Editing Sullivan, Illinois

{{Use mdy dates|date=July 2023}}
{{Infobox settlement
| name = Sullivan, Illinois
| official_name = 
| native_name = 
| native_name_lang = 
| settlement_type = [[List of cities in Illinois|City]]
| image_skyline = Southern side of courthouse square in Sullivan.jpg
| imagesize = 
| image_alt = 
| image_caption = South side of courthouse square in Sullivan
| image_flag = 
| image_seal = 
| etymology = 
| nickname = 
| motto = "More Than Just a Small Town” 
| anthem = 
| image_map = File:Moultrie County Illinois Incorporated and Unincorporated areas Sullivan Highlighted.svg
| mapsize = 
| map_alt = 
| map_caption = Location in Moultrie County, Illinois
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| pushpin_map = USA
| pushpin_label_position = left
| pushpin_label = Sullivan
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| pushpin_map_caption = Location in the United States
| coordinates = {{coord|39|35|42|N|88|36|30|W|display=inline,title}}
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| subdivision_type = Country
| subdivision_name = {{flag|United States}}
| subdivision_type1 = State
| subdivision_name1 = {{flag|Illinois}}
| subdivision_type2 = County
| subdivision_name2 = [[Moultrie County, Illinois|Moultrie]]
| subdivision_type3 = Township
| subdivision_name3 = [[Sullivan Township, Moultrie County, Illinois|Sullivan]]
| subdivision_type4 = 
| subdivision_name4 = 
| established_title = Founded
| established_date = March 7, 1845
| established_title1 = 
| established_date1 = 
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| extinct_title = 
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| founder = 
| named_for = [[Sullivan's Island]], Charleston Harbor, South Carolina
| seat_type = 
| seat = 
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| government_footnotes = 
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| governing_body = 
| leader_party = 
| leader_title = Mayor
| leader_name = Mike Mossman
| leader_title1 = Mayor
| leader_name1 = 
| total_type = 
| unit_pref = Imperial
| area_footnotes = <ref name="CenPopGazetteer2022">{{cite web |title=2022 U.S. Gazetteer Files: Illinois |url=https://www2.census.gov/geo/docs/maps-data/data/gazetteer/2022_Gazetteer/2022_gaz_place_17.txt |publisher=United States Census Bureau |accessdate=April 4, 2023}}</ref>
| area_total_km2 = 7.19
| area_total_sq_mi = 2.78
| area_land_km2 = 7.17
| area_land_sq_mi = 2.77
| area_water_km2 = 0.02
| area_water_sq_mi = 0.01
| area_water_percent = 
| area_metro_footnotes = 
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| area_rank = 
| elevation_footnotes = <ref name=gnis/>
| elevation_ft = 676
| elevation_point = 
| population_as_of = [[2020 United States census|2020]]
| population_footnotes = <ref name="Census 2020">{{Cite web| url=https://data.census.gov/cedsci/table?q=&g=1600000US1773495&tid=DECENNIALPL2020.P1| title=P1. Race – Sullivan city, Illinois: 2020 DEC Redistricting Data (PL 94-171)| publisher=U.S. Census Bureau| access-date=April 4, 2023}}</ref>
| population_total = 4413
| pop_est_as_of = 
| pop_est_footnotes = 
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| population_density_km2 = 615.44
| population_density_sq_mi = 1593.72
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| timezone1 = [[North American Central Time Zone|CST]]
| utc_offset1 = -6
| timezone1_DST = [[North American Central Time Zone|CDT]]
| utc_offset1_DST = -5
| timezone2 = 
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| postal_code_type = [[ZIP code]]
| postal_code = 61951
| postal2_code_type = 
| postal2_code = 
| area_code_type = 
| area_code = [[Area code 217|217]]
| geocode = 
| iso_code = 
| blank_name = [[Federal Information Processing Standards|FIPS code]]
| blank_info = 17-73495
| blank1_name = [[Geographic Names Information System|GNIS]] ID
| blank1_info = 2395997<ref name=gnis>{{GNIS|2395997}}</ref>
| blank2_name = 
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| blank1_name_sec2 = 
| blank1_info_sec2 = 
| blank2_name_sec2 = Wikimedia Commons
| blank2_info_sec2 = Sullivan, Illinois
| website = {{URL|sullivanil.us}}
| footnotes = 
}}

