Editing Hoopeston, Illinois (section)

==History==
[[Image:McFerren Park in Hoopeston Illinois.png|thumb|left|180px|Entrance to McFerren Park, 2007]]
Hoopeston was laid out in 1871. It was named for Thomas Hoopes, one of the men who offered land for the crossing of two railroads:  the Lafayette, Bloomington and Western Railroad and the [[Chicago, Danville and Vincennes Railroad]].<ref name="Jones">{{cite book
  | last = Jones
  | first = Lottie E.
  | title = History of Vermilion County, Illinois (volume 1)
  | publisher = Pioneer Publishing Company
  | year = 1911
  | location = Chicago, Illinois
  | pages = 224}}</ref><ref name="Stapp">{{cite book
  | last = Stapp
  | first = Katherine
  |author2=W. I. Bowman
  | title = History Under Our Feet: The Story of Vermilion County, Illinois
  | publisher = Interstate Printers and Publishers, Inc.
  | year = 1968
  | location = Danville, Illinois
  | pages = 42–44}}</ref>  The two railroads separated the town into four sections.  The latter railroad still exists and is now operated jointly by [[CSX Transportation]] and [[Union Pacific Railroad]].<ref>{{cite web
 |title=Illinois Railroad Map 
 |publisher=Illinois Department of Transportation 
 |date=January 2006 
 |url=http://www.dot.il.gov/officialrailmap.pdf 
 |access-date=2007-09-23 
 |url-status=dead 
 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20070822105705/http://www.dot.il.gov/officialrailmap.pdf 
 |archive-date=2007-08-22 
}}</ref>

In 1890, Greer College was established in Hoopeston, funded by a gift of $40,000 and {{convert|500|acre|km2}} of land from John Greer.<ref name="Stapp"/>

Business and manufacturing in Hoopeston have historically been related to agriculture. In 1875, S. S. McCall established the Illinois Canning Company to can locally grown vegetables, and this was so successful that in 1878 the Hoopeston Canning Company was established, which later became part of Stokely-Van Camp, Inc.<ref name="Stapp"/> In addition, [[Silgan Holdings|Silgan Can]] (formerly American Can) had a factory which manufactured the [[tin can]]s themselves, and an [[FMC Corp.|FMC]] plant manufactured agricultural machinery. There was also an engine company there until at least 1915, the [[Hoopeston Gas Engine Company]], which catered to agriculture and home use.  Hoopeston was also the location of one of several prisoner of war camps housing [[Nazi Germany|German]] soldiers during [[World War II]] (see [[German Prisoner of War Camp, Hoopeston, Illinois]]); many POWs picked crops for the canneries.

In honor of its agricultural roots, including the growing of [[sweet corn]], Hoopeston holds a Sweet Corn Festival each September, starting the Thursday before [[Labor Day]] and ending on Labor Day.  In association with the festival, the [[Hoopeston, Illinois#Miss National Sweetheart pageant|Miss National Sweetheart]] is held during the same week.  Runners-up from the Miss America state pageants are eligible to compete for the title of Miss National Sweetheart.

Hoopeston is now surrounded by many [[wind turbine]]s that have been organized into computerized [[Hoopeston Wind Farm|wind farms]].<ref name="Wind Power">{{cite web |url=https://www.thewindpower.net/windfarm_en_18676_hoopeston.php |title=Hoopeston (USA) |author=<!--Not stated--> |date= |work=The Wind Power |access-date=November 6, 2022 |quote=}}</ref>