Galesburg is a city in
Knox CountyKnox County is a county located in the U.S. state of Illinois. As of 2000, the population was 55,836. Its county seat is Galesburg, Illinois.Knox County is part of the Galesburg Micropolitan Statistical Area.-History:...
,
IllinoisIllinois , the 21st state admitted to the United States of America, is the most populous and demographically diverse Midwestern state and the fifth most populous state in the nation...
, in the
United StatesThe United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
. As of the 2000 census, the city population was 33,706. It is the
county seatA county seat is a term for an administrative center for a county or civil parish, primarily used in the United States. In the Northeast United States, the statutory term often is shire town, but colloquially county seat is the term in use there...
of Knox County.
Galesburg is home to Knox College, a private four-year liberal arts college, and
Carl Sandburg CollegeCarl Sandburg College is a two-year community college based in Galesburg, Illinois, and serving the west-central Illinois region. It has extension campuses in Carthage and Bushnell and a number of online learning initiatives....
, a two-year community college.
Galesburg is the principal city of the Galesburg
Micropolitan Statistical AreaThe Galesburg Micropolitan Statistical Area, as defined by the United States Census Bureau, is an area consisting of two counties in west central Illinois, anchored by the city of Galesburg....
, which includes all of Knox and
WarrenWarren County is a county located in the U.S. state of Illinois. As of 2000, the population was 18,735. Its county seat is Monmouth, Illinois.Warren County is part of the Galesburg Micropolitan Statistical Area.-History:...
counties.
Geography
Galesburg is located at (40.952292, -90.368545). According to the
United States Census BureauThe United States Census Bureau is the government agency that is responsible for the United States Census. It also gathers other national demographic and economic data. As part of the United States Department of Commerce, the Census Bureau serves as the leading source of quality data about...
, the city has a total area of , of which, of it is land and of it (1.05%) is water.
History
Galesburg was founded by
George Washington GaleGeorge Washington Gale was born in Stanford, New York and became a Presbyterian minister in western New York state. A graduate of Union College in 1814, and Princeton Theological Seminary in 1819...
, a Presbyterian minister from
New YorkNew York is a state in the Mid-Atlantic and Northeastern regions of the United States and is the nation's third most populous. The state is bordered by New Jersey and Pennsylvania to the south, and Connecticut, Massachusetts and Vermont to the east...
state, who dreamed of establishing a manual labor
collegeCollege is a term most often used today to denote degree awarding tertiary educational institution. More broadly, it can be the name of any group of colleagues, for example, an electoral college, a College of Arms or the College of Cardinals...
which became Knox College. A committee from New York purchased in Knox County in 1835, and the first 25 settlers arrived in 1836. They built temporary cabins in Log City near current Lake Storey, just north of Galesburg, having decided that no log cabins were to be built inside the town limits.
Galesburg was home to the first anti-slavery society in Illinois, founded in 1837, and was a stop on the
Underground RailroadThe Underground Railroad was an informal network of secret routes and safe houses used by 19th century Black slaves in the United States to escape to free states and Canada with the aid of abolitionists who were sympathetic to their cause. The term is also applied to the abolitionists who aided the...
.
http://www.outfitters.com/illinois/knox/galesburg.html The city was the site of the fifth
Lincoln-Douglas debateThe Lincoln–Douglas Debates of 1858 were a series of seven debates between Abraham Lincoln, the Republican candidate, and the incumbent Stephen A. Douglas, a Democrat, for an Illinois seat in the United States Senate. At the time, U.S...
, on a temporary speaker's platform attached to Knox College's
Old Main building on October 7, 1858. Knox College continues to maintain and use Old Main to this day. An Underground Railroad Museum and Lincoln-Douglas Debate Museum are planned for Knox College's Alumni Hall after it is renovated.
Galesburg was the home of
Mary Ann BickerdykeMary Ann Bickerdyke , also known as Mother Bickerdyke, was a hospital administrator for Union soldiers during the American Civil War.She was born in Knox County, Ohio, to Hiram Ball and Annie Rodgers Ball...
, who provided hospital care for Union soldiers during the
American Civil WarThe American Civil War , also known as the War Between the States and several other names, was a civil war in the United States of America. Eleven Southern slave states declared their secession from the United States and formed the Confederate States of America...
