Editing Cairo, Illinois (section)

==History==

===Beginnings===
[[File:Embarkation of General McClernand's Brigade at Cairo.jpg|thumb|right|Embarkation of [[Union (American Civil War)|Union]] troops from Cairo on January 10, 1862]]
Cairo was named after the Egyptian city of the same name because its location at the confluence of the Ohio and Mississippi Rivers was reminiscent of the [[Nile Delta]].<ref name="knowles">{{cite news |last1=Knowles |first1=Daniel |title=America is uniquely ill-suited to handle a falling population |url=https://www.economist.com/briefing/2024/04/18/america-is-uniquely-ill-suited-to-handle-a-falling-population |access-date=19 April 2024 |newspaper=[[The Economist]] |date=April 18, 2024}}</ref>

The first municipal charter for Cairo and the Bank of Cairo were issued in 1818, but without any settlement and without any depositors.<ref name="britannica.com">{{Cite web | url=https://www.britannica.com/EBchecked/topic/88546/Cairo |title = Cairo &#124; Illinois, United States| date=October 25, 2023 }}</ref> A second and successful effort to establish a town was made by the Cairo City and Canal Company in 1836–37, with a large levee built to encircle the site.<ref name="britannica.com" /> However, this effort collapsed in 1840, with few settlers remaining.<ref name="britannica.com" />

[[Charles Dickens]] visited Cairo in 1842, and was unimpressed.<ref name="britannica.com" /> The city would serve as his prototype for the nightmare City of Eden in his novel ''[[Martin Chuzzlewit]]''.<ref name="britannica.com" /> In 1846, 10,000 acres in Cairo were purchased by the trustees of the Cairo City Property Trust, a group of investors including writer [[John Neal]]<ref>{{Cite book |publisher=Printed by B. Thurston |location=Portland [Me.] |title=The past, present and future of the city of Cairo, in North America |author=Cairo City Property (Cairo, Ill.) |date=1858 |page=99 |oclc=13619400|ol=271527M |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=OJYUAAAAYAAJ}}</ref> who planned to make it the terminus of the projected [[Illinois Central Railroad]], which finally arrived there in 1855.

Cairo had been growing as an important river port for [[steamboat]]s, which traveled all the way south to New Orleans. The city had been designated as a port of delivery by Act of Congress in 1854.

A new city charter was written in 1857,<ref>{{Cite web |title=Papers Of Abraham Lincoln |url=https://papersofabrahamlincoln.org/places/x4014254 |access-date=2025-04-14 |website=papersofabrahamlincoln.org}}</ref> and Cairo flourished as trade with [[Chicago]] to the north spurred development. By 1860, the population exceeded 2,000.

{{CSS image crop|Image=The Photographic History of The Civil War Volume 01 Page 188.jpg|bSize=220|cWidth=190|cHeight=205|oTop=20|oLeft=7|Location=left|Description=General Grant's headquarters.}}
During the [[American Civil War|Civil War]], Admiral [[Andrew Hull Foote]] made Cairo the naval station for the [[Mississippi River Squadron]] on September 6, 1861. Since Cairo had no land available for base facilities, the navy yard repair shop machinery was afloat aboard wharf-boats, old steamers, tugs, flat-boats, and rafts.<ref>{{cite book |last=Miller |first=Francis Trevelyan |title =The Photographic History of The Civil War |publisher =Castle Books |volume =Six: The Navies |date =1957 |location =New York |pages =213–215 }}</ref> In January 1862, General [[Ulysses S. Grant]] occupied the city, and had [[Fort Defiance (Illinois)|Fort Defiance]] constructed to protect the confluence. Cairo became an important Union supply base and training center for the remainder of the war.<ref name="britannica.com" />

Military occupation caused much of the city's trade to be diverted by railroad to Chicago. Cairo failed to regain this important trade after the war, as more railroads converged on Chicago and it developed at a rapid pace, attracting stockyards, meat processing, and heavy industries. Instead, agriculture, lumber, and sawmills now dominated the Cairo economy.<ref name="britannica.com" />

===Post-war prosperity===
[[File:CairoIllPerspectiveMap1885.jpg|right|thumb|Cairo panoramic map, 1885. The Ohio River in front and the Mississippi River in back.]]
The strategic importance of Cairo's geographic location during the Civil War sparked prosperity in the town. Several banks were founded during the war years, and the growth in banking and [[steamboat]] traffic continued after the war.

