Ransom
Village
Plumb Street in Ransom
Country	United States
State	Illinois
County	LaSalle
Township	Allen
Coordinates	41°9′21″N 88°39′11″W / 41.15583, -88.65306
Area	1.0 sq mi (3 km²)
- land	1.0 sq mi (3 km²)
Population	409 (2000)
Density	412.6 /sq mi (159 /km²)
Timezone	CST (UTC-6)
- summer (DST)	CDT (UTC-5)
Postal code	60470
Area code	815
Location of Ransom within Illinois
Wikimedia Commons: Ransom, Illinois

Ransom is a village in LaSalle County, Illinois, United States. The population was 409 at the 2000 census. It is part of the Ottawa–Streator Micropolitan Statistical Area.

History

Ransom was a planned community; ads were placed in the Streator Monitor as early as 1876 calling for shopkeepers, craftsmen, and tradesmen. In 1885 the village of Ransom was officially incorporated. The earliest businesses in Ransom included a hotel, saloon, doctor, carpenter, pharmacist, grocery store, cash exchange and a blacksmith. On the edge of the newly developing business district a small wooden water tower was constructed. In 1892 a fire devastated the eastern side of the business district, stymieing the village's growth and causing some business owners to close up shop forever.^[1]

After the fire, and much back and forth, the village constructed a new public waterworks with a 68 feet water tower at its center in 1896. The village flourished after the fire, eventually reaching a population peak of around 600 following World War II. On September 7, 1903 the first phone service reached Ransom, and AT&T opened a telegraph office in 1905. Between 1905–1910 the village constructed a sidewalk system. The first electric street lamps appeared on May 7, 1910 with the acquistion of a dozen electric street lamps from Illinois Valley Gas and Electric. Electricity gradually made its way into the homes of Ransom following the introduction of the street lamps.^[1]

Namesake

The village was named for American Civil War General Thomas E.G. Ransom. Ransom hailed from the state of Illinois.^[2]

Geography

Ransom is located at 41°9′21″N, 88°39′11″W (41.155955, -88.653178).^[3]

According to the United States Census Bureau, the village has a total area of 1.0 square miles (2.6 km²), all of it land.

Demographics

As of the census^[4] of 2000, there were 409 people, 147 households, and 109 families residing in the village. The population density was 412.6 people per square mile (159.5/km²). There were 159 housing units at an average density of 160.4/sq mi (62.0/km²). The racial makeup of the village was 98.04% White, 0.24% African American, 0.24% Native American, 0.24% from other races, and 1.22% from two or more races. Hispanic or Latino of any race were 3.18% of the population.

There were 147 households out of which 39.5% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 62.6% were married couples living together, 5.4% had a female householder with no husband present, and 25.2% were non-families. 23.1% of all households were made up of individuals and 12.9% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.78 and the average family size was 3.29.

In the village the population was spread out with 30.1% under the age of 18, 5.6% from 18 to 24, 30.3% from 25 to 44, 22.7% from 45 to 64, and 11.2% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 34 years. For every 100 females there were 98.5 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 97.2 males.

The median income for a household in the village was $53,333, and the median income for a family was $55,682. Males had a median income of $46,458 versus $21,250 for females. The per capita income for the village was $17,524. About 2.3% of families and 1.9% of the population were below the poverty line, including none of those under the age of eighteen or sixty-five or over.

References

1. ^ ^{a b} Cahill, Marianne. "Ransom Water Tower", (PDF), August 1, 1990, Illinois Historic Preservation Agency, accessed May 11, 2008.
2. ^ Gannett, Henry. The Origin of Certain Place Names in the United States, (Google Books), Government Printing Office, Washington DC: 1905, p. 258.
3. ^ US Gazetteer files: 2000 and 1990. United States Census Bureau (2005-05-03). Retrieved on 2008-01-31.
4. ^ American FactFinder. United States Census Bureau. Retrieved on 2008-01-31.

External links

• Village of Ransom

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