. After the Civil War, Galesburg was the birthplace of poet, author, and historian
Carl SandburgCarl Sandburg was an American writer and editor, best known for his poetry. He won three Pulitzer Prizes, two for his poetry and another for a biography of Abraham Lincoln. H. L. Mencken called Carl Sandburg "indubitably an American in every pulse-beat."-Biography:Sandburg was born in Galesburg,...
, poet and artist
Dorothea TanningDorothea Tanning is an American painter, printmaker, sculptor and writer. She has also designed sets and costumes for ballet and theatre.-Biography:...
, and former
Major League BaseballMajor League Baseball is the highest level of play in North American professional baseball. Specifically, Major League Baseball refers to the organization that operates the National League and the American League, by means of a joint organizational structure that has developed gradually between...
star
Jim SundbergJames Howard Sundberg is a former professional baseball catcher for a number of teams, most significantly the Texas Rangers. He batted and threw right-handed. As of October 2008 he is employed by the Texas Rangers as Senior Executive Vice-President of Public Relations.Sundberg graduated from the...
. Carl Sandburg's boyhood home is now operated by the
Illinois Historic Preservation AgencyThe Illinois Historic Preservation Agency is a governmental agency of the U.S. state of Illinois. It is tasked with the duty of maintaining most State-owned historic sites within Illinois, and maximizing their educational and recreational value to visitors....
as the Carl Sandburg State Historic Site. The site contains the cottage Sandburg was born in, a modern museum, the rock under which he and his wife Lilian are buried, and a performance venue.
Throughout much of its history, Galesburg has been inextricably tied to the railroad industry. Local businessmen were major backers of the first railroad to connect Illinois' (then) two biggest cities—
ChicagoChicago is the largest city in the U.S. state of Illinois, and with more than 2.8 million people, the 3rd largest city in the United States...
and
QuincyQuincy, Illinois, known as the "Gem City", is a city on the Mississippi River and county seat of Adams County, Illinois, United States. As of the 2000 census the city had 40,366 people. The community is a river city and was built on top of the bluffs...
—as well as a third leg initially terminating across the river from
Burlington, IowaBurlington is a city in and the county seat of Des Moines County, Iowa, United States. The population was 26,839 the 2000 census. Burlington is the center of a micropolitan area including West Burlington, Iowa and Middletown, Iowa and Gulf Port, Illinois...
, eventually connecting to it via bridge and thence onward to the Western frontier. The
Chicago, Burlington and Quincy RailroadThe Chicago, Burlington and Quincy Railroad was a railroad that operated in the Midwestern United States. Commonly referred to as the Burlington or as the Q, the Burlington Route served a large area, including extensive trackage in the states of Colorado, Illinois, Iowa, Kentucky, Missouri,...
sited major rail sorting yards here, including the first to use hump sorting.
In the late 19th century, when the
Atchison, Topeka and Santa Fe RailwayThe Atchison, Topeka and Santa Fe Railway , often abbreviated as Santa Fe, was one of the larger railroads in the United States. The company was first chartered in February 1859...
connected its service through to Chicago, it also laid track through Galesburg, making this city one of relatively few to be served by multiple railroads and even fewer to have multiple railroad depots. (Indeed, it was not until the 1990s that
AmtrakThe National Railroad Passenger Corporation, doing business as Amtrak , is a government-owned corporation that was organized on May 1, 1971 to provide intercity passenger train service in the United States. "Amtrak" is a blend of the words "America" and "track". It is headquartered at Union Station...
finally closed the old Santa Fe depot and consolidated all passenger operations at the site of the former Burlington Northern depot.) A series of mergers eventually united both tracks under the ownership of
BNSF RailwayThe BNSF Railway , formerly known as the Burlington Northern and Santa Fe Railway, is an American freight railroad company headquartered in Fort Worth, Texas; it is one of four remaining transcontinental railroads, and one of the largest freight railroad networks, in North America. Only the Union...
, carrying an average of seven trains per hour between them. As of the closing of the Maytag plant in fall of 2004, BNSF is once again the largest private employer in Galesburg.
In addition, Galesburg was home to the pioneering brass era
automobileAn automobile, motor car or car is a wheeled motor vehicle used for transporting passengers, which also carries its own engine or motor...
company
WesternWestern Tool Works was a pioneering brass era automobile manufacturer in Galesburg, Illinois.Western in 1905 produced the Gale Model A, an open roadster, for sale at US$500, which was less than high-volume Oldsmobile Runabout, at US$650, the Ford "Doctor's Car" at US$850, or the Holsman high...
