Rantoul, Illinois | |
|---|---|
 Downtown Rantoul | |
 Location of Rantoul, Illinois | |
  Rantoul Location within Champaign County Show map of Champaign County, Illinois Rantoul Rantoul (Illinois) Show map of Illinois | |
| Coordinates:40°18′11″N88°09′18″W / 40.30306°N 88.15500°W /40.30306; -88.15500 | |
| Country | United States |
| State | Illinois |
| County | Champaign |
| Townships | Rantoul andLudlow |
| Founded | March 4, 1854 |
| Chartered | 1869 |
| Government | |
| • Mayor | Charles Smith |
| Area | |
• Total | 8.594 sq mi (22.258 km2) |
| • Land | 8.490 sq mi (21.990 km2) |
| • Water | 0.104 sq mi (0.270 km2) 1.21% |
| Elevation | 745 ft (227 m) |
| Population | |
• Total | 12,371 |
• Estimate (2023)[5] | 11,956 |
| • Density | 1,408.2/sq mi (543.71/km2) |
| Time zone | UTC–6 (Central (CST)) |
| • Summer (DST) | UTC–5 (CDT) |
| ZIP Code | 61866 |
| Area codes | 217 and 447 |
| FIPS code | 17-62783 |
| GNIS feature ID | 2399042[3] |
| Sales tax | 9.0%[6] |
| Website | village.rantoul.il.us |
Rantoul is a village in northernChampaign County, Illinois, United States. The population was 12,371 at the2020 census.[4] It is part of theChampaign–Urbana metropolitan area.
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The community was named afterRobert Rantoul, Jr., a U.S. representative from Massachusetts, and a director of theIllinois Central Railroad.[7][8]
Rantoul was laid out in 1854 for theIllinois Central Railroad by John Penfield. A post office was established in 1856 as Rantoul Station; the name was changed to Rantoul in May 1862.[7]
In 1917, Rantoul was chosen by theUnited States Army to be the site ofChanute Field,[9] due to its proximity to the Illinois Central railroad and the War Department's ground school at theUniversity of Illinois. In the 1930s, Chanute Field grew, dominating the local economy as thousands of airmen were stationed there to train recruits. RenamedChanute Air Force Base afterWorld War II, it was closed in 1993, but was partly reoccupied by theOctave Chanute Aerospace Museum, which was permanently closed on December 30, 2015, and theRantoul National Aviation Center. Rantoul's economy has taken a sharp decline due to the base's closing, from which it has never recovered. The bookEye of the Storm: Chanute Closes by Katy B. Podagrosi[10] tells the story of this period.
Rantoul Family Sports Complex opened in August 2021 as a premier amateur sports facility featuring 10 all weather baseball / softball and 8 all weather multi-purpose fields. The complex plays host to thousands of amateur teams for tournament and local play. It also serves as home field for the University of Illinois "Fighting Illini" men's lacrosse team.[11] In 2022 the Rantoul Family Sports Complex was visited by nearly 1 million people.[11]
