinnati, Chicago and St. Louis Railway),

New York Central The New York Central Railroad was a railroad primarily operating in the Great Lakes and Mid-Atlantic regions of the United States. The railroad primarily connected greater New York and Boston in the east with Chicago and St. Louis in the Midw ...

Penn Central The Penn Central Transportation Company, commonly abbreviated to Penn Central, was an American class I railroad that operated from 1968 to 1976. Penn Central combined three traditional corporate rivals, the Pennsylvania, New York Central and the ...

, and

Conrail Conrail , formally the Consolidated Rail Corporation, was the primary Class I railroad in the Northeastern United States between 1976 and 1999. The trade name Conrail is a portmanteau based on the company's legal name. It continues to do busine ...

systems, being sold by Conrail to Norfolk Southern in 1996. Construction of the line was begun by the Danville, Urbana, Bloomington and Pekin Railroad. This short-lived entity became part of the Indianapolis, Bloomington and Western Railway before the railroad was completed. A branch line of the

Norfolk and Western Railway The Norfolk and Western Railway , commonly called the N&W, was a US class I railroad, formed by more than 200 railroad mergers between 1838 and 1982. It was headquartered in Roanoke, Virginia, for most of its existence. Its motto was "Precisio ...

(formerly the Wabash Railroad) used to connect Urbana with the main line from Danville to Decatur at

Sidney, Illinois Sidney is a village in Champaign County, Illinois, Champaign County, Illinois, United States. The population was 1,208 at the 2020 census. History The Potawatomi Trail of Death passed through here in 1838. Geography Sidney is located at . Accor ...

, but this was first rerouted and later closed in the early 1990s.

University of Illinois Willard Airport University of Illinois Willard Airport – also known as Willard Airport and Champaign–Urbana Airport – is south of Savoy, Illinois, Savoy in Tolono Township, Champaign County, Illinois, United States. It is owned and operated by the Univer ...

serves the city.

In popular culture

In the 1968 film '' 2001: A Space Odyssey'', Urbana was named as the location where the

HAL 9000 HAL 9000 (or simply HAL or Hal) is a fictional artificial intelligence character and the main antagonist in the '' Space Odyssey'' series. First appearing in the 1968 film '' 2001: A Space Odyssey'', HAL ( Heuristically Programmed Algorithmic C ...

computer of the ill-fated Discovery Mission to

Jupiter Jupiter is the fifth planet from the Sun and the List of Solar System objects by size, largest in the Solar System. It is a gas giant with a Jupiter mass, mass more than 2.5 times that of all the other planets in the Solar System combined a ...

was programmed. The 1959

comedy Comedy is a genre of dramatic works intended to be humorous or amusing by inducing laughter, especially in theatre, film, stand-up comedy, television, radio, books, or any other entertainment medium. Origins Comedy originated in ancient Greec ...

Some Like It Hot ''Some Like It Hot'' is a 1959 American crime comedy film directed, produced and co-written by Billy Wilder. It stars Marilyn Monroe, Tony Curtis and Jack Lemmon, with George Raft, Pat O'Brien (actor), Pat O'Brien, Joe E. Brown, Joan Shawlee an ...

'' also mentions Urbana. Near the beginning of this film,

Jack Lemmon John Uhler Lemmon III (February 8, 1925 – June 27, 2001) was an American actor. Considered proficient in both dramatic and comic roles, he was known for his anxious, middle-class everyman screen persona in comedy-drama films. He received num ...

's character, an unemployed bass player, suggests to

Tony Curtis Tony Curtis (born Bernard Schwartz; June 3, 1925September 29, 2010) was an American actor with a career that spanned six decades, achieving the height of his popularity in the 1950s and early 1960s. He acted in more than 100 films, in roles co ...

, a saxophone player, that the two visit Urbana to play at the University of Illinois. Instead, the two musicians elected to join a women's band in Florida. Urbana provides the setting for

Bert I. Gordon Bert Ira Gordon (September 24, 1922 – March 8, 2023) was an American film director, producer, screenwriter, and visual effects artist. He is best known for screenwriting and producing and/or directing science fiction and horror B-movies such ...