, which produced the Gale, named for the town.
The Carr Mansion in Galesburg was the site of the only presidential cabinet meeting held outside of Washington, DC.
Transportation
AmtrakThe National Railroad Passenger Corporation, doing business as Amtrak , is a government-owned corporation that was organized on May 1, 1971 to provide intercity passenger train service in the United States. "Amtrak" is a blend of the words "America" and "track". It is headquartered at Union Station...
, the national passenger rail system, provides service to Galesburg, operating the
California ZephyrThe California Zephyr is a 2,438-mile long passenger train route operated by Amtrak in the Midwestern and Western United States....
, the
Illinois ZephyrThe Illinois Zephyr is a 258-mile passenger train operated by Amtrak that runs between Chicago and Quincy, Illinois. The train is a part of the Illinois Service rail network and is partially funded by the Illinois Department of Transportation...
, the
Carl Sandburg{| The Carl Sandburg is a 258-mile passenger train operated by Amtrak that runs between Chicago and Quincy, Illinois. This train began on October 30, 2006 and is an addition to the existing Illinois Service rail network created in 1971 and partially funded by the Illinois Department of...
, and the
Southwest ChiefThe Southwest Chief is a passenger train operated by Amtrak along a 2256-mile route through the Midwestern and Southwestern United States. It runs from Chicago, Illinois, to Los Angeles, California, passing through Illinois, Iowa, Missouri, Kansas, Colorado, New Mexico, Arizona, and California...
daily in both directions between Chicago and points west from
Galesburg (Amtrak station)The Galesburg Amtrak station is a train station in Galesburg, Illinois, United States served by Amtrak, the national railroad passenger system. The station was originally built in 1984, and was designed to resemble older Chicago, Burlington and Quincy Railroad depots.-External links:**...
. Galesburg Transit provides bus service to the City of Galesburg. There are 3 routes: Green Loop, Red Loop, & Blue Loop. Rail freight is provided by BNSF.
Demographics
As of the
censusA "census" is the procedure of systematically acquiring and recording information about the members of a given population. It is a regularly occurring and official count of a particular population.In other words every 10 years...next one would be in 2010 The term is used mostly in connection with...
of 2000, there were 33,706 people, 13,237 households, and 7,902 families residing in the city. The
population densityPopulation density is a measurement of population per unit area or unit volume. It is frequently applied to living organisms, and particularly to humans. It is a key term used in geography....
was . There were 14,133 housing units at an average density of 836.5/sq mi (322.9/km²). The racial makeup of the city was 84.23% White, 10.20% African American, 0.22% Native American, 1.03% Asian, 0.02% Pacific Islander, 2.46% from
other racesRace and ethnicity in the United States Census, as defined by the United States Census Bureau and the Federal Office of Management and Budget , are self-identification data items in which residents choose the race or races with which they most closely identify, and indicate whether or not they are...
, and 1.84% from two or more races. Hispanic or Latino of any race were 5.01% of the population. 17.4% were of
GermanThe German people are an ethnic group, in the sense of sharing a common German culture, descent, and speaking the German language as a mother tongue. Within Germany, Germans are defined by citizenship , distinguished from people of German ancestry...
, 12.6%
AmericanThe United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
, 11.5%
IrishThe Irish people are a Western European ethnic group who originate in Ireland, in north western Europe. Ireland has been populated for around 9,000 years , with the Irish people's earliest ancestors recorded as the Nemedians, Fomorians, Fir Bolgs, Tuatha Dé Danann and the Milesians The Irish...
, 11.3%
SwedishSwedes are a Scandinavian people, mostly inhabiting Sweden and the other Nordic countries, with descendants living in a number of countries....
and 9.1%
EnglishThe English are a nation and ethnic group native to England, who speak English. The English identity as a people is of early medieval origin, when they were known in Old English as the Anglecynn....
ancestry according to Census 2000.
There were 13,237 households out of which 26.3% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 43.6% were married couples living together, 12.4% had a female householder with no husband present, and 40.3% were non-families. 34.6% of all households were made up of individuals and 16.1% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.24 and the average family size was 2.87.
In the city the population was spread out with 21.1% under the age of 18, 11.8% from 18 to 24, 27.0% from 25 to 44, 22.0% from 45 to 64, and 18.1% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 38 years. For every 100 females there were 100.3 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 98.1 males.