In 1869, construction began on the United States [[Old Custom House (Cairo, Illinois)|Custom House]] and Post Office, which was designed by [[Alfred B. Mullet]], the [[Office of the Supervising Architect|Supervising Architect]]. The custom house was completed in 1872. It served as a custom house, post office, and United States Court. The [[United States district court|U.S. District Court]] for the Southern District of Illinois met at the building until 1905.

From 1905 to 1942, the Custom House was used for the U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of Illinois. The building also housed the [[United States circuit court|U.S. Circuit Court]] for the Eastern District of Illinois from 1905 to 1912. At the height of Cairo's prosperity, the post office in the building was the third busiest in the United States. It is one of only seven of Mullet's [[Victorian architecture|Victorian]] structures remaining in the nation, and the building has been converted for use as a museum. It is listed on the [[National Register of Historic Places]].<ref>[http://www.lib.niu.edu/1999/ihy990A446.html "US Customs House and Post Office, Cairo, IL"]{{Dead link|date=July 2020 |bot=InternetArchiveBot |fix-attempted=yes }}, Northern Illinois University Library</ref>

After the Civil War, the city became a hub for railroad shipping in the region, which added to its economy. By 1900 several railroad lines branched from Cairo. In addition to shipping and railroads, a major industry in Cairo was the operation of ferries. Into the late 19th century, nearly 250,000 railroad cars could be ferried across the river in as little as six months. Vehicles were also ferried, as there were no automobile bridges in the area in the early 20th century. The ferry industry created numerous jobs in Cairo to handle large amounts of cargo and numerous passengers through the city.<ref name="lib.niu.edu">{{cite web |url=http://www.lib.niu.edu/2001/ihy010448.html |title=Cairo, Illinois |publisher=Lib.niu.edu |access-date=February 16, 2013 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130613101320/http://www.lib.niu.edu/2001/ihy010448.html |archive-date=June 13, 2013 |url-status=dead }}</ref>

Wealthy merchants and shippers built numerous fine mansions in the 19th and early 20th century, including the [[Italianate architecture|Italianate]] ''[[Magnolia Manor (Cairo, Illinois)|Magnolia Manor]]'', completed in 1872, and the [[Second Empire architecture|Second Empire]] ''Riverlore Mansion'', built by Capt. [[William P. Halliday]] in 1865. Across the street from the customs house, the Cairo Public Library was constructed in 1883 of [[Queen Anne style architecture in the United States|Queen Anne-style architecture]], finished with stained glass windows and ornate woodwork. The library was dedicated on July 19, 1884, as the A. B. Safford Memorial Library. Anna E. Safford paid for the construction of the Library and donated it to the city. These and other significant buildings are also listed on the National Register.<ref>John McMurray Lansden. ''A history of the city of Cairo, Illinois''. 1910. pp 153–154, 231–234</ref>

For protection from seasonal flooding, Cairo is completely enclosed by a series of levees and [[flood wall]]s, due to its low elevation between the rivers. Several buildings, including the old custom house, were originally designed to be built to a higher street level, to be at the same height as the top of the levees. That plan was scrapped as the cost of fill to raise the streets and surrounding land to that height proved to be impractical. In 1914, a large flood gate was constructed by Stupp Brothers of St. Louis, Missouri. The flood gate is known as the "Big Subway Gate", and it was designed to seal the northern levee in Cairo by closing over U.S. Highway 51. The gate weighs 80 tons, is 60 feet wide, 24 feet high, and five feet thick. With the addition of the gate, Cairo could become an island, completely sealed off from approaching flood waters.

