The New International Encyclopædia/Peoria (city)

PEORIA. An important manufacturing city and railroad centre, the county-seat of Peoria County, Ill., 160 miles southwest of Chicago, on the Illinois River, at the outlet of the expansion called Peoria Lake, and on the Chicago, Burlington and Quincy, the Chicago and Alton, the Chicago, Peoria and Saint Louis, the Chicago, Rock Island and Pacific, the Iowa Central, the Lake Erie and Western, the Toledo, Peoria and Western, and other railroads (Map: Illinois, C 3). The city occupies an area of more than 8¼ square miles on a plateau, and is surrounded by a fine rolling country. There are 43 miles of paved streets (principally brick and asphalt), 50 miles of street railways, 75 miles of sewers, and a well-conducted system of parks and drives, the public park system comprising about 350 acres and including Glen Oak and Bradley parks. A soldiers' monument is among the attractions of the city, as is also a wagon bridge across the Illinois River. The city hall and court-house are handsome buildings. Peoria has a public library of 75,000 volumes and the Peoria Law Library, Bradley Polytechnic Institute, and Spalding Institute. It is an important commercial centre, controlling a large trade both by rail and river. It is also a great grain market, and its live stock and meat-packing interests arc extensive. The manufacturing establishments include distilleries, glucose works, strawboard mills, wagon works, malting houses, breweries, wire-fence works, a peanut-roaster factory, agricultural implement works, foundries and machine shops, lumber mills of various kinds, and flouring mills. In the production of high wines Peoria ranks first among cities of the United States, the output of its distilleries, according to the census of 1900, being valued at $26,792,000. A very small amount of whisky is made in Peoria, the high wines being sent to rectifying establishments to be changed into whisky. The government is vested in a mayor, elected every two years, a council, and in administrative officials who are all, with the exception of the treasurer, city clerk, city attorney, and police magistrate—these being chosen by popular vote—nominated by the executive, subject to the consent of the council. Peoria spends annually in maintenance and operation about $610,000 the principal items being $234,000 for schools, $80,000 for the fire department, $80,000 for the police department, and $37,000 for municipal lighting. The valuation of property (real and personal) is assessed at over $10,000,000. Population, in 1880, 29,259; in 1890, 41,024; in 1900, 56,100, including 8900 persons of foreign birth and 1400 of negro descent. Since the census of 1900, North Peoria, which had a population of 2358, has been annexed to Peoria.

In 1680 La Salle visited the site of Peoria and built near here Fort Crevecœur, which, however, was soon abandoned. Some time in the eighteenth century French traders settled here. In 1812 General Craig of the United States Army broke up their settlement, suspecting them of assisting the Indians. The present city really dates from 1819. In 1835 Peoria (named from the Peoria Indians) was incorporated as a town, and in 1845 it was chartered as a city. Consult Ballance, The History of Peoria (Peoria, 1870).