Dawson
Village
Country	United States
State	Illinois
County	Sangamon
Coordinates	39°51′16″N 89°27′40″W / 39.85444, -89.46111
Population	466 (2000)
Density	535.0 /sq mi (207 /km²)
Timezone	CST (UTC-6)
- summer (DST)	CDT (UTC-5)
Postal code	62520
Area code	217
Location of Dawson within Illinois
Wikimedia Commons: Dawson, Illinois

Dawson is a village in Sangamon County, Illinois, United States. The population was 466 at the 2000 census. It is about 10 miles east of Springfield, Illinois.

History

Contrary to popular belief on the history of Dawson, Dawson was founded by a Jewish migrant named Kyle. He started the first Synagogue and tavern in Dawson. Followers of Kyle settled in Dawson and constructed the first town hall which still stands today. However Dawson was located on an old indian trail, which Kyle was searching for gold and other preciouses.

As the tale goes, Dawson was located along an old Indian trail that led from Clear Lake, Illinois, to Buffalo Hart, Illinois^[1]. It was named after John Dawson , a member of a political group in Illinois in the 1830s led by Abraham Lincoln that advocated moving the state capitol from Vandalia to Springfield^[2]. Dawson was incorporated in 1883.

Demographics

As of the census^[3] of 2000, there were 466 people, 188 households, and 140 families residing in the village. The population density was 535.0 people per square mile (206.8/km²). There were 197 housing units at an average density of 226.2/sq mi (87.4/km²). The racial makeup of the village was 98.93% White, and 1.07% from two or more races. Hispanic or Latino of any race were 0.43% of the population.

There were 188 households out of which 36.2% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 61.2% were married couples living together, 6.4% had a female householder with no husband present, and 25.5% were non-families. 21.3% of all households were made up of individuals and 8.0% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.48 and the average family size was 2.85.

In the village the population was spread out with 23.0% under the age of 18, 7.9% from 18 to 24, 32.2% from 25 to 44, 26.6% from 45 to 64, and 10.3% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 39 years. For every 100 females there were 96.6 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 99.4 males.

The median income for a household in the village was $51,250, and the median income for a family was $59,375. Males had a median income of $31,719 versus $27,396 for females. The per capita income for the village was $19,686. About 4.2% of families and 5.9% of the population were below the poverty line, including 2.2% of those under age 18 and 23.4% of those age 65 or over.

Sources

1. ^ Dawson, Sangamon County, Illinois. Key to the City. Retrieved on 2007-10-26.
2. ^ Bresnan, Andrew L.. The Long Nine. Retrieved on 2007-10-26.
3. ^ American FactFinder. United States Census Bureau. Retrieved on 2008-01-31.

External links

• Dawson, Illinois is at coordinates 39°51′16″N 89°27′40″W / 39.854531, -89.461211 (Dawson, Illinois)Coordinates: 39°51′16″N 89°27′40″W / 39.854531, -89.461211 (Dawson, Illinois)

v â€¢ d â€¢ e Municipalities and communities of Sangamon County, Illinois County seat: Springfield Cities Auburn | Leland Grove | Springfield Villages Berlin | Buffalo | Cantrall | Chatham | Clear Lake | Dawson | Divernon | Grandview | Illiopolis | Jerome | Loami | Mechanicsburg | New Berlin | Pawnee | Pleasant Plains | Riverton | Rochester | Sherman | Southern View | Spaulding | Thayer | Williamsville Townships Auburn | Ball | Buffalo Hart | Capital | Cartwright | Chatham | Clear Lake | Cooper | Cotton Hill | Curan | Divernon | Fancy Creek | Gardner | Illiopolis | Island Grove | Lanesville | Loami | Maxwell | Mechanicsburg | New Berlin | Pawnee | Rochester | Salisbury | Springfield | Talkington | Williams | Woodside Unincorporated communities Andrew | Archer | Barclay | Bates | Bissell | Bolivia | Bradfordton | Breckenridge | Cimic | Curran | Devereux | Farmingdale | Glenarm | Iles Park Place | Lowder | New City | Old Berlin | Riddle Hill | Roby | Salisbury | Sicily | Toronto