Belvidere, Illinois | |
|---|---|
 Coffee and Cafe, Belvidere, Illinois | |
 Flag  Seal | |
| Nickname: Illinois' City of Murals | |
 Location of Belvidere in Boone County, Illinois | |
| Coordinates:42°15′07″N88°50′30″W / 42.25194°N 88.84167°W /42.25194; -88.84167[1] | |
| Country | USA |
| State | Illinois |
| County | Boone |
| Townships | Belvidere,Flora,Bonus,Spring |
| Established | 1881 |
| Government | |
| • Mayor | Clint Morris[2] |
| Area | |
• Total | 12.38 sq mi (32.06 km2) |
| • Land | 12.14 sq mi (31.44 km2) |
| • Water | 0.24 sq mi (0.61 km2) |
| Elevation | 794 ft (242 m) |
| Population (2020) | |
• Total | 25,339 |
• Estimate (2024)[4] | 25,325 |
| • Density | 2,087/sq mi (805.9/km2) |
| Time zone | UTC−6 (CST) |
| • Summer (DST) | UTC−5 (CDT) |
| ZIP code | 61008 |
| Area code | 815 |
| FIPS code | 17-05092 |
| GNIS feature ID | 2394127[1] |
| Website | City of Belvidere Website |
Belvidere (/ˈbɛlvɪdɪər/) is a city in and thecounty seat ofBoone County, Illinois, United States. It is settled on theKishwaukee River in farnorthern Illinois. Known as the 'City of Murals', Belvidere is home to several public art installations throughout theNorth andSouth State Street historic districts, which are on theNational Register of Historic Places. These historic districts are home to theBoone County Museum of History, the Funderburg House Museum, several restaurants and bars, and antique and boutique stores. Popular festivities like Heritage Days are held yearly. The population was 25,339 as of the2020 census.[5][6] Belvidere is part of theRockford metropolitan area.
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Before the arrival of the mostly Anglo-Americans in the 19th century, this area was long occupied by theIllinois Confederation, a loose grouping of up to 12 to 15 Native American tribes. The main tribes were theCahokia,Kaskaskia,Michigamea,Peoria, andTamaroa.[7] After trading, warfare and other encounters with French traders, who entered this area before the Anglo-Americans, their numbers declined. In large part that was due to the high mortality from new infectious diseases, which adversely affected Native Americans across the continent.
The area that developed as Belvidere was first permanently settled by European Americans in 1835: Simon P. Doty and Daniel Hilton Whitney. They named this location next to theKishwaukee River as "Elysian Fields" from Greek mythology. As many new residents could not pronounce or spell the proposed name, the city was eventually named after Belvidere, Virginia, the former home of Ebenezer Polk, a railroad lawyer and major financial founder in the city.[8]
Belvidere originally developed on the north side of the Kishwaukee River. In 1851 theGalena and Chicago Union Railroad was built south of the river, stimulating relocation of much of the business section to the south side of the river, for access to the railway transportation. Belvidere's downtown is now on the south side.[9]
Major industries developed along the river and railroad, including theNational Sewing Machine Company, which operated here from 1886 to the 1940s. In 1906, former female sheriff Sarah Ames moved to South Dakota; she named the area where she settled after her home town.Belvidere, South Dakota still operates as a small town in Jackson County.[10]
On April 21, 1967, a devastatingtornado struck Belvidere. Twenty-four people died as a result, many of them schoolchildren. TheF4 tornado struck at the end of the school day ofBelvidere High School, when many children, including those who attended area grade schools, were waiting outside the high school for school buses. Of the sixteen school buses outside the high school, twelve were overturned or thrown by the tornado. The tornado did $22 million in damage, demolished over 100 homes, and injured 500 people.[11] In 2007 a statue was erected in front of Belvidere High School in memorial of the lives lost.
