Highland, Illinois
Encyclopedia
Highland is a city in Madison County
, Illinois
, United States
. The population was 9,433 at the 2010 census. Highland began as a Swiss
settlement and derived its name from later German
immigrants.
Highland is a sister city of Sursee
in Switzerland.
Highland, because it is located in Madison County, Illinois
, is a part of the Metro-East
region of the Greater St. Louis metropolitan area.
in accordance with the Heritage of the town's Swiss-German founding members. The town voted to change its name to the English version - Highland, in the early 20th century, as well as stopping production of its German language newspaper, in part to avoid negativity towards those of Germanic heritage at the advent of the First World War. Around the same time, a small town in northern Illinois also started calling itself Highland. Eventually, the town in northern Illinois became Highland Park
. Highland also has been home to many well-known businesses including the inventor of Pet Milk
and the Wicks Organ Company
. For the past 60 years, Highland Supply Corporation has been producing and selling Floral Grass - a traditional decorative product used to line Easter baskets
. Highland is also home to The Korte Company
(builder of many large and well-known buildings including Universal Studios
in Florida
). Highland has a rich history including extended visits by such notables as Abraham Lincoln
.
On November 21, 1915, the Liberty Bell
passed through Highland on its nationwide tour returning to Pennsylvania
from the Panama-Pacific International Exposition
in San Francisco. After that trip, the Liberty Bell returned to Pennsylvania and will not be moved again.
The current mayor is Joseph R. Michaelis.
Highland is in the process of implementing city wide availability of a municipal broadband
network using Fiber to the home technology.
, the city has a total area of 6.4 square miles (16.6 km²), of which, 5.4 square miles (14 km²) of it is land and 1 square miles (2.6 km²) of it (15.89%) is water.
IL-160, IL-143, US-40, and I-70 (slightly north).
, Grantfork, Illinois
, and New Douglas, Illinois
. Kindergarten through sixth grade schools are located in each of the districts municipalities while the district's middle and high schools are located in Highland.
Additionally, Highland has a local parochial school named St. Paul Catholic School
offering Kindergarten through eighth grade education.
The Louis Latzer Memorial public library has a collection of more than 48,000 print volumes, a substantial media collection, and public computer access along with access to subscription databases and a genealogy collection. It is also a member of the Louis and Clark Library system.
of 2010, there were 9,919 people, 4,013 households, and 2,633 families residing in the city. The population density
was 1,561.1 people per square mile (602.2/km²). There were 3,610 housing units at an average density of 667.9 per square mile (257.6/km²). The racial makeup of the city was 97.00% White, 0.2% African American, 0.2% Native American, 0.9% Asian, 0.4% from other races
, and 1.3% from two or more races. Hispanic or Latino of any race were 1.4% of the population.
There were 4,013 households and 2,633 families. 50.3% of the families have children 18 years old or younger. There are 2,017 husband-wife families. 29.5% of all the households were made up of one individual and 16.4% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.42 and the average family size was 2.99.
In the city the population was spread out with 24.8% under the age of 18, 8.6% from 18 to 24, 27.5% from 25 to 44, 23% from 45 to 64, and 16.2% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 36.8 years. Of the total population 4,714 are males and 5,205 are females.
The median income for a household in the city was $39,524, and the median income for a family was $52,240. Males had a median income of $36,536 versus $25,620 for females. The per capita income
for the city was $21,101. About 3.6% of families and 6.8% of the population were below the poverty line, including 6.9% of those under age 18 and 8.3% of those age 65 or over.
album by Sufjan Stevens
, titled 'Concerning the UFO sighting near Highland, Illinois', in which Stevens mentioned a 21st century UFO sighting by the owner of the local mini-golf
course.
Highland was also mentioned on The Daily Show
on 9 Feb 2006. A report mentioned local pharmacist and state legislator Ron Stephens
, who protested an executive order by then Illinois Governor Rod Blagojevich
requiring a pharmacist to fill emergency contraception
prescriptions.
- Minor League Baseball player currently in the Kansas City Royals
organization
Chris Frey - Minor League Baseball player currently in the Philadelphia Phillies
organization
Ken Oberkfell
- Former Major League Baseball
Player; Current New York Mets
coach
Madison County, Illinois
Madison County is a county located in the U.S. state of Illinois. Madison County is part of the Metro-East region of the St. Louis Metro Area. According to the 2010 census, it has a population of 269,282, which is an increase of 4.0% from 258,941 in 2000. The county seat is Edwardsville, home to...