According to theUnited States Census Bureau, the village has an area of 8.594 square miles (22.26 km2), of which 8.490 square miles (21.99 km2) (98.79%) is land and 0.104 square miles (0.27 km2), (1.21%) is water.[2]
| Climate data for Rantoul, Illinois (1991–2020 normals, extremes 1965–present) | |||||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Month | Jan | Feb | Mar | Apr | May | Jun | Jul | Aug | Sep | Oct | Nov | Dec | Year |
| Record high °F (°C) | 68 (20) | 72 (22) | 86 (30) | 90 (32) | 99 (37) | 104 (40) | 105 (41) | 102 (39) | 101 (38) | 93 (34) | 82 (28) | 72 (22) | 105 (41) |
| Mean daily maximum °F (°C) | 34.4 (1.3) | 39.6 (4.2) | 51.4 (10.8) | 64.3 (17.9) | 75.4 (24.1) | 84.9 (29.4) | 87.5 (30.8) | 85.9 (29.9) | 80.7 (27.1) | 67.3 (19.6) | 52.3 (11.3) | 39.8 (4.3) | 63.6 (17.6) |
| Daily mean °F (°C) | 25.1 (−3.8) | 29.6 (−1.3) | 40.4 (4.7) | 51.9 (11.1) | 63.3 (17.4) | 73.3 (22.9) | 75.8 (24.3) | 73.7 (23.2) | 67.5 (19.7) | 54.7 (12.6) | 41.8 (5.4) | 30.9 (−0.6) | 52.3 (11.3) |
| Mean daily minimum °F (°C) | 15.8 (−9.0) | 19.6 (−6.9) | 29.3 (−1.5) | 39.6 (4.2) | 51.3 (10.7) | 61.7 (16.5) | 64.1 (17.8) | 61.6 (16.4) | 54.3 (12.4) | 42.1 (5.6) | 31.4 (−0.3) | 22.1 (−5.5) | 41.1 (5.1) |
| Record low °F (°C) | −27 (−33) | −19 (−28) | −13 (−25) | 10 (−12) | 26 (−3) | 38 (3) | 43 (6) | 38 (3) | 29 (−2) | 21 (−6) | 3 (−16) | −22 (−30) | −27 (−33) |
| Averageprecipitation inches (mm) | 2.54 (65) | 2.01 (51) | 2.58 (66) | 3.98 (101) | 4.33 (110) | 4.61 (117) | 4.44 (113) | 3.86 (98) | 3.28 (83) | 3.32 (84) | 3.19 (81) | 2.21 (56) | 40.35 (1,025) |
| Average precipitation days(≥ 0.01 in) | 8.2 | 7.1 | 8.8 | 10.2 | 11.0 | 9.8 | 8.7 | 8.0 | 6.5 | 8.1 | 8.5 | 7.4 | 102.3 |
| Source:NOAA[12][13] | |||||||||||||
| Census | Pop. | Note | %± |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1880 | 850 | — | |
| 1890 | 1,074 | 26.4% | |
| 1900 | 1,207 | 12.4% | |
| 1910 | 1,384 | 14.7% | |
| 1920 | 1,551 | 12.1% | |
| 1930 | 1,555 | 0.3% | |
| 1940 | 2,367 | 52.2% | |
| 1950 | 6,387 | 169.8% | |
| 1960 | 22,116 | 246.3% | |
| 1970 | 25,562 | 15.6% | |
| 1980 | 20,161 | −21.1% | |
| 1990 | 17,212 | −14.6% | |
| 2000 | 12,857 | −25.3% | |
| 2010 | 12,941 | 0.7% | |
| 2020 | 12,371 | −4.4% | |
| 2023 (est.) | 11,956 | [5] | −3.4% |
| U.S. Decennial Census[14] 2020 Census[4] | |||
As of the 2023American Community Survey, there are 5,086 estimated households in Rantoul with an average of 2.42 persons per household. The village has a median household income of $49,821. Approximately 18.7% of the village's population lives at or below thepoverty line. Rantoul has an estimated 57.4% employment rate, with 11.9% of the population holding a bachelor's degree or higher and 90.6% holding a high school diploma.
The top five reported ancestries (people were allowed to report up to two ancestries, thus the figures will generally add to more than 100%) were English (83.3%), Spanish (15.0%), Indo-European (1.2%), Asian and Pacific Islander (0.1%), and Other (0.4%).