's 1957

science fiction Science fiction (often shortened to sci-fi or abbreviated SF) is a genre of speculative fiction that deals with imaginative and futuristic concepts. These concepts may include information technology and robotics, biological manipulations, space ...

film, '' Beginning of the End''. Parodied on the television program, ''

Mystery Science Theater 3000 ''Mystery Science Theater 3000'' (abbreviated as ''MST3K'') is an American science fiction comedy television series created by Joel Hodgson. The show premiered on WUCW, KTMA-TV (now WUCW) in Saint Paul, Minnesota, on November 24, 1988. It then ...

'', this movie features the unintentional creation of dangerous, giant grasshoppers as a result of agricultural research gone awry.

English Professor and

National Book Award The National Book Awards (NBA) are a set of annual U.S. literary awards. At the final National Book Awards Ceremony every November, the National Book Foundation presents the National Book Awards and two lifetime achievement awards to authors. ...

winner

Richard Powers Richard Powers (born June 18, 1957) is an American novelist whose works explore the effects of modern science and technology. His novel ''The Echo Maker'' won the 2006 National Book Award for Fiction.Galatea 2.2'' at the multidisciplinary

Beckman Institute for Advanced Science and Technology The Beckman Institute for Advanced Science and Technology is a unit of the University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign dedicated to interdisciplinary research. A gift from scientist, businessman, and philanthropist Arnold O. Beckman (1900–2004) and ...

. Spanish writer

Javier Cercas Javier Cercas Mena (born 1962) is a Spanish writer and professor of Spanish literature at the University of Girona, Spain. Awards he has won for his novels include the Independent Foreign Fiction Prize for '' Soldiers of Salamis'' (translated ...

uses Urbana as the geographical background for two of his novels, "La velocidad de la luz" (2005) and "El inquilino" (1989). The " American Football House", which is famously pictured on emo band

American Football American football, referred to simply as football in the United States and Canada and also known as gridiron football, is a team sport played by two teams of eleven players on a rectangular American football field, field with goalposts at e ...

's albums, is located at 704 West High Street.

Sister cities

Channing-Murray Foundation Unitarian Universalist Chapel Urbana Illinois

Urbana is twinned with three sister cities: *

Zomba, Malawi Zomba is a city in southern Malawi, in the Shire Highlands. It is the former capital city of Malawi. It was the capital of first British Central Africa and then Nyasaland Protectorate before the establishment of Malawi in 1964. It was also t ...

* Haizhu,

Guangzhou Guangzhou, Chinese postal romanization, previously romanized as Canton or Kwangchow, is the Capital city, capital and largest city of Guangdong Provinces of China, province in South China, southern China. Located on the Pearl River about nor ...

, China *

Thionville Thionville (; ; ) is a city in the northeastern French Departments of France, department of Moselle (department), Moselle. The city is located on the left bank of the river Moselle (river), Moselle, opposite its suburb Yutz. History Thionvi ...

, France The city of Urbana has been awarded a major grant from Sister Cities International to undertake a trilateral pilot project involving Urbana, Zomba, Malawi, and the Haizhu District, China. The one-year Sino-African Initiative grant is for up to $100,000 and will involve a collaborative effort to improve the municipal waste disposal system in Zomba, a city of 88,000 in southeast Africa. Urbana has had a Sister City relationship with Zomba since 2008, another relationship with Haizhu District,

Guangzhou City Guangzhou, previously romanized as Canton or Kwangchow, is the capital and largest city of Guangdong province in southern China. Located on the Pearl River about northwest of Hong Kong and north of Macau, Guangzhou has a history of over 2, ...

, China since 2012, and added a third sister city charter with Thionville, France in 2014. Urbana is one of only three cities in the United States to be awarded a Sino-African grant. The others are Denver and an Asheville/Raleigh, N.C., joint team application.

Notable people

References

External links

City of Urbana (official website)

Urbana Free Library

Champaign-Urbana Historic Built Environment Digital Image Collection

Urbana Park District
– local parks, pools, and other recreation

Urbana Business Association

''Champaign Democrat,''
Google news archive. —PDFs of 1,286 issues, dating from 1887 through 1916. {{Authority control Cities in Illinois Cities in Champaign County, Illinois County seats in Illinois Populated places established in 1833 1833 establishments in Illinois