'''Sullivan''' is the largest city and the [[county seat]] of [[Moultrie County, Illinois|Moultrie County]], [[Illinois]], [[United States]]. The population was 4,413 at the time of the 2020 census.<ref name="Census 2020"/><ref name="GR6">{{cite web|url=http://www.naco.org/Counties/Pages/FindACounty.aspx|access-date=2011-06-07|title=Find a County|publisher=National Association of Counties}}</ref> Sullivan is named after [[Sullivan's Island, South Carolina]], where [[Fort Moultrie]] is located.<ref>[https://web.archive.org/web/20131111202335/http://gis.hpa.state.il.us/pdfs/201149.pdf Illinois Historic Preservation Agency]</ref>

==History==
[[File:Sullivan Courthouse.jpg|thumb|left|250px|[[Moultrie County Courthouse]]]]
Sullivan was founded in 1845 as '''Asa's Point'''. Two years after Sullivan was founded, the first official courthouse of the county was built. It was a simple two-story brick building with a hipped roof, and the county jail was housed in the basement. The village would come alive with gossip when court was in session. [[Abraham Lincoln]] passed through this first courthouse many times from 1849 to 1852, as he practiced law in the Moultrie County circuit court. The present courthouse (the county's third) contains a mural depicting this first courthouse.

In the opinion of early local leaders, Sullivan was not a logical site for a county seat. The village of Nelson (which no longer exists) had already been developed, and the prairie on which Sullivan would be built lacked proper drainage and was a breeding ground for malaria-carrying mosquitoes. In 1844, however, it was determined that centrally-located Sullivan was to be the county seat.

The original village consisted of {{convert|40|acre}} (25 city blocks) bounded by Jackson Street on the north, Water Street on the south, Douglas (now Worth) Street on the east, and Hamilton Street on the west. Sullivan's first school was built in 1846, with the first church being built in 1848.

When Abraham Lincoln was campaigning for the state senate against [[Stephen A. Douglas]], he gave a speech in Freeland Grove (now the Sullivan Civic Center parking lot). Freeland Grove was bounded by Wyman Park, Main Street, Strain Street, and Worth Street. A small monument facing Wyman Park near Main Street commemorates Lincoln's 1858 speech. During this campaign, a riot broke out on the town square between the supporters of Lincoln and the supporters of Douglas.<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.moultrieonline.com/abraham-lincoln-history/|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160612162334/http://www.moultrieonline.com/abraham-lincoln-history/|url-status=usurped|archive-date=June 12, 2016|title=Abraham Lincoln History|publisher=Moultrie Online|access-date=December 13, 2019}}</ref>

In 1864, a fire destroyed the first courthouse and a second, larger one was built that was in use until 1904, when it was demolished and the third, present-day courthouse was built. Along with the first courthouse building, hundreds of county records were lost.

Sullivan was home to the Titus Opera House, built in 1871, which was located on the north side of the town square. On the second and third floors of the building, the large auditorium, balcony, and box seats could accommodate up to 800 patrons. The opera house was among the finest in the area, and it hosted a concert given by the great [[Venezuela]]n pianist Teresa Carreño. The opera house was built by a businessman and [[American Civil War|Civil War]] veteran named Joseph Titus as both an attraction for high society and a "playground" for his young daughter, Winifred, who grew up to become a talented pianist and singer. She toured Europe during her career, even performing at the legendary [[Palais Garnier]] in Paris. In the early morning of February 20, 1910, the Titus Opera House caught fire and tragically burned to the ground. This marked the end of a live entertainment era in Sullivan until Guy S. Little Jr. founded [[The Little Theatre on the Square]] decades later.