The median income for a household in the city was $31,987, and the median income for a family was $41,796. Males had a median income of $31,698 versus $21,388 for females. The
per capita incomePer capita income means how much each individual receives, in monetary terms, of the yearly income generated in the country. This is what each citizen is to receive if the yearly national income is divided equally among everyone. Per capita income is usually reported in units of currency per year...
for the city was $17,214. About 10.7% of families and 14.7% of the population were below the poverty line, including 23.4% of those under age 18 and 6.3% of those age 65 or over.
Galesburg will soon be home to the
National Railroad Hall of FameThe US National Railroad Hall of Fame was established in 2003 and recognized by Congressional resolutions in 2003 and 2004.-External links:* *...
. Efforts are underway to raise funds for the $30 million project which got a major boost in 2006, when the United States Congress passed a bill to charter the establishment. It is hoped that the Museum will bring tourism and a financial boost to the community.
Festivals
Galesburg is the home of the Railroad Days festival held on the fourth weekend of June. The festival began in 1978. During the festival, Carl Sandburg College hosts one of the largest model railroad train shows and layouts in the U.S. Midwest. Labor Day weekend in September hosts the
StearmanStearman Aircraft Corporation was an aircraft manufacturer in Wichita, Kansas. Although the company designed a range of other aircraft, it is most known for producing the Model 75, which is commonly known simply as the "Stearman" or "Boeing Stearman"....
Fly in. Also held in September are the Great Cardboard Boat Regatta and the Annual Rubber Duck Race held out at Lake Storey. The third weekend of every August a Civil war and Pre 1840's Rendezvous is held at Lake Storey Park.
The
Black Earth Film Festival has been a part of the Galesburg art community since 2004. Affiliated with the Galesburg Civic Art Center, the festival receives entries from all over the world. The Black Earth Film Festival takes place in September and presents the best in feature length, short subjects, documentaries, animation and foreign films. Awards are given for the aforementioned categories, as well as a peoples choice award for best overall film. Festival highlights include special guests from within the film industry. Past participants have included Director John D. Hancock (
Bang The Drum Slowly, Prancer, Let's Scare Jessica to Death,) Filmmakers Mark Borchardt and Mike Schank (subjects of the award Winning Documentary
American Movie) and Filmmakers Eric Zala and Chris Strompolos (
Raiders of the Lost Ark: The Adaptation.)
There is also a kite festival every May at Lake Storey Park.
Popular culture
- According to legend, it was in Galesburg, at the Gaity Theatre in 1914 where the four Marx Brothers
The Marx Brothers were an American family comedy act, originally from New York City, that enjoyed success in vaudeville, Broadway, and motion pictures from the early 1900s to around 1950...
(Groucho, ChicoLeonard "Chico" Marx was the eldest of the Marx Brothers.He was originally nicknamed Chicko for his reputation as a ladies' man, or a "chicken chaser" in the popular slang of the day. A typesetter accidentally dropped the "k" in his name and it became Chico...
, HarpoArthur Adolph "Harpo" Marx , born Adolph Arthur Marx, was the second-born of the Marx Brothers and a unique comic performer whose style was influenced by clown and pantomime traditions...
, and GummoMilton "Gummo" Marx was the fourth-born of the Marx Brothers. Born in New York City, he worked with his brothers on the vaudeville circuit, but left acting when he was drafted into the U.S. Army during World War I, years before his four brothers began their legendary film career...
) first received their nicknames. Nicknames ending in -o were popular in the early part of the 20th century, and a fellow Vaudevillian, Art Fisher, supposedly bestowed them upon the brothers during a poker game there. Zeppo MarxHerbert Manfred "Zeppo" Marx was the youngest of the five Marx Brothers. He appeared in the first five Marx Brothers films, but then left the act for a career as a theatrical agent.-Name:...
received his nickname later.
- Galesburg features prominently in The Mountain Goats
The Mountain Goats is a Durham, North Carolina-based band, led by American singer-songwriter John Darnielle. Darnielle began recording in 1991, and is known for his highly literate lyrics and his lo-fi recording style...
' song Weekend in Western Illinois from the album Full Force GalesburgFull Force Galesburg is the fifth official album by The Mountain Goats released in 1997. It consists of songs written and recorded by John Darnielle. Darnielle has stated that most, if not all, of the album was written in Grinnell, IA...
