Junction, Illinois

Junction is a village in Gallatin County, Illinois, United States. The population was 56 at the 2020 census.

Junction, Illinois
Village
Welcome sign
Welcome sign
Location of Junction in Gallatin County, Illinois.
Location of Junction in Gallatin County, Illinois.
Location of Illinois in the United States
Location of Illinois in the United States
Coordinates: 37°43′22″N 88°14′17″W
CountryUnited States
StateIllinois
CountyGallatin
Area
[1]
 • Total0.83 sq mi (2.14 km2)
 • Land0.83 sq mi (2.14 km2)
 • Water0.00 sq mi (0.00 km2)
Elevation
[2]
367 ft (112 m)
Population
 (2020)
 • Total56
 • Density67.80/sq mi (26.17/km2)
Time zoneUTC-6 (CST)
 • Summer (DST)UTC-5 (CDT)
ZIP Code(s)
62954
Area code618
FIPS code17-38778
GNIS ID411278[2]
Wikimedia CommonsJunction, Illinois

History
1970s photograph of the John Hart Crenshaw House near Junction

Junction was named for its location at the junction of the L&N and B&O railroads. When a post office was established in 1884, it was named "Cypress Junction." The name was changed to "Junction City" in 1888, and shortened to "Junction" in 1894.[3]

Junction's location in a relatively flat area leaves it prone to flooding along the Ohio River, which can cause waters in the nearby Saline River to back up. A major flood in March 1997 displaced several area residents and blocked all but one road leading into the village.[4] On June 1, 2022 Junction General Baptist Church burned down due to a lightning strike that hit the steeple.

Crenshaw House

The Hickory Hill mansion, about four miles west of Junction, is the 19th-century home of illegal slave trader and slave breeder John Hart Crenshaw. It was infamously known as the "Old Slave House," as it was used as a criminal front for the kidnapping of free blacks who were illegally sold into the Southern slave trade on the Reverse Underground Railroad, as well as a farm for slave breeding.[5]

Geography

Junction is located at the center of Gallatin County at 37°43′22″N 88°14′17″W.[6] The village lies along Illinois Route 13, 5.6 miles or 9 Kilometers west of the Ohio River, and north of the Shawnee National Forest. The Saline River, a tributary of the Ohio, passes just to the south.

According to the 2020 census, Junction has a total area of 0.883 square miles (2.29 km2), of which 0.88 square miles (2.28 km2) (or 99.66%) is land and 0.003 square miles (0.01 km2) (or 0.34%) is water.[7]

Demographics
Historical population
CensusPop.Note%±
1910800—
1920321−59.9%
1930292−9.0%
19403209.6%
1950239−25.3%
1960238−0.4%
1970199−16.4%
1980192−3.5%
19902014.7%
2000139−30.8%
2010129−7.2%
202056−56.6%
U.S. Decennial Census[8]

As of the census of 2020, there were 56 people, 40 households, and 23 families residing in the village. The population density was 67.4 people per square mile. There were 40 housing units at an average density of 48.2 houses per square mile. The racial makeup of the village was 93% White, 1.8% Hispanic and 5.2% other.

There were 40 households, out of which 12.5% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 72.4% were married couples living together, 20.7% had a female householder with no husband present, and 16.5% were non-families. 39.5% of all households were made up of individuals, and 8.9% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.5 and the average family size was 2.29.

In the village, the population was spread out, with 12.5% under the age of 18, 1% from 18 to 24, 18% from 25 to 44, 18% from 45 to 64, and 10.0% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 52 years.

The median income for a household in the village was $30,625, and the median income for a family was $37,393. Males had a median income of $31,250 versus $19,000 for females. The per capita income for the village was $16,256. There were 5.4% of the population living below the poverty line, including no under eighteens and 20% of those over 64.

Notable people
  • John Hart Crenshaw, landowner, salt maker, illegal slave trader kidnapper, and illegal slave breeder

References
  1. "2020 U.S. Gazetteer Files". United States Census Bureau. Retrieved March 15, 2022.
  2. U.S. Geological Survey Geographic Names Information System: Junction, Illinois
  3. Edward Callary, Place Names of Illinois (University of Illinois Press, 2010), p. 180.
  4. Southern Illinois Regional Planning and Development Commission, et al., "Hazard Mitigation Plan, Gallatin County, Illinois (2011), p. 36.
  5. Molly Parker, "Future of Crenshaw House, or Old Slave House, in Question," The Southern, 21 February 2016.
  6. "US Gazetteer files: 2010, 2000, and 1990". United States Census Bureau. February 12, 2011. Retrieved April 23, 2011.
  7. "G001 - Geographic Identifiers - 2010 Census Summary File 1". United States Census Bureau. Archived from the original on February 13, 2020. Retrieved August 4, 2015.
  8. "Census of Population and Housing". Census.gov. Retrieved June 4, 2015.

Further reading
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