Litchfield
City
Cars in a "66" formation at the SkyView Drive-In.
Country	United States
State	Illinois
County	Montgomery
Coordinates	39°10′36″N 89°39′13″W / 39.17667, -89.65361
Area	5.1 sq mi (13 km²)
- land	5.1 sq mi (13 km²)
Population	6,815 (2000)
Density	1,338.5 /sq mi (517 /km²)
Timezone	CST (UTC-6)
- summer (DST)	CDT (UTC-5)
Postal code	62056
Area code	217
Location of Litchfield within Illinois
Wikimedia Commons: Litchfield, Illinois

Litchfield is a city in Montgomery County, Illinois, United States. The population was 6,815 at the 2000 census. It is located in southern Illinois, south of Springfield and on the northern edge of the Greater Saint Louis Metro-East area.

History

Litchfield was named after one of its founders, Electus Bacchus Litchfield.^[1]

Attractions

The Ariston Cafe is one of the oldest restaurants along the historic U.S. Route 66, commonly known as Old Route 66, though the cafe itself claims it could possibly be the oldest[1]. The Ariston Café was founded in 1924 in the town of Carlinville, Illinois, but was later moved to its present location. The cafe was inducted into the Route 66 Hall of Fame in 1992. Another landmark is Litchfield's Lake Lou Yaeger, located northeast of town.[2]. The SkyView theater is a member of the Route 66 hall of fame and has been in operation since 1951.[3].

Geography

Litchfield is located at 39°10′36″N, 89°39′13″W (39.176741, -89.653721).^[2]

According to the United States Census Bureau, the city has a total area of 5.1 square miles (13.2 km²), all of it land.

Demographics

As of the census^[3] of 2000, there were 6,815 people, 2,772 households, and 1,785 families residing in the city. The population density was 1,338.5 people per square mile (517.0/km²). There were 3,011 housing units at an average density of 591.4/sq mi (228.4/km²). The racial makeup of the city was 98.31% White, 0.37% African American, 0.18% Native American, 0.26% Asian, 0.01% Pacific Islander, 0.22% from other races, and 0.65% from two or more races. Hispanic or Latino of any race were 0.95% of the population.

There were 2,772 households out of which 31.3% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 48.7% were married couples living together, 11.9% had a female householder with no husband present, and 35.6% were non-families. 32.5% of all households were made up of individuals and 17.0% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.37 and the average family size was 2.97.

The Ariston Cafe, a popular stop along U.S. Route 66.

In the city the population was spread out with 25.6% under the age of 18, 7.5% from 18 to 24, 26.6% from 25 to 44, 20.0% from 45 to 64, and 20.3% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 38 years. For every 100 females there were 86.1 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 80.3 males.

The median income for a household in the city was $28,717, and the median income for a family was $34,139. Males had a median income of $26,238 versus $19,545 for females. The per capita income for the city was $14,612. About 15.7% of families and 16.6% of the population were below the poverty line, including 22.9% of those under age 18 and 11.2% of those age 65 or over.

Litchfield also has the highest number of restaurants per capita in the United States.^{[citation needed]}

References

External links

• Litchfield, Illinois is at coordinates 39°10′36″N 89°39′13″W / 39.176741, -89.653721 (Litchfield, Illinois)Coordinates: 39°10′36″N 89°39′13″W / 39.176741, -89.653721 (Litchfield, Illinois)

Ariston Cafe
The SkyView theater

v â€¢ d â€¢ e Municipalities and communities of Montgomery County, Illinois County seat: Hillsboro Cities Coffeen | Hillsboro | Litchfield | Nokomis | Witt Villages Butler | Coalton | Donnellson | Farmersville | Fillmore | Harvel | Irving | Ohlman | Panama | Raymond | Schram City | Taylor Springs | Waggoner | Walshville | Wenonah Townships Audubon | Bois D'Arc | Butler Grove | East Fork | Fillmore | Grisham | Harvel | Hillsboro | Irving | Nokomis | North Litchfield | Pitman | Raymond | Rountree | South Fillmore | South Litchfield | Walshville | Witt | Zanesville Unincorporated communities Chapman | Hornsby | Kortcamp | Van Burensburg