.
- Galesburg is mentioned in the book The Prestige
The Prestige is a 1995 novel by British writer Christopher Priest. The novel is epistolary in structure; that is, it purports to be a collection of real diaries that were kept by the protagonists and later collated...
.
- Writer Jack Finney
Jack Finney was an American author. His best-known works are science fiction and thrillers, including The Body Snatchers and Time and Again. The former was the basis for the 1956 movie Invasion of the Body Snatchers and its remakes.-Biography:Finney was born in Milwaukee, Wisconsin and given the...
, author of The Body SnatchersThe Body Snatchers is a 1955 science fiction novel by Jack Finney, originally serialized in Colliers Magazine in 1954, which describes a town in Marin County, California, being invaded by seeds that have drifted to Earth from space...
, uses Galesburg as a setting for several of his time-travel tales in About Time: Twelve Stories including The Third LevelThe Third Level is the online fantasy and Science fiction magazine of Knox College, Illinois. It is named for a story by Jack Finney, a 1934 Knox College alumnus and author of speculative works such as The Body Snatchers and Time and Again....
.
- Galesburg and Knox College are both mentioned by the character Walowick in Walter Dean Myers
Walter Dean Myers is an African American author of young adult literature. Myers has written thirty books, including novels and nonfiction works. He has won the Coretta Scott King Award for African American authors five times...
' novel Fallen AngelsFallen Angels is a 1988 war novel written by Walter Dean Myers and published by Scholastic Corporation that takes place during the Vietnam War's Tet Offensive in 1968...
, about the Vietnam WarThe Vietnam War or the Second Indochina War was a Cold War military conflict that occurred in Vietnam, Laos, and Cambodia from 1959 to 30 April 1975...
.
Media
Galesburg has multiple radio stations and newspapers delivering a mix of local, regional and national news. WGIL-AM, WAAG, WLSR-FM and WKAY-FM are all owned by Galesburg Broadcasting while Prairie Radio Communications owns WAIK-AM.
The
Galesburg Register-Mail is the result of the merger of the
Galesburg Republican-Register and the
Galesburg Daily Mail in 1928. Those two papers can trace their roots back to the mid-1800s. A daily, it is the main newspaper of the city, and was owned by Copley Press out of San Diego until it was sold to Gate House Media in April 2007.
The Zephyr was started in 1989, is published on Thursdays and is the only locally-owned newspaper. There is also
The Paper, which is delivered without subscription to all households every Wednesday and is also owned by Gate House Media.
FM Radio
- 90.7 WVKC
WVKC is a 1,000-watt radio station in Galesburg, Illinois, in west-central Illinois. Knox College is the station licensee, authorized by the Federal Communications Commission....
"The Voice of Knox College", College Radio
- 92.7 WLSR
WLSR is a radio station licensed to serve Galesburg, Illinois, USA. The station, established in 1980 as a sister station to WAIK , is currently owned by the Galesburg Broadcasting Company....
"92.7 FM The Laser", Active RockHard rock or heavy rock is a sub-genre of rock music which has its earliest roots in mid-1960s garage and psychedelic rock and is considerably harder than conventional rock music...
(RDSRadio Data System, or RDS, is a communications protocol standard for embedding small amounts of digital information in conventional FM radio broadcasts. The RDS system standardises several types of information transmitted, including time, station identification and programme information.Radio...
- Artist/Title)
- 94.9 WAAG
WAAG is a radio station licensed to Galesburg, Illinois, USA. The station is currently owned by Galesburg Broadcasting Company....
"FM 95", CountryCountry music is a blend of popular musical forms originally found in the Southern United States and the Appalachian Mountains...
(RDS - Artist/Title)
- 95.7 WVCL, Religious
- 100.5 W263AO (Translates 91.5 WCIC
WCIC is a Christian radio station licensed to Pekin, Illinois and owned by the Illinois Bible Institute, the educational branch of the Illinois District Council of the Assemblies of God...
), Christian ACContemporary Christian music is a genre of popular music which is lyrically focused on matters concerned with the Christian faith...