Wyman Park, one of two parks on the north side of Sullivan, has an intriguing past. Albert Wyman, a man who immigrated to the United States from Germany, owned a shoe repair and sales shop on the west end of the town square. During the time Wyman was alive, Sullivan lacked a public park, so in his will he endowed much of his business profit to the city in order to purchase land for a park. While Wyman's will prohibited any kind of sales from occurring on the grounds of the new park, concession stands were built next to the baseball diamonds in the 1960s.

The Moultrie County Historical and Genealogical Society, formerly located in downtown Sullivan, now on the southern end of town on South Hamilton Street, houses a small museum of the county's past.

==Geography==
Sullivan is located south of the center of Moultrie County. Illinois Routes [[Illinois Route 32|32]] and [[Illinois Route 121|121]] pass through the city center. IL 121 leads northwest {{convert|28|mi}} to [[Decatur, Illinois|Decatur]] and southeast {{convert|17|mi}} to [[Mattoon, Illinois|Mattoon]], while IL 32 leads north {{convert|9|mi|0}} to [[Lovington, Illinois|Lovington]] and south {{convert|11|mi|0}} to [[Windsor, Shelby County, Illinois|Windsor]].

According to the [[U.S. Census Bureau]], Sullivan has a total area of {{convert|2.78|sqmi}}, of which {{convert|0.01|sqmi}}, or 0.29%, are water.<ref name="CenPopGazetteer2022"/> Asa Creek crosses the east side of the city, flowing south to the [[Kaskaskia River]] in [[Lake Shelbyville]].

==Demographics==
{{US Census population
|1860= 528
|1870= 742
|1880= 1305
|1890= 1468
|1900= 2399
|1910= 2621
|1920= 2532
|1930= 2339
|1940= 3101
|1950= 3470
|1960= 3946
|1970= 4112
|1980= 4526
|1990= 4354
|2000= 4326
|2010= 4440
|2020= 4413
|footnote=U.S. Decennial Census<ref name="DecennialCensus">{{cite web|url=https://www.census.gov/programs-surveys/decennial-census.html|title=Census of Population and Housing|publisher=Census.gov|access-date=June 4, 2015}}</ref>
}}
As of the [[census]]<ref name="GR2">{{cite web|url=https://www.census.gov|publisher=[[United States Census Bureau]]|access-date=2008-01-31|title=U.S. Census website}}</ref> of 2000, there were 4,326 people, 1,820 households, and 1,188 families residing in the city. The population density was {{convert|2,121.5|PD/sqmi|PD/km2|sp=us|adj=off}}. There were 1,945 housing units at an average density of {{convert|953.8|/sqmi|/km2|sp=us|adj=off}}. The racial makeup of the city was 98.68% [[White (U.S. Census)|White]], 0.30% [[African American (U.S. Census)|African American]], 0.12% [[Native American (U.S. Census)|Native American]], 0.16% [[Asian (U.S. Census)|Asian]], 0.09% from [[Race (United States Census)|other races]], and 0.65% from two or more races. [[Hispanic (U.S. Census)|Hispanic]] or [[Latino (U.S. Census)|Latino]] of any race were 0.39% of the population.

There were 1,820 households, out of which 28.3% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 51.8% were [[Marriage|married couples]] living together, 10.4% had a female householder with no husband present, and 34.7% were non-families. 31.0% of all households were made up of individuals, and 16.5% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.28 and the average family size was 2.84.

In the city the population was spread out, with 22.8% under the age of 18, 8.3% from 18 to 24, 25.9% from 25 to 44, 21.3% from 45 to 64, and 21.7% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 40 years. For every 100 females, there were 84.4 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 81.2 males.

