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Belleville is a city and the
county seat A county seat is an administrative center, seat of government, or capital city of a county or civil parish. The term is in use in Canada, China, Hungary, Romania, Taiwan, and the United States. The equivalent term shire town is used in the US ...
of St. Clair County, Illinois, coterminous with the now defunct Belleville Township. It is also the seat of the
Roman Catholic Diocese of Belleville The Diocese of Belleville ( la, Diœcesis Bellevillensis) is a Latin Church ecclesiastical territory or diocese of the Catholic Church in the southern Illinois region of the United States. It comprises the southern counties of the state of Il ...
and the
National Shrine of Our Lady of the Snows The National Shrine of Our Lady of the Snows is a Catholic shrine to the Blessed Virgin Mary in Belleville, Illinois, nine miles southeast of St. Louis, Missouri. The Shrine's director is the Reverend Father David Uribe, OMI. The shrine is i ...
. The population was 44,478 according to the Census Bureau's 2010 data, making it the largest city in the state south of Springfield. Belleville is the eighth-most populated city in the state outside the
Chicago metropolitan area The Chicago metropolitan area, also colloquially referred to as Chicagoland, is a metropolitan area in the Midwestern United States. Encompassing 10,286 sq mi (28,120 km2), the metropolitan area includes the city of Chicago, its suburbs and hin ...
, and the most-populated city in
southern Illinois Southern Illinois, also known as Little Egypt, is the southern third of Illinois, principally along and south of Interstate 64. Although part of a Midwestern state, this region is aligned in culture more with that of the Upland South than the Mi ...
and in the Metro-East region of the St. Louis Metropolitan Area. Due to its proximity to Scott Air Force Base, the population receives a boost from military and federal civilian personnel, defense contractors, and military retirees.


History

George Blair named the city of Belleville in 1814. Because Blair donated an acre of his land for the town square and an additional adjoining the square for the new county seat, the legislature transferred the county seat from the village of Cahokia. The latter had been established by French colonists as a mission village in the late 17th century. Belleville was incorporated as a
village A village is a clustered human settlement or community, larger than a hamlet but smaller than a town (although the word is often used to describe both hamlets and smaller towns), with a population typically ranging from a few hundred ...
in 1819, and became a
city A city is a human settlement of notable size.Goodall, B. (1987) ''The Penguin Dictionary of Human Geography''. London: Penguin.Kuper, A. and Kuper, J., eds (1996) ''The Social Science Encyclopedia''. 2nd edition. London: Routledge. It can be def ...
in 1850. It is said that Blair originally named the city Bellville in honor of Tennessee politician John Bell. In 1863, the name was officially changed to Belleville to distance the city from the now-disgraced Confederate. Major immigration in the mid-19th century to this area occurred following revolutions in Germany, and most of the European-American population is of German ancestry. Many of the educated Germans fled their homeland after the failure of the German Revolution in 1848. Belleville was the center of the first important German settlement in Illinois. By 1870, an estimated 90% of the city's population was either German-born or of German descent."Labor and Industry Museum"
''Labor and Industry Museum: Belleville History'', accessed 1 December 2010]
After the Civil War, Belleville became a manufacturing center producing nails, printing presses, gray iron castings, agricultural equipment, and stoves. Belleville became known as "The Stove Capital of the World." The first brewery in Illinois was established in Belleville. In 1868, Gustav Goelitz founded the candy company that is known today as " Jelly Belly." An immense deposit () of bituminous coal was found in St. Clair County. By 1874, some farmers had become coal miners. One hundred shaft mines were in operation in and around Belleville. The coal brought the steam railroad to town, which allowed for the transport of many tons of coal to be shipped daily from Belleville to St. Louis on the west side of the Mississippi River, for use in its industries, homes and businesses. Later, Belleville had the first electric trolley in the state. The first style of houses in Belleville were simple brick cottages, known locally as "German street houses" or " row houses." Architectural styles flourished in greater variety, featuring American Foursquare, French Second Empire,
Greek Revival The Greek Revival was an architectural movement which began in the middle of the 18th century but which particularly flourished in the late 18th and early 19th centuries, predominantly in northern Europe and the United States and Canada, but a ...
, Gothic Revival, Italianate, Queen Anne, and Victorian. The
Belleville Historic District The Belleville Historic District is a historic district in Belleville, Illinois. The primarily residential district consists of an irregularly shaped area on the east side of Belleville. 70 buildings are included in the district, all of which a ...
, which was listed on the
National Register of Historic Places The National Register of Historic Places (NRHP) is the United States federal government's official list of districts, sites, buildings, structures and objects deemed worthy of preservation for their historical significance or "great artistic ...
in 1976, comprises 73
contributing properties In the law regulating historic districts in the United States, a contributing property or contributing resource is any building, object, or structure which adds to the historical integrity or architectural qualities that make the historic distr ...
. The "Old Belleville Historic District," was defined and recognized in 1974 and is the city's first historic district."Village Profile"
''Village Profile: History and Culture'', 1997, accessed 1 December 2010]
The city also has designated two more historic districts: "Hexenbuckel" (est. in 1991) and "Oakland" (est. in 1995). Belleville's early German immigrants in the United States, German immigrants were educated, with most of them having graduated from German universities. They were nicknamed " Latin Farmers" because of this. After 1836 Gustav Koerner contributed to establish the city's public library. The Belleville Public Library is the state's oldest, predating the Illinois State Library by three years. The German settlers also founded choral and dramatic groups, as well as literary societies. They established one of the first kindergartens in the country here. The
National Civic League The National Civic League is an American nonpartisan, non-profit organization founded in 1894 with a mission to advance civic engagement to create equitable, thriving communities. The League envisions a country where the full diversity of communi ...
recognized Belleville in 2011 as one of the ten recipients of the
All-America City Award The All-America City Award is a community recognition program in the United States given by the National Civic League. The award recognizes the work of communities in using inclusive civic engagement to address critical issues and create strong ...
. In 2021, residents of the Illinois city elected Patty Gregory as Belleville's first female Mayor.