, Illinois
Illinois
Illinois is the fifth-most populous state of the United States of America, and is often noted for being a microcosm of the entire country. With Chicago in the northeast, small industrial cities and great agricultural productivity in central and northern Illinois, and natural resources like coal,...
, United States
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
. The population was 9,433 at the 2010 census. Highland began as a Swiss
Swiss American
Swiss Americans are Americans of Swiss descent.There are several ethno-linguistic subgroups among Swiss Americans, including Swiss German-speaking, Swiss French-speaking, and Swiss Italian-speaking....
settlement and derived its name from later German
German American
German Americans are citizens of the United States of German ancestry and comprise about 51 million people, or 17% of the U.S. population, the country's largest self-reported ancestral group...
immigrants.
Highland is a sister city of Sursee
Sursee
Sursee is a municipality in the district of Sursee in the canton of Lucerne, Switzerland. Sursee is located at the northern end of Lake Sempach, not far from where the Sure river enters the lake , hence the name "Sursee"....
in Switzerland.
Highland, because it is located in Madison County, Illinois
Madison County, Illinois
Madison County is a county located in the U.S. state of Illinois. Madison County is part of the Metro-East region of the St. Louis Metro Area. According to the 2010 census, it has a population of 269,282, which is an increase of 4.0% from 258,941 in 2000. The county seat is Edwardsville, home to...
, is a part of the Metro-East
Metro-East
Metro East is a region in Illinois that comprises the eastern suburbs of St. Louis, Missouri, United States. It encompasses five Southern Illinois counties in the St. Louis Metropolitan Statistical Area. The region's most populated city is Belleville at 45,000 residents...
region of the Greater St. Louis metropolitan area.
History
Highland, Illinois was settled in the early 19th century by Swiss-German settlers. It was first named HelvetiaHelvetia
Helvetia is the female national personification of Switzerland, officially Confœderatio Helvetica, the "Helvetic Confederation".The allegory is typically pictured in a flowing gown, with a spear and a shield emblazoned with the Swiss flag, and commonly with braided hair, commonly with a wreath as...
in accordance with the Heritage of the town's Swiss-German founding members. The town voted to change its name to the English version - Highland, in the early 20th century, as well as stopping production of its German language newspaper, in part to avoid negativity towards those of Germanic heritage at the advent of the First World War. Around the same time, a small town in northern Illinois also started calling itself Highland. Eventually, the town in northern Illinois became Highland Park
Highland Park, Illinois
Highland Park is a suburban municipality in Lake County, Illinois, United States, about north of downtown Chicago. As of 2009, the population is 33,492. Highland Park is one of several municipalities located on the North Shore of the Chicago Metropolitan Area.-Overview:Highland Park was founded...
. Highland also has been home to many well-known businesses including the inventor of Pet Milk
Pet, Inc.
Pet, Inc., was an American company that was the first to commercially produce evaporated milk as a shelf-stable consumer product and later became a multi-brand food products conglomerate. Its signature product, PET Evaporated Milk, is now a product of The J.M. Smucker Co...
and the Wicks Organ Company
Wicks Organ Company
The Wicks Organ Company is an organ manufacturer in Highland, Illinois in the United States; where they build, repair, and restore organs.-History:...
. For the past 60 years, Highland Supply Corporation has been producing and selling Floral Grass - a traditional decorative product used to line Easter baskets
Easter egg
Easter eggs are special eggs that are often given to celebrate Easter or springtime.The oldest tradition is to use dyed or painted chicken eggs, but a modern custom is to substitute chocolate eggs, or plastic eggs filled with confectionery such as jelly beans...
. Highland is also home to The Korte Company
The Korte Company
""The Korte Company"", founded in 1958, specializes in design-build, construction management and construction services, and is headquartered in St. Louis, Missouri with additional offices in Highland, Illinois and Las Vegas, Nevada...
(builder of many large and well-known buildings including Universal Studios
Universal Studios
Universal Pictures , a subsidiary of NBCUniversal, is one of the six major movie studios....
in Florida
Florida
Florida is a state in the southeastern United States, located on the nation's Atlantic and Gulf coasts. It is bordered to the west by the Gulf of Mexico, to the north by Alabama and Georgia and to the east by the Atlantic Ocean. With a population of 18,801,310 as measured by the 2010 census, it...
