Albion, Illinois

Albion, Illinois
City
St. John's Episcopal Church, a local landmark
Location of Albion in Edwards County, Illinois.
Location of Illinois in the United States
Albion Location in Illinois Albion Albion (the United States) Albion Albion (North America) Show map of IllinoisShow map of the United StatesShow map of North AmericaShow all
Coordinates: 38°22′38″N 88°3′40″W / 38.37722°N 88.06111°W / 38.37722; -88.06111Coordinates: 38°22′38″N 88°3′40″W / 38.37722°N 88.06111°W / 38.37722; -88.06111
Country	United States
State	Illinois
County	Edwards
Area [1]
• Total	2.18 sq mi (5.65 km2)
• Land	2.14 sq mi (5.53 km2)
• Water	0.05 sq mi (0.12 km2)
Population  (2010)
• Total	1,988
• Estimate  (2019)[2]	1,899
• Density	889.04/sq mi (343.30/km2)
Time zone	UTC-6 (CST)
• Summer (DST)	UTC-5 (CDT)
ZIP Code(s)	62806
Area code(s)	618
FIPS code	17-00568

Albion is a city in and the county seat of Edwards County, Illinois, United States.^[3] The population was 1,988 at the 2010 census.^[4] The city was named "Albion" after an ancient and poetic reference to the island of Great Britain.^[5]

Geography[]

Albion is located south of the center of Edwards County at

38°22′38″N 88°3′40″W / 38.37722°N 88.06111°W / 38.37722; -88.06111 (38.377300, -88.061028).^[6] In it, Illinois Route 130 and Illinois Route 15 meet. Route 130 leads north 25 miles (40 km) to Olney and south 10 miles (16 km) to Grayville, while Route 15 leads east 16 miles (26 km) to Mount Carmel and west 16 miles (26 km) to Fairfield.

According to the 2010 census, Albion has a total area of 2.196 square miles (5.69 km²), of which 2.15 square miles (5.57 km²) (or 97.91%) is land and 0.046 square miles (0.12 km²) (or 2.09%) is water.^[7]

A 3.8-magnitude earthquake occurred seven and a half miles outside of the city on September 19, 2017.^[8]

Climate[]

History[]

Albion was laid out in 1818 as a utopian community, and given the name Albion, a literary name for England.^[10]

In 1821, the county seat of Edwards County was moved from Palmyra to Albion.^[11] However, residents of Mount Carmel felt their town should be the county seat. Four companies of militia marched from Mount Carmel towards Albion to seize the county documents stored in the courthouse. The situation was eventually resolved in 1824 by separating Wabash County from Edwards County at Bonpas Creek.^[12] The resulting counties remain two of the smallest in Illinois.

The township has a curious link with England and brewing. George Flower and Morris Birkbeck, a Quaker agriculturalist and radical, organised the purchase of 26,400 acres of land in the southern " Illinois Territory," to found Albion and encouraged settlers from England to come and join them. Among them was George's father Richard Flower, an experienced Brewer, (who at some point taught his son about making popular beer styles of the period, including London Porter). He came across the Atlantic with all his remaining children.

The settlement had a radical ethos for the time and was vehemently anti-slavery. Escaped slaves from Kentucky settled in Albion, encouraged by the Flowers and other community leaders. However, these formerly enslaved people were always in danger of kidnappers aiming to sell them back into slavery for a fast buck. Around 1823-4 one such gang of eight to ten kidnapped a group of free African-American residents of Albion and headed south. They were pursued by an outraged armed party led by Richard’s youngest son Edward . He was only 18 years old but Edward Fordham Flower's posse successfully captured the gang "at the rifle's mouth," freed their fellow citizen victims and took the kidnappers to face judgment under the law.

Friends or ‘business’ associates of the original kidnappers' associates planned to kill the young Flower or his father in revenge. Sadly, according to some newspaper reports, a cousin also called Richard was mistaken for Edward’s father and killed in a pre-planned argument and fight. Another time, a bullet was fired through a window at Richard's house and smashed a mirror above his head. The family decided that the only safe plan was for Edward to leave the country.

Back in England after 1825, Edward decided to take up the family trade and, after a struggling start, Flower’s Brewery in Stratford upon Avon became one of the most famous in England. Surviving as a separate company to the 1950s and as a brand to this day. Edward loved Illinois. He resented his forced departure and missed his life in America with his family. He frequently mused about returning. During the Civil War, Flower spoke at meetings around Britain and Ireland in support of the Union, and against slavery. One retired, in 1866, with the war over he made a six month visit to the US with his wife Celina.

Demographics[]

Historical population
Census	Pop.		%±
1850	365		—
1870	613		—
1880	875		42.7%
1890	937		7.1%
1900	1,162		24.0%
1910	1,281		10.2%
1920	1,584		23.7%
1930	1,666		5.2%
1940	1,855		11.3%
1950	2,287		23.3%
1960	2,025		−11.5%
1970	1,791		−11.6%
1980	2,285		27.6%
1990	2,116		−7.4%
2000	1,933		−8.6%
2010	1,988		2.8%
2019 (est.)	1,899	[2]	−4.5%
U.S. Decennial Census[13]

As of the census^[14] of 2000, there were 1,933 people, 861 households, and 538 families residing in the city. The population density was 903.8 people per square mile (348.8/km²). There were 957 housing units at an average density of 447.5 per square mile (172.7/km²). The racial makeup of the city was 98.71% White, 0.16% African American, 0.10% Native American, 0.57% Asian, 0.21% from other races, and 0.26% from two or more races. Hispanic or Latino of any race were 0.57% of the population.

There were 861 households, out of which 26.7% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 51.5% were married couples living together, 9.5% had a female householder with no husband present, and 37.4% were non-families. 34.5% of all households were made up of individuals, and 19.4% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.20 and the average family size was 2.82.

In the city, the population was spread out, with 21.6% under the age of 18, 7.3% from 18 to 24, 24.0% from 25 to 44, 22.8% from 45 to 64, and 24.3% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 43 years. For every 100 females, there were 83.7 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 80.3 males.

The median income for a household in the city was $29,476, and the median income for a family was $36,917. Males had a median income of $26,182 versus $17,375 for females. The per capita income for the city was $14,747. About 8.6% of families and 12.2% of the population were below the poverty line, including 19.0% of those under age 18 and 9.3% of those age 65 or over.

Notable people[]

• Harold Huntley Bassett, U.S. Air Force major general
• Morris Birkbeck, first Illinois Secretary of State, one of Albion's founders
• Louis Lincoln Emmerson, served as Secretary of State of Illinois and Governor of Illinois
• Benjamin Orange Flower, Journalist
• Edward Fordham Flower, English brewer
• Harold A. Garman, U.S. Army medic and Medal of Honor recipient in World War II
• Guy U. Hardy, former congressman from Colorado
• Jeff Keener, former pitcher for the St. Louis Cardinals^{[citation needed]}
• H. H. Kohlsaat, publisher and confidante of five U.S. presidents
• George Frederick Pentecost, prominent clergyman, evangelist and co-worker with revivalist D.L. Moody
• William Pickering, fifth governor of Washington Territory
• Bruce Mendenhall, convicted murderer and alleged serial killer
• , DJ from WJPS Evansville IN, As The "Real" Rodney Russell.^[15]

References[]

Further reading[]

• A History of Edwards County, Illinois, Volume One (1980), Library of Congress Card number 80-70649
• Charles Boewe, Prairie Albion: An English Settlement in Pioneer Illinois, Southern Illinois University Press, Carbondale, c. 1962

External links[]

• Albion Chamber of Commerce