Following the [[Great Mississippi Flood of 1927]], the levee system around Cairo was strengthened. As part of this project, the Corps of Engineers established the [[Birds Point-New Madrid Floodway]]. The [[Ohio River flood of 1937]] brought a record water level to Cairo that crested at 59.5 feet. To protect Cairo, Corps of Engineers closed the flood gate and blew a breach in the Bird's Point levee for the first time to relieve pressure on the Cairo flood wall. Following the flood, the concrete flood wall was raised to its current height. It is designed to protect the town from flood waters up to 64 feet.<ref>[http://michaelminn.net/america/structures/cairo_gate] {{webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110927222519/http://michaelminn.net/america/structures/cairo_gate|date=September 27, 2011}}</ref><ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.pjstar.com/free/x128435537/Cairo-flood-wall-holds-as-Ohio-River-rises |title=Cairo Flood Wall Holds as Ohio River Rises |publisher=PJ Star |access-date=August 16, 2012}}</ref><ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.stlbeacon.org/region/109997-over-under-and-through-the-ohios-assault-on-cairo |title=Over Under and Through the Ohio's Assault on Cairo |work=St. Louis Beacon |access-date=August 16, 2012 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110907145555/http://www.stlbeacon.org/region/109997-over-under-and-through-the-ohios-assault-on-cairo |archive-date=September 7, 2011 }}</ref><ref>{{cite web |url=http://coastguard.dodlive.mil/2011/05/coast-guard-army-corps-of-engineers-assist-residents-in-midwest-flood-zone/110426-g-xv958-125-flooding-near-cairo-ill-and-birds-point |title=Coast Guard and Army Corps of Engineers Assist Residents in Midwest Flood Zone |publisher=Coast Guard |access-date=August 16, 2012 |archive-date=March 18, 2012 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120318054747/http://coastguard.dodlive.mil/2011/05/coast-guard-army-corps-of-engineers-assist-residents-in-midwest-flood-zone/110426-g-xv958-125-flooding-near-cairo-ill-and-birds-point/ |url-status=dead }}</ref>

In 1942, the federal government constructed a new U.S. Post Office and Courthouse in Cairo. Still growing, the city had a population approaching 15,000. The new federal court house, located at 1500 Washington, was designed by the architects [[Louis A. Simon]] and [[George Howe (architect)|George Howe]]. The U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of Illinois moved into the new courthouse in 1942, from the old U.S. Custom House and Post Office.

After the U.S. district court structure in Illinois was reorganized in 1978, the court house was used for the U.S. District Court for the Southern District of Illinois. The building remains in use by the federal courts and as the active post office for Cairo. The courthouse was built and is operated by the [[U.S. General Services Administration]].<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.iolp.gsa.gov/iolp/BuildingInfo.asp?bID=IL0017 |title=General Services Administration (GSA) Inventory of Owned and Leased Properties |access-date=August 16, 2012 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120313054952/http://www.iolp.gsa.gov/iolp/BuildingInfo.asp?bID=IL0017 |archive-date=March 13, 2012 }}</ref><ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.waymarking.com/waymarks/WM6BF4_US_Post_Office_and_Courthouse_Cairo_Illinois |title=U.S. Post Office and Courthouse – Cairo, Illinois |access-date=August 16, 2012}}</ref>

===Lynchings===
[[File:WillJamesMob.gif|thumb|An estimated crowd of 10,000 gathered for the [[lynching]] of Will James on November 11, 1909.]]

