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Alton, Illinois
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Alton is a city in Madison County, Illinois, United States, about 15 miles north of St. Louis, Missouri. The population was 34,511 at the 2006 census.
Alton area was home to Native Americans long before the founding of the modern city. While early historic accounts indicate occupation of this area by the Illiniwek or Illinois Confederacy, earlier native settlement is evidenced by the presence of the famous Piasa bird painted on a cliff face nearby, first seen by Europeans in 1673 by Father Jacques Marquette.
n was developed as a river town in 1818 by Rufus Easton, who named the town after his son.
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Encyclopedia
Alton is a city in Madison County, Illinois, United States, about 15 miles north of St. Louis, Missouri. The population was 34,511 at the 2006 census.
History
The Alton area was home to Native Americans long before the founding of the modern city. While early historic accounts indicate occupation of this area by the Illiniwek or Illinois Confederacy, earlier native settlement is evidenced by the presence of the famous Piasa bird painted on a cliff face nearby, first seen by Europeans in 1673 by Father Jacques Marquette.
1800s
Alton was developed as a river town in 1818 by Rufus Easton, who named the town after his son. He ran a passenger ferry service across the Mississippi River to the opposite Missouri shore. Alton is located amid the confluence of three important navigable rivers: the Illinois, the Mississippi, and the Missouri.Under construction is a monument, and multilevel observatory, located at the confluence of the Missouri and Mississippi near the levee in Wood River. Alton grew into a matter-of-fact river town with an industrial character and its steep-sloped streets filled with silos, railroad tracks, brick commercial buildings. Alton once was the site of several brick factories, and brick streets are still visible.
Many blocks of housing in Alton were built in the Victorian Queen Anne style, which marks a more successful period of the city's history. Also, Alton is subject to floods, many of which inundated much of the historic down-town area. Visitors can see the various flood levels of different dates marked on the large grain silos near the Argosy Casino.
On November 7, 1837 abolitionist printer Elijah P. Lovejoy was murdered by a mob of supporters of slavery while he was attempting to protect his Alton-based press from being destroyed a third time. The mob then threw the press into the Mississippi. This tragedy marked Lovejoy as the first martyr of the abolition movement. As a consequence, the Thirteenth Amendment of the Constitution was drafted in Alton. Alton has been home to gangs of bootleggers in the thirties known throughout the state, and the overall bloody history of the town has contributed to the reputation of Alton as one of the most haunted places in America. Notable places include The History and Hauntings Bookstore, The McPike Mansion, and the old Milton School.
On October 15, 1858, Alton was the site of the seventh Lincoln-Douglas debate. There is a memorial at the site in downtown Alton that features statues of Lincoln and Douglas, as they would have appeared during the debate.
Alton has more earthly stories behind it as well. Once growing faster than its sister city of St. Louis, a coalition of St. Louis businessmen planned to build a town to stop the spread and bring business to St. Louis. The result was Grafton, Illinois.
During the Civil War, Alton was home to a Union prison, from which prisoners would attempt to escape and cross the Mississippi River back to the slave state of Missouri. Also, some of Alton's majestic historic homes played a part in assisting the Underground Railroad. There is a Confederate cemetery on the north side of Alton, a memorial marker is present on the site.
1900s
Robert Pershing Wadlow, listed in the Guinness Book as the world's tallest documented man at 8 feet 11.5 inches tall, is buried in Upper Alton Cemetery. His grave has the earth raised so visitors can compare its length to other graves. There is a memorial to him, including a life size statue, and a replica of his chair on College Avenue, across from the Southern Illinois University Dental School.
The Sisters of St Francis of the Martyr St George have their American province motherhouse in Alton.
According to the Illinois Department of Conservation, two commercial fishermen from Alton, Herbert Cope and Dudge Collins, caught a bull shark in 1937. They found something troubling their wood and mesh traps late that summer. Concluding that it was a fish, they built a strong wire trap and baited it with chicken guts.The next morning, they caught a 5-foot 84-pound shark, which they displayed in the Calhoun Fish Market where it attracted crowds for days.
Flood of 1993
Because of Alton's close location to the Mississippi River, it was severely damaged and flooded by dangerously high water level in the Great Flood of 1993. Alton's water supply was cut off due the proximity of it by the river, and townspeople had to go to , the area's local mall, where they received bottle water. This water was donated from many local businesses, including Anheuser-Busch of St. Louis, Missouri.
Geography
Alton is located at (38.900438, -90.159844). This is on the Mississippi River above the mouth of the Missouri River. Most of Alton is located on bluffs overlooking the river valley.
According to the United States Census Bureau, the city has a total area of 16.6 square miles (43.0 kmē), of which, 15.6 square miles (40.5 kmē) of it is land and 1.0 square miles (2.5 kmē) of it (5.78%) is water.
The new Lock and Dam #26 or Melvin Price Lock & Dam, is available for tours, and is a favorite spot to eagle watch. There is a bird sanctuary across the river.
North along the river the River Road stretches north to Grafton, a dramatic contrast between the high cliffs of the Illinois side to the broad, flat, green countryside of Portage des Sioux, Missouri. The Great River Road is a popular bicycle tour destination. Hidden in a notch of the cliff is the tiny town of Elsah, Illinois, once a down-and-dirty liquor-soaked tug-boater's retreat, now reborn as a quaint antique center with trimmed front lawns.
Economy
Alton was once a town of heavy industry and manufacturing. Laclede Steel established major steel manufacturing operations in the town.