As of 2013, the Belvidere tornado was the sixth worst weather disaster to happen at an American school, and the deadliest since 1955.[12]
On December 7, 2009, an explosion occurred at anNDK America building, when a largepressure vessel ruptured during acrystal-growing process. Pieces of debris, some weighing several tons, were flung over a wide area. One piece struck an automotive supply building and injured an employee inside.Chesterfield, Indiana native Ronald Greenfield, a truck driver refueling at the nearby Belvidere Oasistruck stop, was struck and killed by a 7-foot support beam. The shockwave was felt over a wide area. No NDK employees were injured in the incident.[13][14]
TheChemical Safety Board investigated the incident, issuing their final report in 2013. The CSB found thatstress corrosion cracking had occurred, unnoticed, in one of the crystal-growingautoclaves, leading to the catastrophic failure. They also found that NDK management had been warned multiple times over the years that the dangerous levels of hotsodium hydroxide inside the vessels would corrode the steel walls. However, NDK management insisted buildup ofbyproducts from the crystal-growing process would passivate the vessel walls against the corrosion. Furthermore, during the factory's construction, the local government had been made aware that NDK's crystal-growing vessels were in violation of several state codes; when confronted, NDK had persuaded them to grant a special exception, and to hitherto allow them to conduct their own onsite inspections without outside interference. However, the vessel that ruptured had never been internally inspected to test the passivation theory, during its many years of service. After a smaller leak occurred in January 2007, NDK was warned about safety concerns again, this time by insurance investigators, who were ultimately ignored. Finally, the CSB determined the method for growing crystals used at NDK's Belvidere facility was prohibitively dangerous in the first place, pointing out such methods had been already abandoned by other crystal-growing facilities in favor of safer, lower-pressure and lower temperature processes.[15][16]
Following their own 2010 investigation, theOccupational Safety and Health Administration fined NDK more than half a million dollars for willful disregard for legal requirements, and "unacceptable" indifference to safety and health. The NDK facility was demolished in 2015, with no plans to rebuild.[17][18]
On March 31, 2023, anEF1 tornado struck Belvidere. It caused theApollo Theatre to collapse during a concert for the FloridianDeath Metal bandMorbid Angel and BrazilianDeath Metal bandCrypta. The concert proceeded despite advanced notice of severe conditions expected that day. The collapse led to over 40 injuries; leaving at least four in critical condition and one fatality.[19]
According to the 2021 census gazetteer files, Belvidere has a total area of 12.30 square miles (31.86 km2), of which 12.06 square miles (31.24 km2) (or 98.08%) is land and 0.24 square miles (0.62 km2) (or 1.92%) is water.[20]
Located in north centralIllinois, in a county on the northern border of the state, Belvidere is approximately 75 miles (121 km) northwest ofthe downtown ofChicago, and approximately 12 miles (19 km) east ofRockford.
Belvidere developed on both sides of theKishwaukee River in north central Illinois. It is 76 miles from downtown Chicago via Routes20, 76 and the Northern Illinois Toll road. Belvidere is an industrial community surrounded by prosperous farms. It is the county seat, with an estimated 2006 county population of over 52,000. The altitude is 800 feet above sea level, with average temperatures of: 73 degrees F in the summer; 24 degrees F in the winter, and the average rainfall is 33.3 inches, and the average annual snowfall is 35.3 inches.
| Census | Pop. | Note | %± |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1850 | 1,003 | — | |
| 1860 | 2,446 | 143.9% | |
| 1870 | 3,231 | 32.1% | |
| 1880 | 2,951 | −8.7% | |
| 1890 | 3,867 | 31.0% | |
| 1900 | 6,937 | 79.4% | |
| 1910 | 7,253 | 4.6% | |
| 1920 | 7,804 | 7.6% | |
| 1930 | 8,123 | 4.1% | |
| 1940 | 8,094 | −0.4% | |
| 1950 | 9,422 | 16.4% | |
| 1960 | 11,223 | 19.1% | |
| 1970 | 14,061 | 25.3% | |
| 1980 | 15,176 | 7.9% | |
| 1990 | 15,958 | 5.2% | |
| 2000 | 20,820 | 30.5% | |
| 2010 | 25,585 | 22.9% | |
| 2020 | 25,339 | −1.0% | |
| U.S. Decennial Census[21] 2010[22] 2020[23] | |||
As of the2020 census[24] there were 25,339 people, 8,940 households, and 5,891 families residing in the city. The population density was 2,060.08 inhabitants per square mile (795.40/km2). There were 9,609 housing units at an average density of 781.22 per square mile (301.63/km2). The racial makeup of the city was 61.76%White, 3.00%African American, 1.48%Native American, 1.09%Asian, 0.07%Pacific Islander, 18.15% fromother races, and 14.46% from two or more races.Hispanic orLatino of any race were 35.91% of the population.
There were 8,940 households, out of which 35.5% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 42.39% were married couples living together, 16.40% had a female householder with no husband present, and 34.11% were non-families. 28.40% of all households were made up of individuals, and 16.31% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 3.38 and the average family size was 2.76.
The city's age distribution consisted of 24.2% under the age of 18, 10.2% from 18 to 24, 25.2% from 25 to 44, 25.5% from 45 to 64, and 14.8% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 36.4 years. For every 100 females, there were 94.8 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 97.3 males.