The median income for a household in the city was $33,197, and the median income for a family was $41,894. Males had a median income of $31,754 versus $20,631 for females. The [[per capita income]] for the city was $17,693. About 5.4% of families and 8.8% of the population were below the [[poverty line]], including 9.3% of those under age 18 and 8.9% of those age 65 or over.

==Economy==
Sullivan is home to several companies. Agri-Fab, a manufacturer of lawn and garden attachments, and Hydro-Gear, a [[drivetrain]] manufacturer, have their corporate headquarters located in Sullivan along with factories. Sullivan is also home to Metro Communications and the First Community Bank of Moultrie County which first started in 1905 as a national bank under the name of First National Bank of Sullivan.<ref>{{cite web|url=https://libsysdigi.library.illinois.edu/oca/Books2008-06/centuryinotesons00moul/centuryinotesons00moul.pdf|title=NOTES ON SULLIVAN, ILLINOIS 1845- 1872' 1972|page=28}}</ref>

==Education==
Sullivan is home to [[Sullivan Community Unit School District 300]]  which includes [[Sullivan High School (Sullivan, Illinois)| Sullivan High School]], where the sports teams have the name  "Redskins."<ref>{{cite web |url=https://www.ihsa.org/Schools/SchoolDirectory.aspx?url=/data/school/s.htm|title=Sullivan High School|publisher=Illinois High School Association|access-date=December 13, 2019}}</ref>

The official school song is Northwestern University's "Go Northwestern," and the fight song is entitled "Hail Red and Black." The school fight song has lyrics written by a Sullivan High School alumnus, but the music was composed by Dr. Paul Van Buskirk Yoder, a notable composer, arranger, and band director of the twentieth century.<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.sullivan.k12.il.us/article/29468?org=High%20School|title=HAIL, RED AND BLACK |publisher=Sullivan High School|access-date=December 13, 2019}}</ref>

==Points of interest==
===The Little Theatre on the Square===
[[The Little Theatre on the Square]] in Sullivan is a non-profit; it received $20,000 from President [[Barack Obama]]'s 2009 economic stimulus package,.<ref>{{Cite news |url=https://www.nytimes.com/2010/07/04/us/04cncwarren.html?_r=0 |last1=Warren |first1=James |year=2011| title=A Program's Legacy in Jobs and Lives|access-date=2014-03-06|newspaper=The New York Times }}</ref> In 2013, it received $23,200 from the [[Illinois Arts Council]] for general operating expenses.<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.arts.illinois.gov/news/iac-announces-first-round-fy2013-grants|publisher=Illinois Arts Council|access-date=2014-03-07|title=IAC Announces First Round of FY2013 Grants &#124; Illinois Arts Council Agency}}</ref>

===Abraham Lincoln Memorial===
When Abraham Lincoln was campaigning for senate against Stephen A. Douglas, he gave a speech on September 20, 1858, in Freeland's Grove (now Wyman Park), and today there is a monument commemorating his speech at the approximate location.<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.moultrieonline.com/abraham-lincoln-history/|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160612162334/http://www.moultrieonline.com/abraham-lincoln-history/|url-status=usurped|archive-date=June 12, 2016|title=Abraham Lincoln History|publisher=Moultrie Online|access-date=July 29, 2020}}</ref>

=== Huntsburger Hood Ornament Collection===
A sample of the 700+ vintage [[hood ornament]]s of Lynn Huntsburger's collection, located in the board room of the Elizabeth Titus Memorial Library.