Cairo's turbulent history of [[race relations]] is marked by the 1909 spectacle [[lynching]] of black resident [[William "Froggie" James|William James]]. In 1900, Cairo had a population of nearly 13,000. Of that total, approximately 5,000 residents were [[African-American]], or 38 percent. In 1900, this was an unusually high black population for a town of Cairo's size in the North. Five percent of all black residents in the state of Illinois lived here. Later in the early 20th century, [[Chicago]] became the center of black life in the state, as it was the destination of tens of thousands of migrants during the [[Great Migration (African American)|Great Migration]].

The Illinois constitution of 1818 allowed for limited slavery in the salt mines and allowed current slave owners to retain their slaves. The General Assembly also passed legislation that severely curtailed the rights of free blacks residing in the state and discouraged the migration of free blacks. If a black person was unable to present proof of their freedom they could be fined $50 or sold by the sheriff to the highest bidder. Not long after the passage of the constitution, the state's general assembly adopted a pro-slavery resolution that announced its approval of slavery in slave-holding states and at the same time condemned the formation of abolition societies within Illinois’ boundaries.<ref>{{cite web |url=https://www2.illinois.gov/dnrhistoric/Research/pages/afamhist.aspx |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190805131910/https://www2.illinois.gov/dnrhistoric/Research/Pages/AfAmHist.aspx |url-status=dead |archive-date=August 5, 2019 |title=African Americans in Illinois |website=Historic Reservation Division }}</ref>

Although Black people comprised a large proportion of the Cairo population, they were frequently discriminated against in jobs and housing. Race relations were strained in 1900.<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.executedtoday.com/2009/11/11/1909-will-james-the-froggie-lynched-cairo-illinois |title=1909: Will James, 'the Froggie', lynched in Cairo |date=November 11, 2009 |access-date=August 16, 2012}}</ref> The state passed an anti-lynching law in 1905.

On the night of November 11, 1909, two men were [[lynched]]. The first was [[Lynching of William "Froggie" James|William James]], an African American accused of the murder of Anna Pelly, a young white woman killed three days earlier, although there was no physical or circumstantial evidence connecting him to the crime.<ref name="james">[https://www.jstor.org/stable/2649083?read-now=1&loggedin=true&seq=2#page_scan_tab_contents " 'An Outrageous Proceeding': A Northern Lynching and Enforcement of Anti-Lynching Legislation in Illinois, 1905–1910", ''Journal of Negro History'', 1999],{{jstor|2649083}}</ref> The second man lynched was Henry Salzner, a white man who had allegedly murdered his white wife the previous August.{{citation needed|date=March 2025}} A group of civil rights activists in Chicago hired journalist [[Ida B. Wells]] to investigate the lynchings. After the residents had calmed down, Governor Deneen enforced the 1905 anti-lynching law by dismissing Sheriff Davis for failing to protect James and Salzner.<ref name="james"/> Wells sided with the governor against reinstatement.

===Economic decline===
The slow economic decline of Cairo can be traced to local and regional changes back to the early 20th century. In 1889, the [[Cairo Rail Bridge|Illinois Central Railroad bridge]] was completed over the Ohio River, which brought about a decline in ferry business. The immediate economic impact was not severe, as the railroad traffic still was directed through Cairo, and automobile and truck traffic increased in the early 20th century.

In 1905, a second bridge was constructed across the Mississippi River at [[Thebes, Illinois]]. The effects of the second bridge were more severe, as rail traffic through Cairo was now reduced and railroad ferry operations were no longer necessary. As the steamboat industry was replaced with barges, river traffic had less reason to stop in Cairo.

In 1929, the [[Cairo Mississippi River Bridge]] was completed, linking Missouri with Illinois to the south of Cairo. In 1937, the [[Cairo Ohio River Bridge]] was completed. Completion of the two bridges ended the ferry industry in Cairo, putting many people out of work. As the town was bypassed by two bridges to the south, it also lost the benefit of motorist travel and trade between the states. Motorists cross the southern tip of Illinois between Missouri and Kentucky, completely bypassing the city of Cairo.<ref name="lib.niu.edu" /><ref>[http://michaelminn.net/america/structures/cairo_gate/] {{webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110927222519/http://michaelminn.net/america/structures/cairo_gate/|date=September 27, 2011}}</ref> While the city was protected by its levees from destruction when the Ohio River rose to record heights during the 1937 flood, the city's economic decline continued.