The median age in the village was 35.0 years.
| Race / ethnicity(NH = non-Hispanic) | Pop. 2000[15] | Pop. 2010[16] | Pop. 2020[17] | % 2000 | % 2010 | % 2020 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| White alone (NH) | 9,709 | 8,045 | 6,387 | 75.52% | 62.17% | 51.63% |
| Black or African American alone (NH) | 2,133 | 2,877 | 2,720 | 16.59% | 22.23% | 21.99% |
| Native American orAlaska Native alone (NH) | 47 | 35 | 25 | 0.37% | 0.27% | 0.20% |
| Asian alone (NH) | 220 | 212 | 146 | 1.71% | 1.64% | 1.18% |
| Pacific Islander alone (NH) | 6 | 7 | 7 | 0.05% | 0.05% | 0.06% |
| Other race alone (NH) | 19 | 13 | 47 | 0.15% | 0.10% | 0.38% |
| Mixed race or multiracial (NH) | 377 | 500 | 882 | 2.93% | 3.86% | 7.13% |
| Hispanic or Latino (any race) | 346 | 1,252 | 2,157 | 2.69% | 9.67% | 17.44% |
| Total | 12,857 | 12,941 | 12,371 | 100.00% | 100.00% | 100.00% |
As of the2020 census, there were 12,371 people, 5,045 households, and 3,035 families residing in the village.[18] Thepopulation density was 1,457.1 inhabitants per square mile (562.6/km2). There were 5,639 housing units at an average density of 664.2 per square mile (256.4/km2). The racial makeup of the village was 54.60%White, 22.50%African American, 0.61%Native American, 1.20%Asian, 0.07%Pacific Islander, 10.16% from some other races and 10.86% from two or more races.Hispanic or Latino people of any race were 17.44% of the population.[19]
As of the2000 census, there were 12,918 people, 5,330 households, and 3,368 families residing in the village. The population density was 1,776.5 inhabitants per square mile (685.9/km2). There were 6,161 housing units at an average density of 851.3 per square mile (328.7/km2). The racial makeup of the village was 76.69%White, 16.88%African American, 0.47%Native American, 1.75%Asian, 0.05%Pacific Islander, 0.89% from some other races and 3.27% from two or more races.Hispanic or Latino people of any race were 2.69% of the population.
There were 5,330 households out of which 33.7% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 43.9% weremarried couples living together, 15.0% had a female householder with no husband present, and 36.8% were non-families. 30.8% of all households were made up of individuals and 10.2% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.41 and the average family size was 3.02.
In the village the population was spread out with 28.6% under the age of 18, 9.5% from 18 to 24, 32.2% from 25 to 44, 18.2% from 45 to 64, and 11.4% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 32 years. For every 100 females there were 91.0 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 86.7 males.
The median income for a household in the village was $36,904, and the median income for a family was $43,543. Males had a median income of $32,440 versus $22,382 for females. Theper capita income for the village was $17,948. About 8.5% of families and 10.7% of the population were below thepoverty line, including 14.7% of those under age 18 and 4.6% of those age 65 or over.
The majority is in theRantoul City School District 137 while a small piece is in theThomasboro Community Consolidated School District 130. All of it is in theRantoul Township High School District 193.[20]
Public schools include:
Bus service in Rantoul is provided byChampaign County Area Rural Transit System (C-CARTS). C-CARTS operates four routes within Rantoul and one route connecting Rantoul to Champaign-Urbana.[21]
Amtrak, the national passenger rail system, provides service to Rantoul. Amtrak Train 391, the southboundSaluki, is scheduled to depart Rantoul at 11:10am daily with service toChampaign-Urbana, Mattoon, Effingham, Centralia, Du Quoin, andCarbondale. Amtrak Train 393, the southboundIllini, is scheduled to depart Rantoul at 6:00pm daily serving the same points as the southbound Saluki. Amtrak Train 390, the northbound Saluki, is scheduled to depart Rantoul at 10:27am daily with service to Gilman, Kankakee, Homewood, andChicago. Amtrak Train 887, the northbound Illini, is scheduled to depart Rantoul at 7:02pm daily serving the same points as the northbound Saluki.[22]
Municipalities and communities ofChampaign County, Illinois,United States | ||
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| Cities |  | |
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| Other unincorporated communities | ||
| Ghost town | ||
| Footnotes | ‡This populated place also has portions in an adjacent county or counties | |
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