===Ward Museum===
The Ward Museum at Mason Point, a [[nursing home]] just east of Sullivan, displays a collection of items collected from around the world by the Ward family, including one of the largest collections of seashells in the nation. The Wards' collection went on display in 1948, and the collection has remained intact since then. It was featured on an episode of the TV show ''Illinois Adventure''.<ref>{{cite web|last1=Illinois Adventure TV|url=http://www.illinoisadventuretv.org/index.asp?page=st&site=1016|website=www.illinoisadventuretv.org |access-date=5 September 2014|title=Illinois Adventure - Ward Museum}}</ref> The museum was established by Abraham Lincoln "Link" Ward, a farmer, livestock dealer, and auctioneer, as well as his wife, Cora Anne (Hinterly) Ward. In addition to seashells, the museum contains over 1,000 pieces of antique glassware, including 400 antique goblets. Frontier life items include wooden wheel clocks, circa 1830, copper-toed shoes, [[spinning wheel]]s, and [[broadaxe]]s. The museum was established in 1948; Cora Ward died in 1967, and the executor of her estate burned the catalog compilation, so the origin of the over 5,000 items donated by the couple, who travelled widely, is unknown.<ref>{{cite web|url = https://www.chicagotribune.com/2005/12/18/one-couples-souvenirs-fill-a-museum/|title = One couple's souvenirs fill a museum}}</ref>

===Nixon rally and buffalo burger===
During the [[1960 United States presidential election|1960 presidential election]], then-Vice President [[Richard Nixon]] held a campaign rally in Sullivan. He discarded a half-eaten [[buffalo burger]] that was the product of the slaughter of buffalo owned by the City of Sullivan and housed at their street maintenance facility. The discarded burger was retrieved by Sullivan resident Steve Jenne, who preserved it. Jenne exhibited the burger on ''[[The Tonight Show Starring Johnny Carson]]'' in 1988 and was a guest on ''[[I've Got a Secret]]'' in 2006.<ref>{{cite book |url=https://www.nbcnews.com/id/wbna12632632 |publisher=NBC NEWS |date=2006-05-04| title=Nixon's 1960 sandwich kicked around again.}}</ref>

==Notable people==
{{Div col|colwidth=30em}}
* [[Albert J. Beveridge]], [[historian]] and [[U.S. senator]]
* [[Steve Buxton (American football)|Steve Buxton]], NFL football player
* [[Gregory Cochran]], physicist, anthropologist, and writer
* [[William Granville Cochran]], Illinois state judge and legislator
* [[John R. Eden]], attorney and congressman
* [[Tiny Hill]], bandleader<ref>{{cite web |url=http://edenmartin.com/newsite2/books/Retrospect-1924-web.pdf|title=Sullivan Township High School 1924 Retrospect|publisher=Sullivan Township High School|page=22|access-date=February 18, 2019}}</ref>
* [[R. Eden Martin]], lawyer
* [[Samuel W. Moulton]], attorney and congressman
* [[Gary Noffke]], artist
* [[Harold Pogue]], football player<ref>{{cite web |url=https://www.jg-tc.com/opinion/columnists/column-illinois-loses-first-big-game/article_81b3186a-fdc6-5c55-982d-23d2f9365f84.amp.html|title=Illinois loses first Big 10 game|publisher=JGTC|access-date=December 29, 2018}}</ref><ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.news-gazette.com/sports/prep-sports/other/2010-10-24/sullivan-heroes.html|title=Sullivan Heroes|publisher=News Gazette|access-date=December 29, 2018}}</ref>
* [[Art Schwind]], Major League Baseball player, 1912
* [[William Irving Shuman]], businessman and politician
* [[Douglas Wilson (interior designer)|Douglas Wilson]], interior designer on ''[[Trading Spaces]]''; former owner of Doug Wilson's Jibby's

{{Div col end}}

==References==
{{Reflist}}

==External links==
{{Commonscatinline}}
*{{Official website|sullivanil.us}}
*[http://www.edenmartin.com/ History of Moultrie County and Sullivan, Illinois]

{{Moultrie County, Illinois}}
{{Illinois county seats}}

{{authority control}}

[[Category:Cities in Moultrie County, Illinois]]
[[Category:County seats in Illinois]]
[[Category:Cities in Illinois]]