===Racial tensions and further decline===
{{Main|Racial unrest in Cairo, Illinois}}
Between the 1930s and 1960s, the population in Cairo remained fairly steady; however, many jobs were gone as the shipping, railroad, and ferry industries left the city. Population decline began as workers moved to other cities.

Racial tensions rose in the late 1960s as African-Americans sought implementation of gains under new federal civil rights laws passed as a result of the [[Civil Rights Movement]]. The police, fire department, and most city jobs were still overwhelmingly dominated by whites. African-Americans were allegedly harassed by the police and unjustly targeted. On July 16, 1967, Robert Hunt, a 19-year-old black soldier home on leave, was allegedly found hanged in the Cairo police station. Police reported that Hunt had hanged himself with his [[t-shirt]], but many members of the black community of Cairo accused the police of murder. There had been an alleged history of police discrimination and violence against black residents of the city.<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.lib.niu.edu/1997/ii970228.html |title=Let my people Go |access-date=August 16, 2012}}</ref>

The death of Robert Hunt sparked aggressive protests in Cairo's black community. On July 17, 1967, a large portion of the black population in Cairo began rioting. The black rioting that erupted in 1967 was not confined to Cairo; it was part of a larger pattern of more than 40 racially motivated riots that broke out in major cities in the United States in the summer of 1967. During the night of rioting on July 17, three stores and a warehouse in Cairo were burned to the ground, and windows were broken out of numerous other buildings. The National Guard unit at Cairo was activated to respond to the violence.<ref>"Alert Guard After Racial Riots in Cairo". ''Chicago Tribune''. July 18, 1967. p. 11.</ref>

On July 20, 1967, one of the leaders of the violence in Cairo warned white city officials, "Cairo will look like Rome burning down" if city leaders did not meet the demands of the black groups in Cairo by Sunday, July 23, 1967. The spokesman represented approximately one hundred black residents of the Pyramid Court housing project. They demanded new job opportunities, organized recreation programs for their children, and an end to police brutality. Cairo Mayor Lee Stenzel and other city leaders met with federal and state representatives to ensure that a plan was developed to satisfy the demands by the deadline in an effort to head off any additional rioting.<ref>"Scattered Race Riot Recurring". ''The Free-Lance Star''. July 21, 1967. p. 3.</ref><ref>"Cairo Seeks to Head Off More Riots". ''Sarasota Herald-Tribune''. July 22, 1967. p. 1.</ref>

In response to the rioting, the white community in Cairo formed a citizens protection group that was deputized by the sheriff. The protection group became known as the "White Hats", because many of its 600 members began wearing white construction hats to show their membership while patrolling the streets to maintain order. In the following two years, accusations of White Hat bullying incidents in the black community began to increase. In early 1969, a few activists of the civil rights struggle formed the [[Cairo United Front]], a civil rights organization to bring together the local [[NAACP]], a cooperative association, and a couple of black street gangs. The Cairo United Front was formed to organize the efforts of the black population in Cairo to counter the White Hats. The United Front formally accused the White Hats of intimidating the black community, and presented a list of seven demands to the City of Cairo. The seven demands included appointment of a black police chief, appointment of a black assistant fire chief, and an equal black-white ratio in all city jobs.<ref>"Races: War in Little Egypt". ''[[Time (magazine)|Time]]''. September 26, 1969.</ref>

Racial violence in Cairo reached a peak during summer 1969 as the Cairo United Front began leading protests and demonstrations to end segregation and draw attention to its seven demands. The protests led to a rash of violence that was stopped only when Illinois Governor [[Richard Ogilvie]] deployed National Guardsmen to restore the peace. In summer 1969, the Cairo United Front also began what became a decade-long [[boycott]] of white-owned businesses, which had generally not hired blacks as clerks or staff. The boycott encompassed virtually all the businesses in the town.