Geography

Belleville is located at (38.521567, −89.995208). According to the 2010 census, Belleville has a total area of , of which (or 98.83%) is land and (or 1.17%) is water. Richland Creek flows through much of Belleville.


Climate


Culture and contemporary life

Bethany Place in Belleville provides services for those with
HIV/AIDS Human immunodeficiency virus infection and acquired immunodeficiency syndrome (HIV/AIDS) is a spectrum of conditions caused by infection with the human immunodeficiency virus (HIV), a retrovirus. Following initial infection an individual ...
.


Entertainment and performing arts

The Belleville Philharmonic Society was formed in 1866, making it the second oldest philharmonic orchestra in the country. With the increase in black population and migrants from the South, musicians developed who played blues and
jazz Jazz is a music genre that originated in the African-American communities of New Orleans, Louisiana in the late 19th and early 20th centuries, with its roots in blues and ragtime. Since the 1920s Jazz Age, it has been recognized as a m ...
; later rock clubs were added to the scene. Jay Farrar (now of Son Volt),
Mike Heidorn Mike Heidorn, born 1967 in Belleville, Illinois, is the former drummer and founding member of alternative country bands Uncle Tupelo and Son Volt. Heidorn also played with the Uncle Tupelo precursors the Primitives (or ) and the one-off band Coff ...
, and Jeff Tweedy (now of Wilco) of the now-defunct alt country group Uncle Tupelo are from Belleville. Another major musician was
Neal Doughty Neal Allan Doughty (born July 29, 1946, in Evansville, Indiana) is an American keyboardist, best known as a founding member of the rock band REO Speedwagon and the only member to have played on every album. He formed the band in fall 1967, with or ...
, keyboardist for 1970s rock band REO Speedwagon. The rock band Redding also hails from Belleville, with the members being childhood friends there. They then went on to work from the entertainment and shopping company Vat19.


National Register of Historic Places

*
Belleville Historic District The Belleville Historic District is a historic district in Belleville, Illinois. The primarily residential district consists of an irregularly shaped area on the east side of Belleville. 70 buildings are included in the district, all of which a ...
* Gustave Koerner House * Knobeloch-Seibert Farm