). Highland has a rich history including extended visits by such notables as Abraham Lincoln
Abraham Lincoln
Abraham Lincoln was the 16th President of the United States, serving from March 1861 until his assassination in April 1865. He successfully led his country through a great constitutional, military and moral crisis – the American Civil War – preserving the Union, while ending slavery, and...
.
On November 21, 1915, the Liberty Bell
Liberty Bell
The Liberty Bell is an iconic symbol of American Independence, located in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. Formerly placed in the steeple of the Pennsylvania State House , the bell was commissioned from the London firm of Lester and Pack in 1752, and was cast with the lettering "Proclaim LIBERTY...
passed through Highland on its nationwide tour returning to Pennsylvania
Pennsylvania
The Commonwealth of Pennsylvania is a U.S. state that is located in the Northeastern and Mid-Atlantic regions of the United States. The state borders Delaware and Maryland to the south, West Virginia to the southwest, Ohio to the west, New York and Ontario, Canada, to the north, and New Jersey to...
from the Panama-Pacific International Exposition
Panama-Pacific International Exposition (1915)
The Panama-Pacific International Exposition was a world's fair held in San Francisco, California between February 20 and December 4 in 1915. Its ostensible purpose was to celebrate the completion of the Panama Canal, but it was widely seen in the city as an opportunity to showcase its recovery...
in San Francisco. After that trip, the Liberty Bell returned to Pennsylvania and will not be moved again.
The current mayor is Joseph R. Michaelis.
Highland is in the process of implementing city wide availability of a municipal broadband
Municipal broadband
Municipal broadband deployments are broadband Internet access services provided either fully or partially by local governments. Common connection technologies include unlicensed wireless , licensed wireless , and fiber-optic...
network using Fiber to the home technology.
Geography
According to the United States Census BureauUnited States Census Bureau
The 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...
, the city has a total area of 6.4 square miles (16.6 km²), of which, 5.4 square miles (14 km²) of it is land and 1 square miles (2.6 km²) of it (15.89%) is water.
Highways
The following highways run through or around Highland:IL-160, IL-143, US-40, and I-70 (slightly north).
Education
The Highland Community Unit School District serves Highland area students including those from Alhambra, IllinoisAlhambra, Illinois
Alhambra is a village in Madison County, Illinois, United States. The population was 630 at the 2000 census.-Geography:Alhambra is located at ....
, Grantfork, Illinois
Grantfork, Illinois
Grantfork is a village in Madison County, Illinois, United States. The population was 254 as of the 2000 census.-Geography:Grantfork is located at .According to the United States Census Bureau, the village has a total area of , all of it land....
, and New Douglas, Illinois
New Douglas, Illinois
New Douglas is a village in Madison County, Illinois, United States. The population was 369 at the 2000 census. It is a community that was centered around the local coal mines and farming in the early 1900s. When need for coal dropped in the 1950s the town fell back on its farming roots. Mostly...
. Kindergarten through sixth grade schools are located in each of the districts municipalities while the district's middle and high schools are located in Highland.
Additionally, Highland has a local parochial school named St. Paul Catholic School
St. Paul Catholic Church (Highland, Illinois)
St. Paul Church is a Roman Catholic parish with an elementary school in the Diocese of Springfield in Illinois located in Highland, Illinois. The Kirchenfest, a church picinic held each year, is one of the largest church festivals in Southern Illinois....
offering Kindergarten through eighth grade education.
The Louis Latzer Memorial public library has a collection of more than 48,000 print volumes, a substantial media collection, and public computer access along with access to subscription databases and a genealogy collection. It is also a member of the Louis and Clark Library system.
Demographics
As of the censusCensus
A 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. The term is used mostly in connection with national population and housing censuses; other common...
of 2010, there were 9,919 people, 4,013 households, and 2,633 families residing in the city. The population density
Population density
Population density is a measurement of population per unit area or unit volume. It is frequently applied to living organisms, and particularly to humans...
was 1,561.1 people per square mile (602.2/km²). There were 3,610 housing units at an average density of 667.9 per square mile (257.6/km²). The racial makeup of the city was 97.00% White, 0.2% African American, 0.2% Native American, 0.9% Asian, 0.4% from other races
Race (United States Census)
Race and ethnicity in the United States Census, as defined by the Federal Office of Management and Budget and the United States Census Bureau, 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 1.3% from two or more races. Hispanic or Latino of any race were 1.4% of the population.
There were 4,013 households and 2,633 families. 50.3% of the families have children 18 years old or younger. There are 2,017 husband-wife families. 29.5% of all the households were made up of one individual and 16.4% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.42 and the average family size was 2.99.