In December 1969, violence escalated again and several businesses were burned on Saturday, December 6. Early that morning, residents of the Pyramid Courts housing project opened fire on three firemen and the Chief of Police while they were responding to one of the intense fires. During the shootout, the Chief of Police and one of the firemen were shot by a high-powered rifle. Thirteen people were eventually arrested during the conflict.<ref>"2 Businesses Burn Saturday Morning". ''The Southeast Missourian''. December 8, 1969. p. 4.</ref> The Cairo Chief of Police resigned the next month, stating that Cairo lacked both the legal and physical means to deal with the "guerrilla warfare tactics" that had left the town in a state of turmoil for over two years.<ref>"Racial Tension Prompts Police Chief to Quit". ''Meriden Journal''. January 2, 1970. p. 8.</ref>

To enforce the boycott, African-American picketing of businesses continued throughout 1970. In December, the city enacted a new city ordinance banning picketing within 20 feet of a business. Another large violent clash erupted as a result of the new city ordinance. Following the violence, the United Front called for another large rally and resumed picketing at white-owned businesses despite the new ordinance. The picketing turned violent after police heard shots fired and moved on the crowd.<ref>"More Picketing Called Following Cairo, Ill Riot". ''The Lewiston Daily''. December 7, 1970. p. 4.</ref>

In 1978, the [[Cairo I-57 Bridge]] across the Mississippi River was opened. The interstate largely bypassed Cairo to the north, crippling the remaining hospitality industry in the city. Cairo's hospital closed in December 1986, due to high debt and a dwindling number of patients.

===Current status===
[[File:Cairobridge.jpg|thumb|The Cairo Levee underpass]]
[[File:GEMblockCairoIL.jpg|thumb|right|The mostly abandoned Historic Downtown Cairo.]]
[[File:Ruined buildings in Cairo, IL.png|thumb|Commerce Street, with mostly ruined buildings.]]
With the decline in river trade, as has been the case in many other cities on the Mississippi, Cairo has suffered a marked decline in its economy and population.<ref name="knowles" /> Its highest population was 15,203 in 1920;<ref>[http://sanborn.umi.com/il/1760/dateid-000007.htm?CCSI=105n Sanborn, "Cairo, IL"], University of Michigan</ref> in 2020 it had 1,733 residents, about an 89% loss of population from its peak a century earlier. The city has decreased in population for eight consecutive [[United States Census Bureau|US census reports]] from 1950 to 2020.

The city faces many significant socio-economic challenges for the remaining population, including poverty, crime, issues in education, unemployment and rebuilding its tax base.

The closure of the Elmwood and McBride [[Public housing|housing projects]] was announced by the federal government in 2017. In August 2017, [[Ben Carson]], the [[United States Secretary of Housing and Urban Development|Secretary of Housing and Urban Development]] at the time, visited the city. Ten families had found new housing, but an estimated 400 people will be affected{{update inline|date=May 2023}} by the closure.<ref>{{Cite news|url=https://www.npr.org/2017/08/09/542327211/carson-promises-to-help-residents-of-housing-projects-his-department-is-shutting|title=Carson Promises To Help Residents Of Housing Projects His Department Is Shutting Down|last=Siegler|first=Kurt|date=August 9, 2017|work=National Public Radio|access-date=2018-05-04|language=en}}</ref>

The community and region are working to stop abandonment of the city. They are restoring some architectural landmarks, and plan to develop heritage tourism focusing on the city's history and relationship to the Mississippi and Ohio rivers. Other cities have used such strategies to attract visitors and build new businesses to their communities.

A community clinic offers medical and dental care, and several mental health services. Local media include the ''Cairo Citizen'' weekly newspaper. Radio station [[WKRO (AM)|WKRO]] is licensed to Cairo.