The median income for a household in the city was $52,609, and the median income for a family was $67,518. Males had a median income of $34,455 versus $27,676 for females. Theper capita income for the city was $24,330. About 8.9% of families and 13.5% of the population were below thepoverty line, including 18.7% of those under age 18 and 9.7% of those age 65 or over.
| Race / Ethnicity(NH = Non-Hispanic) | Pop 2010[22] | Pop 2020[23] | % 2010 | % 2020 |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| White alone (NH) | 16,527 | 14,296 | 64.60% | 56.42% |
| Black or African American alone (NH) | 599 | 706 | 2.34% | 2.79% |
| Native American orAlaska Native alone (NH) | 35 | 39 | 0.14% | 0.15% |
| Asian alone (NH) | 243 | 259 | 0.95% | 1.02% |
| Pacific Islander alone (NH) | 0 | 4 | 0.00% | 0.02% |
| Other race alone (NH) | 23 | 86 | 0.09% | 0.34% |
| Mixed race or Multiracial (NH) | 320 | 850 | 1.25% | 3.35% |
| Hispanic or Latino (any race) | 7,838 | 9,099 | 30.64% | 35.91% |
| Total | 25,585 | 25,339 | 100.00% | 100.00% |
Stellantis operates theBelvidere Assembly Plant, an auto assembly plant, which was constructed in the mid-1960s. The Belvidere plant manufactured theDodge Neon until the spring of 2005. In the late 1960s and early 1970s, the plant manufacturedChrysler Newports andPlymouth Furys. After a massive restructuring of the Belvidere plant, it is now one of the most modern auto assembly plants in the United States. It most recently assembled theJeep Cherokee until February 2023, when the plant was idled indefinitely by Stellantis.[25] As part of the settlement of the2023 United Auto Workers strike, Stellantis agreed to reopen the plant in 2025, to construct a mid-size Ram pickup. An electric vehicle battery plant will also be constructed. The site was visited by US PresidentJoe Biden and UAW PresidentShawn Fain.[26][27][28]
Dean Foods andGeneral Mills operate manufacturing plants on the bank of the Kishwaukee River. General Mills recently announced a large expansion in the area, soon to begin construction on a 1.3 million square foot distribution center in a newly annexed southwestern portion of the city.[needs update]
Rock Valley College recently[when?] opened their new 9+ million dollar Advanced Technology Center in the northwestern portion of Belvidere, after competition among several area cities for the Advanced Technology Center.
"Project Yukon" is a recently announced cold storage facility, which will be over 1.2 million square feet on 200 acres in the Southwest side of the city. This is expected to bring up to 700 jobs; ground was expected to be broken mid-2023.[needs update]
Pettit Memorial Chapel, designed byFrank Lloyd Wright; theLampert-Wildflower House, and theBelvidere Post Office, designed byJames Knox Taylor, are listed on theNational Register of Historic Places.
Parks include Spencer Park, Belvidere Municipal Park, and the Boone County Fairgrounds. Belvidere is known as the "City of Murals", for its numerous murals.[29]
It is in theBelvidere Community Unit School District 100.[30] Schools operated by the district include two high schools,Belvidere High School andBelvidere North High School, the Everest Alternative Program, two middle schools, Belvidere South Middle School and Belvidere Central Middle School, five elementary schools, Lincoln Elementary School, Perry Elementary School, Meehan Elementary School, Caledonia Elementary School, and Seth Whitman Elementary School, one STEM academy, Washington Academy.
Belvidere's public library, Ida Public Library, was founded in 1883. The current building, aCarnegie Library, was constructed in 1912 and opened in 1913. An addition was built in 1987. It includes adult and children services, a Local History and Genealogy Room, and Internet/computer access.
TheBoone County Museum of History was started in 1936 and holds over 100,000 artifacts. It has interactive displays and a research library, with more than 5000 document resources. The three-story building is located in downtown Belvidere.
RMTD provides bus service on Route 24 connecting Belvidere to Rockford.[31]
Belvedere is served by the old Chicago & North Western line to Rockford (present day Union Pacific). The line opened from Marengo to Rockford in 1852. There were also connecting lines to Spring Valley and Janesville. The line to Rockford previously extended to Freeport.
Rail service is scheduled to resume in Belvidere in 2027 as part of theRockford Intercity Passenger Rail project connecting Rockford to Chicago. The twice-daily route will be operated byMetra.[32]
Belvidere used to have two hospitals, St. Joseph Hospital and Highland Hospital. Both closed in the late 20th century, with St. Joseph's closing in 1999. In 2008, SwedishAmerican Hospital opened a new building. In 2009, they renovated and reopened the former Highland Hospital, which now operates the city's only emergency department.
Cemeteries include theBelvidere Cemetery (Richard S. Molony's interment site) andSt. James Catholic Cemetery.
The nearestgeneral aviation airport isPoplar Grove Airport, formerly known as Belvidere Airport.
Belvidere Fire Department has 2 Fire Stations, and 1 Ambulance station. These 3 Stations have 42 Full Working staff.[33]
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Municipalities and communities ofBoone County, Illinois,United States | ||
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| Footnotes | ‡This populated place also has portions in an adjacent county or counties | |
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Places adjacent to Belvidere, Illinois | |
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