Sports

* Rowdies Rugby Football Club – the only
rugby football Rugby football is the collective name for the team sports of rugby union and rugby league. Canadian football and, to a lesser extent, American football were once considered forms of rugby football, but are seldom now referred to as such. The ...
club in the Belleville area. * Lindenwood Stadium is a
college football College football (french: Football universitaire) refers to gridiron football played by teams of student athletes. It was through college football play that American football in the United States, American football rules first gained populari ...
stadium with alternating red and gray stripes. It has been called "The nation's most original (hideous) football field." * Belleville was home to the Belleville Stags (1947–1949), who were a minor league baseball team. The Stags were charter members of the
Illinois State League The Illinois State League (ISL) was a baseball minor league formed in 1947. The Illinois State League operated in 1947–1948 and evolved to become today's Midwest League. The Class D (baseball), Class D league was composed entirely of new franchi ...
and remained when the league changed names to the Mississippi–Ohio Valley League in 1949, eventually becoming today's
Midwest League The Midwest League is a Minor League Baseball league established in 1947 and based in the Midwestern United States. A Class A league for most of its history, the league was promoted to High-A as part of Major League Baseball's 2021 reorganiza ...
in 1956. The Stags played at the Belleville Athletic Field and were named and supported by their namesake, Stag Beer. The Stags were an affiliate of the
New York Yankees The New York Yankees are an American professional baseball team based in the New York City borough of the Bronx. The Yankees compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the American League (AL) East division. They are one ...
(1949) and St. Louis Browns (1947–1948).


Demographics

At the 2000 census there were 41,410 people, 17,603 households, and 10,420 families living in the city. The population density was . There were 19,142 housing units at an average density of . The
racial makeup A race is a categorization of humans based on shared physical or social qualities into groups generally viewed as distinct within a given society. The term came into common usage during the 1500s, when it was used to refer to groups of variou ...
of the city was 81.51% White, 15.51% African American, 0.26% Native American, 0.81% Asian, 0.07% Pacific Islander, 0.41% from other races, and 1.43% from two or more races. Hispanic or Latino of any race were 1.63%. Of the 17,603 households 28.4% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 42.0% were married couples living together, 13.5% had a female householder with no husband present, and 40.8% were non-families. 35.1% of households were one person and 14.0% were one person aged 65 or older. The average household size was 2.27 and the average family size was 2.95. The age distribution was 23.4% under the age of 18, 9.0% from 18 to 24, 30.3% from 25 to 44, 20.1% from 45 to 64, and 17.2% 65 or older. The median age was 37 years. For every 100 females, there were 88.9 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 85.0 males. The median household income was $35,979 and the median family income was $46,426. Males had a median income of $33,361 versus $25,375 for females. The per capita income for the city was $18,990. About 9.3% of families and 11.7% of the population were below the
poverty line The poverty threshold, poverty limit, poverty line or breadline is the minimum level of income deemed adequate in a particular country. The poverty line is usually calculated by estimating the total cost of one year's worth of necessities for ...
, including 16.2% of those under age 18 and 9.3% of those age 65 or over.


2010 Census

As of the 2010 Census, there were 44,478 people, 18,795 households, 11,081 families living in the city. The population density was. The
racial makeup A race is a categorization of humans based on shared physical or social qualities into groups generally viewed as distinct within a given society. The term came into common usage during the 1500s, when it was used to refer to groups of variou ...
of the city was 69.8% White, 25.4% African American, 0.3% Native American, 1.0% Asian, 0.1% Pacific Islander, 0.6% from other races, and 2.8% from two or more races. Hispanic or Latino of any race were 2.6% of the population Of the 18,795 households 27.7% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 38% were married couples living together, 16.4 had a female householder with no man present, and 41% were non-families. 34.4% of households were one person and 10.8% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age of older. The average household size was 2.3 and the average family size was 2.9. The age distribution was 23.3% under the age of 18, and 12.9% over the age of 65.


Notable people

* Black Beaver (1806–1880), Delaware Native American leader, scout, and rancher *
Charles Romyn Dake Charles Romeyn Dake (December 22, 1849 – April 23, 1899) was a 19th-century American homeopathy, homeopathic physician and writer. As an author, his name is sometimes spelled Charles Romyn Dake. Biography Charles Dake was born in Pittsburgh, ...
* Lea DeLaria * Buddy Ebsen * Jay Farrar * Mary Lynne Gasaway Hill, poet, writer, professor at St. Mary's University, Texas and Fellow of the Royal Society of Arts *
Bob Goalby Robert George Goalby (March 14, 1929 – January 19, 2022) was an American professional golfer. He won the Masters Tournament in 1968, after Roberto De Vicenzo notably made an error on his scorecard. It was Goalby's lone major championship amo ...
, Professional golfer, winner of the 1968 Masters Tournament * Sandra Magnus *
Darius Miles Darius LaVar Miles (born October 9, 1981) is an American former professional basketball player. The , forward was selected directly out of high school by the Los Angeles Clippers with the 3rd overall pick in the 2000 NBA draft. He was a Firs ...
* Edward P. Petri, Illinois state representative, sheriff, and businessman * Jeff Tweedy * Kevin Von Erich * Stephen R. Wigginton, U.S. Attorney for the Southern District of Illinois from 2010 to 2015.


