Gays
Village
Country	United States
State	Illinois
County	Moultrie
Coordinates	39°27′32″N 88°29′47″W / 39.45889, -88.49639
Area	0.4 sq mi (1 km²)
- land	0.4 sq mi (1 km²)
Population	259 (2000)
Density	633.5 /sq mi (245 /km²)
Timezone	CST (UTC-6)
- summer (DST)	CDT (UTC-5)
Postal code	XXXXX
Area code	XXX
Location of Gays within Illinois
Wikimedia Commons: Gays, Illinois

The Gays water tower

Gays is a village in Moultrie County, Illinois, United States. The population was 259 at the 2000 census.

Geography

Gays is located at 39°27′32″N, 88°29′47″W (39.458782, -88.496367).^[1]

According to the United States Census Bureau, the village has a total area of 0.4 square miles (1.1 km²), all of it land.

Attractions

The Gays historical two-story outhouse

A two-story outhouse is located in the town. It was built in 1869 for apartments that were attached to a general store. The top floor was used by the apartment dwellers while the bottom floor was used by patrons of the store. Although the store and apartments were demolished, the outhouse remained. Each level has two seats, so the outhouse could be used by four at a time. Waste from the top level dropped behind a false wall into a pit. It is now in a small public park which is dedicated for outhouse promoter and former Gays mayor Gene Goodwin.

West of the outhouse is the former site of what was claimed to be Hitler’s bicycle. A rusty bicycle once hung on a pole with a sign that read "Hitler’s Bike (1934)." However, the bike was not authentic. The bike was stolen and as of May 29, 2005 the bike had not been found.^{[citations needed]}

Demographics

As of the census^[2] of 2000, there were 259 people, 99 households, and 76 families residing in the village. The population density was 633.5 people per square mile (243.9/km²). There were 104 housing units at an average density of 254.4/sq mi (97.9/km²). The racial makeup of the village was 98.46% White and 1.54% Pacific Islander.

There were 99 households out of which 41.4% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 65.7% were married couples living together, 5.1% had a female householder with no husband present, and 23.2% were non-families. 18.2% of all households were made up of individuals and 6.1% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.62 and the average family size was 3.00.

In the village the population was spread out with 27.8% under the age of 18, 5.8% from 18 to 24, 32.4% from 25 to 44, 23.6% from 45 to 64, and 10.4% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 34 years. For every 100 females there were 112.3 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 107.8 males.

The median income for a household in the village was $42,500, and the median income for a family was $42,813. Males had a median income of $29,688 versus $21,944 for females. The per capita income for the village was $19,131. About 2.5% of families and 3.6% of the population were below the poverty line, including 5.6% of those under the age of eighteen and none of those sixty five or over.

References

1. ^ US Gazetteer files: 2000 and 1990. United States Census Bureau (2005-05-03). Retrieved on 2008-01-31.
2. ^ American FactFinder. United States Census Bureau. Retrieved on 2008-01-31.

• Pohlen, J. (2000). Oddball illinois. Chicago: Chicago Review Press. 

External links

• Gays, Illinois is at coordinates 39°27′32″N 88°29′47″W / 39.458782, -88.496367 (Gays, Illinois)Coordinates: 39°27′32″N 88°29′47″W / 39.458782, -88.496367 (Gays, Illinois)

v â€¢ d â€¢ e Municipalities and communities of Moultrie County, Illinois County seat: Sullivan Cities Sullivan Villages Allenville | Bethany | Dalton City | Gays | Lovington Townships Dora | East Nelson | Jonathan Creek | Lovington | Lowe | Marrowbone | Sullivan | Whitley