In the city the population was spread out with 24.8% under the age of 18, 8.6% from 18 to 24, 27.5% from 25 to 44, 23% from 45 to 64, and 16.2% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 36.8 years. Of the total population 4,714 are males and 5,205 are females.
The median income for a household in the city was $39,524, and the median income for a family was $52,240. Males had a median income of $36,536 versus $25,620 for females. The per capita income
Per capita income
Per capita income or income per person is a measure of mean income within an economic aggregate, such as a country or city. It is calculated by taking a measure of all sources of income in the aggregate and dividing it by the total population...
for the city was $21,101. About 3.6% of families and 6.8% of the population were below the poverty line, including 6.9% of those under age 18 and 8.3% of those age 65 or over.
Mentions in popular media
Highland was the basis for the first song on the IllinoisIllinois (album)
Illinois is a 2005 concept album by American indie folk songwriter Sufjan Stevens. His fifth studio album, Illinois features songs referencing places, events, and persons related to the U.S. state of Illinois...
album by Sufjan Stevens
Sufjan Stevens
Sufjan Stevens is an American singer-songwriter and musician born in Detroit, Michigan. Stevens first began releasing his music on Asthmatic Kitty, a label co-founded with his stepfather, beginning with the 1999 release, A Sun Came...
, titled 'Concerning the UFO sighting near Highland, Illinois', in which Stevens mentioned a 21st century UFO sighting by the owner of the local mini-golf
Miniature golf
Miniature golf, or minigolf, is a miniature version of the sport of golf. While the international sports organization World Minigolf Sport Federation prefers to use the name "minigolf", the general public in different countries has also many other names for the game: miniature golf, mini-golf,...
course.
Highland was also mentioned on The Daily Show
The Daily Show
The Daily Show , is an American late night satirical television program airing each Monday through Thursday on Comedy Central. The half-hour long show premiered on July 21, 1996, and was hosted by Craig Kilborn until December 1998...
on 9 Feb 2006. A report mentioned local pharmacist and state legislator Ron Stephens
Ron Stephens
Ron Stephens is a Republican member of the Illinois House of Representatives, representing the 102nd district since 1993. He is currently the Assistant Republican Leader in the state House. The district includes portions of Bond County, Madison County, Effingham County, Fayette County and St. Clair...
, who protested an executive order by then Illinois Governor Rod Blagojevich
Rod Blagojevich
Rod R. Blagojevich is an American politician who served as the 40th Governor of Illinois from 2003 to 2009. A Democrat, Blagojevich was a State Representative before being elected to the United States House of Representatives representing parts of Chicago...
requiring a pharmacist to fill emergency contraception
Emergency contraception
Emergency contraception , or emergency postcoital contraception, refers to birth control measures that, if taken after sexual intercourse, may prevent pregnancy.Forms of EC include:...
prescriptions.
People
Jake OdorizziJake Odorizzi
Jacob Odorizzi is an American professional baseball pitcher in the Kansas City Royals organization.-Amateur career:Odorizzi attended Highland High School, where he led the Highland Bulldogs to the state championship....
- Minor League Baseball player currently in the Kansas City Royals
Kansas City Royals
The Kansas City Royals are a Major League Baseball team based in Kansas City, Missouri. The Royals are a member of the Central Division of Major League Baseball's American League. From 1973 to the present, the Royals have played in Kauffman Stadium...
organization
Chris Frey - Minor League Baseball player currently in the Philadelphia Phillies
Philadelphia Phillies
The Philadelphia Phillies are a Major League Baseball team. They are the oldest continuous, one-name, one-city franchise in all of professional American sports, dating to 1883. The Phillies are a member of the Eastern Division of Major League Baseball's National League...
organization
Ken Oberkfell
Ken Oberkfell
Kenneth Raymond Oberkfell is an American former Major League Baseball third baseman and ex-coach for the New York Mets. He played from 1977-1992 for six different teams. Oberkfell primarily played third base but was also known to play second base and both corner outfield positions...
- Former Major League Baseball
Major League Baseball
Major League Baseball is the highest level of professional baseball in the United States and Canada, consisting of teams that play in the National League and the American League...
Player; Current New York Mets
New York Mets
The New York Mets are a professional baseball team based in the borough of Queens in New York City, New York. They belong to Major League Baseball's National League East Division. One of baseball's first expansion teams, the Mets were founded in 1962 to replace New York's departed National League...
coach