Taylorville, Illinois

The population was 10,506 at the 2020 census, making it the county's largest city.

Taylorville, Illinois
City
Motto(s):  A Great Place To Live, Work, and Visit
Location within Christian County and Illinois
Taylorville Show map of Illinois Taylorville Show map of the United States
Coordinates: 39°33′05″N 89°18′28″W / 39.55139°N 89.30778°W / 39.55139; -89.30778
Country	United States
State	Illinois
County	Christian
Government
• Mayor	Bruce Barry
Area
• Total	12.22 sq mi (31.66 km2)
• Land	10.31 sq mi (26.72 km2)
• Water	1.91 sq mi (4.95 km2)
Elevation	617 ft (188 m)
Population  (2020)
• Total	10,506
• Density	1,018.52/sq mi (393.26/km2)
Time zone	UTC-6 (CST)
• Summer (DST)	UTC-5 (CDT)
ZIP code	62568
Area codes	217, 447
FIPS code	17-74574
GNIS ID	2396035
Website	taylorville.net

Taylorville was founded on May 24, 1839, and was named after John Taylor, a planning commissioner for the state of Illinois.

Taylorville was known (in the early to mid-1990s) to have had a high rate of neuroblastoma, a cancer affecting the adrenal gland and striking children. The local power company Central Illinois Public Service Company was sued and lost for contaminating the groundwater in 1994.

Some outer homes and a business in Taylorville were damaged by an F1 tornado on April 2, 2006.

On August 11, 2012, a Beechcraft Model 18 airplane crashed into a residential area of Taylorville, killing the pilot but injuring none on the ground. A subsequent NTSB investigation into the accident concluded that an improper flap configuration and failure to maintain the correct airspeed due to pilot error, resulted in the crash.

At about 5:15 PM on December 1, 2018, as part of the December 2018 tornado outbreak, an intense tornado hit Taylorville. The tornado injured at least 26 residents and damaged more than 600 homes and businesses, 34 of which were completely destroyed. Damage surveys by the National Weather Service rated the tornado EF3 with winds over 155 mph (249 km/h).

According to the 2021 census gazetteer files, Taylorville has a total area of 12.23 square miles (31.68 km²), of which 10.32 square miles (26.73 km²) (or 84.38%) is land and 1.91 square miles (4.95 km²) (or 15.62%) is water.

As of the 2020 census there were 10,506 people, 5,064 households, and 2,507 families residing in the city. The population density was 859.39 inhabitants per square mile (331.81/km²). There were 5,336 housing units at an average density of 436.48 per square mile (168.53/km²). The racial makeup of the city was 93.81% White, 0.90% African American, 0.24% Native American, 0.94% Asian, 0.02% Pacific Islander, 0.52% from other races, and 3.56% from two or more races. Hispanic or Latino of any race were 1.65% of the population.

There were 5,064 households, out of which 25.5% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 36.45% were married couples living together, 9.72% had a female householder with no husband present, and 50.49% were non-families. 44.10% of all households were made up of individuals, and 20.22% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.96 and the average family size was 2.07.

The city's age distribution consisted of 20.7% under the age of 18, 6.4% from 18 to 24, 26.2% from 25 to 44, 27% from 45 to 64, and 19.7% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 42.4 years. For every 100 females, there were 84.8 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 79.5 males.

The median income for a household in the city was $41,397, and the median income for a family was $63,885. Males had a median income of $42,474 versus $28,466 for females. The per capita income for the city was $26,513. About 9.7% of families and 13.1% of the population were below the poverty line, including 13.5% of those under age 18 and 12.7% of those age 65 or over.

 

The IHSA single season boys' basketball record of 45–0 was set by Taylorville High School in 1944. Ron Bontemps and Johnny Orr were team members.

In 1911, the Taylorville Christians were a member of the Illinois–Missouri League, an American minor league baseball league. Future Baseball Hall of Famer Ray Schalk played on that team.

The town newspaper is the Breeze-Courier, which is the only daily newspaper serving Christian County. The State Journal-Register, published in Springfield, Illinois, covers Taylorville and Christian County quite extensively. The Decatur, Illinois Herald & Review covers the area as well.

Taylorville is served by Illinois Route 29, Illinois Route 48 and Illinois Route 104. By closest major city, Illinois Route 29 connects Taylorville to Springfield, Illinois; Illinois Route 48 connects to Decatur, Illinois – including, from there, highway access to Pana, Illinois via US Highway 51 and to Champaign, Illinois via Interstate 72; and Illinois Route 104 connects Taylorville to Jacksonville, Illinois.