Alton has transformed itself into a popular . Alton's location and history make it a popular tourist area for antique shopping and gambling aboard the Argosy Casino. During the winter, many visitors from across the country come to Alton for birdwatching, as bald eagles roost on the bluffs along the Mississippi. Other Greater Alton attractions include Alton Marina, nine golf courses including Greater St. Louis' and Illinois' only , , , fine dining, night life, and bed and breakfasts including the (llinois Magazine Readers Poll). Alton is also a popular venue for weddings, receptions, and honeymoons.
Demographics
As of the census of 2000, there were 30,496 people, 12,518 households, and 7,648 families residing in the city. The population density was 1,949.3 people per square mile (752.8/kmē). There were 13,894 housing units at an average density of 888.1/sq mi (343.0/kmē). The racial makeup of the city was 72.32% White, 24.72% African American, 0.18% Native American, 0.38% Asian, 0.01% Pacific Islander, 0.68% from other races, and 1.71% from two or more races. Hispanic or Latino of any race were 1.49% of the population.
There were 12,518 households out of which 29.3% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 39.3% were married couples living together, 17.4% had a female householder with no husband present, and 38.9% were non-families. 33.3% of all households were made up of individuals and 13.8% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.36 and the average family size was 3.02.
In the city the population was spread out with 25.8% under the age of 18, 9.1% from 18 to 24, 29.1% from 25 to 44, 20.0% from 45 to 64, and 16.0% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 35 years. For every 100 females there were 88.4 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 83.1 males.
The median income for a household in the city was $31,213, and the median income for a family was $37,910. Males had a median income of $33,083 versus $22,485 for females. The per capita income for the city was $16,817. About 14.7% of families and 18.7% of the population were below the poverty line, including 26.8% of those under age 18 and 13.2% of those age 65 or over.
Culture
Arts
Alton is home to the Madison County Arts Council, a not-for-profit organization that supports local arts and art education in approved Illinois Arts Council art programs. It is located in the or JAC, on Broadway between Henry and Ridge Streets in the old Jacoby Furniture building. The JAC is an art gallery open to the public and also offers art classes in a variety of mediums to adults and children in the community.
Theater
The is a community theater founded in 1934 and continues to produce a full season of dramatic and comedic plays and musicals. It is an all volunteer group of members who bring quality theater productions to Alton in an intimate setting. The Alton high schools all offer theatrical productions throughout the school year as well.
Alton Children's Theater, founded in 1958, by Solveig Sullivan has provided live theater for children through the years. The plays are now held at Lewis and Clark Community College's Hathaway Hall and for many years entertained up to 10,000 children annually. This all volunteer membership hires a professional director who works with the members for their one week of performances each year.
Media
Alton has one daily newspaper the The Telegraph, formerly the Alton Evening Telegraph. The Telegraph provides complete news coverage of local news including sports and relevant national news. is a weekly paper that is primarily focused on classifieds and advertising inserts. It is distributed to all residents with no subscription fee.
There is one radio station that has been serving the Alton area for decades. WBGZ 1570 AM broadcasts a news/talk format and serves Alton and the surrounding communities.
Alton boasts one internet based resource . Named for the bend in the Mississippi River where Alton is located, Riverbender is a portal serving local and national news, classifieds, event calendars and Alton guides to restaurants, shopping and attractions with coupons. They were the first company to start broadcasting the Alton high schools' sports teams games live in 2007 on the website.
Landmarks
Alton contains a number of landmarks. Among these are the Elijah Lovejoy Monument and the cable-stayed Clark Bridge, which is one of only very few
of its type in the world. The bridge has been called a 'Super Bridge,' and was the subject of a NOVA (a PBS program) special on its construction. The Piasa bird painting has also been restored after been vandalized by some high schoolers. The statue of the tallest man in the recorded history of the world, Robert Wadlow who at his tallest was 8 ft 11in., is another landmark of the town. There are also many historic landmark structures in Alton. One of which is the Franklin House, also later known as the Lincoln Hotel and now the , where Abraham Lincoln dined and may have slept just prior to his 7th debate with Stephen Douglas
on October 15, 1858. There are statues of Lincoln and Douglas at the corner of Landmarks and Broadway, called Lincoln Douglas Square, where they debated for the last time before the 1858 Illinois Senatorial Election.
Education
Alton is home to Marquette Catholic High School which is named after the Catholic French Explorer, Father Jacques Marquette. The sports teams names are also called the Explorers. There is a new public high school, Alton High School, complete with a three-court gymnasium and six tennis courts. Based on 2006 district data, Alton School district 11 Enrollment stands at 6,480; The average number of teaching years in the district is 13.5; The high school graduation rate is 97.7%; Elementary Pupil-Teacher Ratio - 18.9; and Secondary Pupil-Teacher Ratio - 22.3. The Alton High School has an award winning math team and music program. There is a "gifted" student program for 1st through 8th grade. This program exposes the participating students to a wider variation of knowledge as well as special projects. Alton High School offers an honors program with a weighted GPA scoring system to any honors class.
The Alton Middle School is housed in the old Alton High School complex. Alton Middle School serves grades 6-8. The school is made up of three buildings: the main building, annex, and Olin Building. The Main building is the oldest, and is unique for its use of Romanesque design.
Notable residents
- Miles Davis, jazz musician
- Craig Hentrich, two-time NFL All-Pro Bowl punter
- Robert Pershing Wadlow, tallest human recorded to date
- James Earl Ray, assassinated Martin Luther King, Jr.
- Phyllis Schlafly, Conservative activist. Opponent of the Equal Rights Amendment, abortion, and "Eastern Establishment" wing of Republican party
- Lyman Trumbull, first person to write a bill about Civil Rights (although it did not pass)
- Elijah Lovejoy, abolitionist
- Lawrence Leritz, dance and Broadway star
External links
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- Missouri History Museum Archives
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