Education

Higher education: * The Saint Louis University Family Medicine Residency *
Lindenwood University – Belleville The Belleville Learning Center, previously known as Lindenwood University–Belleville and Lindenwood Belleville, is a defunct satellite campus of Lindenwood University. It offered evening postgraduate and undergraduate classes for about 300 stu ...
*
Southwestern Illinois College Southwestern Illinois College is a public community college in Illinois with campuses in Belleville, Granite City, and Red Bud. It also has off-campus sites throughout the district, including Scott Air Force Base and the East St. Louis Commu ...
Four high schools – two public ( Belleville High School-East,
Belleville High School-West Belleville Township High School West (also known as Belleville West) is a public comprehensive high school in Belleville, Illinois that is part of Belleville Township High School District 201. Athletics The Maroons, as West teams are known, ...
), and two private ( Althoff Catholic High School, Governor French Academy). Belleville is also home to a relatively large grade school district. Belleville District 118 has 9 elementary schools, (Roosevelt, Abraham Lincoln, Douglas, Franklin, Jefferson, Union, Westhaven, Henry Raab, and Washington) and 2 junior high schools (Central Junior High and West Junior High). Belle Valley School District 119 is also available for public school. Harmony School District 175 includes Ellis Elementary and Emge Jr. High. Signal Hill School is the only school in district 181. Whiteside Elementary School and Whiteside Middle School make up district 115. Parochial grade schools include St. Peter's Cathedral, St. Augustine of Canterbury Church, St. Teresa, Blessed Sacrament, Our Lady Queen of Peace, and Zion Lutheran School.


Media

The '' Belleville News-Democrat'', is the city's daily newspaper. ''The News-Democrat'' is part of the McClatchy chain and covers the Metro East region and Southwestern Illinois. The city is also served by the '' St. Louis Post-Dispatch'', the area's major metropolitan daily. Belleville receives the signals of most radio and TV stations based in St. Louis.


Transportation

Belleville has three St. Louis MetroLink stations connecting it to St. Louis and the network via light rail: Memorial Hospital, Belleville, and
College A college (Latin: ''collegium'') is an educational institution or a constituent part of one. A college may be a degree-awarding tertiary educational institution, a part of a collegiate or federal university, an institution offerin ...
. Illinois State Highways 15, 159, 177, 13 and 161 all pass through Belleville. Belleville is also adjacent to Interstate highways 64 and
255 __NOTOC__ Year 255 ( CCLV) was a common year starting on Monday (link will display the full calendar) of the Julian calendar. At the time, it was known as the Year of the Consulship of Valerianus and Gallienus (or, less frequently, year 1008 '' ...
. I-64 is an east–west highway extending from Wentzville, Missouri to Virginia Beach, Virginia and is the major route from Belleville to downtown St. Louis. I-255 is part of a system of expressways that together form a loop around St. Louis. Belleville has a bicycle trail that runs through the city from Southside Park to
Southwestern Illinois College Southwestern Illinois College is a public community college in Illinois with campuses in Belleville, Granite City, and Red Bud. It also has off-campus sites throughout the district, including Scott Air Force Base and the East St. Louis Commu ...
and Scott Air Force Base; it is mainly used for recreational purposes Belleville's area airports are Scott Air Force Base and
MidAmerica St. Louis Airport MidAmerica St. Louis Airport is a public use airport next to Scott Air Force Base. It is 14 nautical miles (16  mi, 26  km) east of the central business district of Belleville and 18 nautical miles (21  mi, 33  ...
, and the nearest major airport with regularly scheduled commercial passenger service is Lambert St. Louis International Airport.


Sister city

Belleville is a sister city to Paderborn, Germany.Belleville Sister Cities, Inc
is the organization which fosters the relationship between the two cities.


References


External links

*
The Belleville Historical Society
* {{Authority control Cities in Illinois County seats in Illinois German-American history Populated places established in 1814 Cities in St. Clair County, Illinois 1814 establishments in Illinois Territory