Wilmington is a city in

Will County, Illinois Will County is a county in the northeastern part of the state of Illinois. According to the 2020 census, it had a population of 696,355, an increase of 2.8% from 677,560 in 2010, making it Illinois's fourth-most populous county. The county sea ...

, United States. Located on

Illinois Route 53 Illinois Route 53 (IL 53) is an arterial north–south state highway in northeast Illinois. IL 53 runs from Main Street west of historic U.S. Route 66 (US 66) in Gardner to IL 83 in Long Grove, a distance of . It mainly c ...

and Historic U.S. Route 66 along the east bank of the

Kankakee River The Kankakee River is a tributary of the Illinois River, approximately long, in the Corn Belt, Central Corn Belt Plains of northwestern Indiana and northeastern Illinois in the United States. At one time, the river drained one of the largest we ...

, it is approximately south-west from downtown

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 ...

. The population was 5,664 at the 2020 census. Wilmington is just south of

Midewin National Tallgrass Prairie The Midewin National Tallgrass Prairie (MNTP) is a tallgrass prairie reserve and is preserved as United States National Grassland operated by the United States Forest Service. The first national tallgrass prairie ever designated in the United St ...

, which is home to the largest

bison A bison (: bison) is a large bovine in the genus ''Bison'' (from Greek, meaning 'wild ox') within the tribe Bovini. Two extant taxon, extant and numerous extinction, extinct species are recognised. Of the two surviving species, the American ...

herd in the state.

History

Thomas Cox purchased land near Alden's Island in 1834 and built a sawmill, corn cracker, gristmill, and a carding machine facility all of which were powered by water wheels situated on a mill right off of the Kankakee River which runs through Wilmington. The city is home to the historic Eagle Hotel located on the northwest corner of state Rt 53 (Rt 66) and Water street (Rt 102). It later became famous as a stop on

U.S. Route 66 U.S. Route 66 or U.S. Highway 66 (US 66 or Route 66) is one of the original highways in the United States Numbered Highway System. It was established on November 11, 1926, with road signs erected the following year. The high ...

, which followed the route of modern-day

. A notable attraction for travelers along this route is the Gemini Giant, a muffler man-type statue. Countless photos of travelers, both domestic and foreign, standing at the base of the Gemini Giant are taken each year. Wilmington is also home to Cinder Ridge Golf Course, located off of I-55. Wilmington was the scene of the brutal murder of Riley Fox. A mural depicting historic Downtown Wilmington was installed facing the Eagle Hotel in October 2023, in anticipation of the 100th anniversary of the establishment of Route 66 coming up in 2026. In March 2024, the Gemini Giant was moved from The Launching Pad Restaurant to South Island Park.

Geography

Wilmington is located at . It is located on the banks of the

, approximately southwest of

and south of Joliet. One of Wilmington's most notable geographical features is a large island in the Kankakee River, much of which is occupied by a city park. This island divides the river into a large channel and a smaller one which was used as a natural mill race during the early years of the city. The island is the source of the city's nickname, "The Island City." According to the

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

, the city has a total area of , of which is land and (6.86%) is water.

Demographics

As of the 2020

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 ...

, there were 5,664 people and 2,330 households residing in the city. The racial makeup of the city was 90.18%

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 ...

, 1.4%

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 ...

, 0.4% Native American, 0.44% 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 ...

, 1.71% from other races, and 5.79% from two or more races. The median income for a household in the city was $66,538. Males had a median income of $52,633 versus $32,783 for females. About 10.3% 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 ...

Notable people

* Damien Anderson, National Football League player (born 1979) * Harry Butcher, driver in the

Indianapolis 500 The Indianapolis 500, formally known as the Indianapolis 500-Mile Race, and commonly shortened to Indy 500, is an annual automobile race held at the Indianapolis Motor Speedway in Speedway, Indiana, United States, an enclave suburb of Indian ...

(1892–1942) * George Cutshaw, Major League Baseball player (1887–1973) *

John J. Feely John Joseph Feely (August 1, 1875 – February 15, 1905) was a United States House of Representatives, U.S. Representative from Illinois. Born on a farm near Wilmington, Will County, Illinois, Wilmington, Illinois, Feely attended the public sc ...

, congressman (1875–1905) * Leroy Ioas, Hand of the Cause of the Bahá'í Faith (1896–1965) * Burt Keeley, Major League Baseball pitcher (1879–1952) * Kiiara, singer (born 1995) * Francis Joseph Magner, Roman Catholic bishop (1887–1947) * Kelly Murphy (born 1989) Olympic Volleyball player * Tanner Roark, Major League Baseball player (born 1986) * Josephine Trott, composer (1874–1950)

References

External links

*
City of Wilmington IL, Official Web SiteCatfish Days, Wilmington ILDowntown, Wilmington ILMidewin National Tallgrass Prairie
{{authority control Cities in Illinois Populated places established in 1836 Cities in Will County, Illinois 1836 establishments in Illinois