(RDS)
- 105.3 WKAY "105.3 KFM", Adult Contemporary (RDS - Artist/Title)
Print
- The Paper, local weekly (free) newspaper (in the Register Mail every Wednesday)
- Register-Mail, local daily newspaper
- The Zephyr, local weekly newspaper
Notable residents
- Mary Ann Bickerdyke
Mary Ann Bickerdyke , also known as Mother Bickerdyke, was a hospital administrator for Union soldiers during the American Civil War.She was born in Knox County, Ohio, to Hiram Ball and Annie Rodgers Ball...
, also known as "Mother Bickerdyke," famous American Civil War nurse for the Union ArmyThe Union Army was the land force that fought for the Union during the American Civil War. It was also known as the Federal Army, the U.S. Army, the Northern Army and the National Army...
- George Radcliffe Colton
George Radcliffe Colton was the Governor of Puerto Rico from November 6, 1909 to November 5, 1913, a position to which he was appointed by President William Howard Taft. He was originally from Galesburg, Illinois. During the early part of the 1900s, he served in the United States Army and attained...
, Governor of Puerto RicoThe Governor of Puerto Rico is the Head of Government of the Commonwealth of Puerto Rico. Since 1948, the Governor has been elected by the people of Puerto Rico...
, 1909–1913
- Edwin H. Conger
Edwin Hurd Conger was a Civil War soldier, lawyer, banker, Iowa congressman, and United States diplomat. As the United States' minister to China during the Boxer Rebellion, Conger, his family, and other western diplomatic legations were under siege in Beijing until rescued by the China Relief...
, congressman, diplomat, lawyer
- Ira Clifton Copley
Ira Clifton Copley was a United States statesman and newspaper publisher.-Biography:...
, publisher and statesman, founder of the Copley PressCopley Press is a privately held newspaper business, originally founded in Illinois, but now based in La Jolla, California. It currently does not hold any media properties...
- George Washington Gale Ferris, Jr.
George Washington Gale Ferris, Jr. was an American inventor. He invented the Ferris wheel for the 1893 Chicago World's Columbian Exposition in an attempt to create something as impressive as the Eiffel Tower in Paris, France.-Biography:He was born in Galesburg, Illinois and his family sold their...
, inventor of the Ferris wheelA Ferris wheel is a nonbuilding structure, consisting of an upright wheel with passenger gondolas attached to the rim....
- Aaron Fike
Aaron Fike is a NASCAR and USAC driver from Galesburg, Illinois. Prior to a drug arrest, he was the driver of the #1 Toyota Tundra Craftsman Truck Series truck.He is the younger brother of former NASCAR driver A. J...
and A. J. FikeA.J. Fike is an American racecar driver. He was born on December 29, 1980 and resides in Galesburg, Illinois. He is the older brother of suspended Truck Series driver Aaron Fike.He drove the #43 Curb Agajanian Performance Group Dodge for 7 races in 2005....
, NASCARThe National Association for Stock Car Auto Racing is a family-owned and operated business venture that sanctions and governs multiple auto racing sports events. It was founded by Bill France Sr. in 1947-48. As of 2009, the CEO for the company is Brian France, grandson of the late Bill France Sr...
drivers
- Todd Hamilton
William Todd Hamilton is an American professional golfer.Hamilton was born in the small west-central Illinois city of Galesburg. He grew up in an even smaller Henderson County town on the Mississippi called Oquawka. He attended Union High School in Biggsville, IL and played golf regularly on the...
, professional golfGolf is a precision club-and-ball sport, in which competing players , using many types of clubs, attempt to hit balls into each hole on a golf course while employing the fewest number of strokes. Golf is one of the few ball games that does not require a standardized playing area...
er
- Phil Hare
Philip G. "Phil" Hare is currently the Democratic Congressman representing . The district is based in Illinois' share of the Quad Cities area and includes Rock Island, Moline, Quincy, Decatur, Galesburgand part of Springfield...
, congressman
- Elbert Kimbrough
Elbert Leon Kimbrough is a former professional American football player who played cornerback for seven seasons for the Los Angeles Rams, the San Francisco 49ers, and the New Orleans Saints....
, National Football League player, 1961-1968
- Tim Lawson
Tim Lawson is an American soccer player.Lawson played college soccer for the University of Washington from 1995 to 1998...
, author
- Dan Maloney
Daniel Charles "Snowshoes" Maloney is a former left winger in the NHL and former NHL coach.Drafted 14th overall by the Chicago Black Hawks in the 1970 NHL Entry Draft, Maloney played two seasons for the Blackhawks and later played for the Los Angeles Kings, Detroit Red Wings and Toronto Maple...
, last Chief Illiniwek at the University of Illinois
- Emily Arnold McCully
Emily Arnold McCully is a children's author who was born in Galesburg, Illinois, in 1939, but grew up in Garden City, New York. She attended Brown University and Columbia University.Among the awards she has won, Ms...
, children's book author, winner of the 1993 Caldecott MedalThe Caldecott Medal is awarded annually by the Association for Library Service to Children, a division of the American Library Association, to the artist of the most distinguished American picture book for children published that year. It was named in honor of nineteenth-century English illustrator...
- Ronald Reagan
Ronald Wilson Reagan was the 40th President of the United States and the 33rd Governor of California .Born in Tampico, Illinois, Reagan moved to Los Angeles, California in the 1930s...
, 40th president of the United States
- George Reeves
George Reeves was an American actor, best known for his role as Superman in the 1950s television program Adventures of Superman....
, actor, played Superman in popular 1950s television show (brief residency in infancy)
- Paul W. Robsky, member of Eliot Ness
Eliot Ness was an American Prohibition agent, famous for his efforts to enforce Prohibition in Chicago, Illinois, as the leader of a legendary team of law enforcement agents nicknamed The Untouchables.- Early life :...
' Untouchables, born in Galesburg, 1897
- Carl Sandburg
Carl Sandburg was an American writer and editor, best known for his poetry. He won three Pulitzer Prizes, two for his poetry and another for a biography of Abraham Lincoln. H. L. Mencken called Carl Sandburg "indubitably an American in every pulse-beat."-Biography:Sandburg was born in Galesburg,...
, American poetPoetry is a form of literary art in which language is used for its aesthetic and evocative qualities in addition to, or in lieu of, its apparent meaning...
, historianHistory is the study of the human past, with special attention to the written record. Scholars who write about history are called historians. It is a field of research which uses a narrative to examine and analyse the sequence of events, and it often attempts to investigate objectively the patterns...
, novelA novel is a long narrative in literary prose. The genre has historical roots both in the fields of the medieval and early modern romance and in the tradition of the novella. The latter supplied the present generic term in the late 18th century....
ist, and folkloristFolklore is the body of expressive culture, including stories, music, dance, legends, oral history, proverbs, jokes, popular beliefs, customs, and so forth within a particular population comprising the traditions of that culture, subculture, or group. It is also the set of practices through which...
- Jim Sundberg
James Howard Sundberg is a former professional baseball catcher for a number of teams, most significantly the Texas Rangers. He batted and threw right-handed. As of October 2008 he is employed by the Texas Rangers as Senior Executive Vice-President of Public Relations.Sundberg graduated from the...
, Major League Baseball player
- Dorothea Tanning
Dorothea Tanning is an American painter, printmaker, sculptor and writer. She has also designed sets and costumes for ballet and theatre.-Biography:...
, American painter, printmaker, sculptor and writer
- Charles Rudolph Walgreen
Charles Rudolph Walgreen was an American businessman who founded Walgreens.-Background:He was born in Galesburg Knox County, Illinois, the son of Swedish emigrants. When his father, Carl Magnus Olofsson, came to America from Sweden, the family name was changed to Walgreen...
, founder of WalgreensThe Walgreen Company , d/b/a Walgreens , is the second largest drugstore chain in the United States. The company operates about 7,000 drugstores in all 50 states, the District of Columbia and Puerto Rico...
- Pete Weber
Pete Weber is the play-by-play voice of the NHL's Nashville Predators, a position he has held with the organization since the team's first season ....
, sports broadcaster
- Sewall Wright
Sewall Green Wright was an American geneticist known for his influential work on evolutionary theory and also for his work on path analysis. With R. A. Fisher and J.B.S. Haldane, he was a founder of theoretical population genetics. He is the discoverer of the inbreeding coefficient and of...
, evolutionIn biology, evolution is change in the genetic material of a population of organisms from one generation to the next. Though changes produced in any one generation are normally small, differences accumulate with each generation and can, over time, cause substantial changes in the population, a...
ary biologist, a founder of modern population geneticsPopulation genetics is the study of the allele frequency distribution and change under the influence of the four evolutionary processes: natural selection, genetic drift, mutation and gene flow. It also takes account of population subdivision and population structure in space. As such, it attempts...
External links