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Effingham, Illinois
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Effingham, Illinois
Effingham is a city in Effingham County, Illinois, United States, and its county seat. It is in South Central Illinois. Its population was 12,252 at the 2020 census. It is the principal city of the Effingham micropolitan statistical area.
The city bills itself as "The Crossroads of Opportunity" because of its location at the intersection of two major Interstate highways: I-57 running from Chicago to Sikeston, Missouri, and I-70 running from Utah to Maryland. It is also served by U.S. Route 45, which runs from Ontonagon, Michigan to Mobile, Alabama; U.S. Route 40, the historic National Road, which stretches from Atlantic City, New Jersey to Silver Summit, Utah; and Illinois routes 32 and 33. It is also a major railroad junction, the crossing of the Illinois Central main line from Chicago to Memphis with the Pennsylvania Railroad line from Indianapolis to St. Louis. For this reason, Effingham has a much broader range of restaurants and lodging facilities than typical towns of its size.
Effingham was first settled in 1814, and was known from then until 1859 as Broughton. In 1859, it became the county seat with buildings relocated from nearby (now deserted) Ewington. The community was named after General E. Effingham, a local surveyor.
In the late 1880s, local citizens founded Austin College, which lasted for several decades, and ultimately was purchased to become the Illinois College of Photography, also known as Bissel College. That school closed due to the Great Depression in the 1930s.
On April 4, 1949, St. Anthony's Hospital caught fire and burned to the ground, killing 74 people. As a result, fire codes nationwide were improved. Due to extensive media coverage, including a Life magazine cover story, donations for rebuilding the hospital came from all 48 states and several foreign countries.
Effingham was a sundown town; daytime segregation was enforced until at least the mid-1960s.
29 tornadoes have hit the town, the most powerful tornado up to date happened on June 17, 2026, rated EF-3
The path was 26 miles from north of town to the nearby town of Teutopolis.
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Effingham, Illinois
Effingham is a city in Effingham County, Illinois, United States, and its county seat. It is in South Central Illinois. Its population was 12,252 at the 2020 census. It is the principal city of the Effingham micropolitan statistical area.
The city bills itself as "The Crossroads of Opportunity" because of its location at the intersection of two major Interstate highways: I-57 running from Chicago to Sikeston, Missouri, and I-70 running from Utah to Maryland. It is also served by U.S. Route 45, which runs from Ontonagon, Michigan to Mobile, Alabama; U.S. Route 40, the historic National Road, which stretches from Atlantic City, New Jersey to Silver Summit, Utah; and Illinois routes 32 and 33. It is also a major railroad junction, the crossing of the Illinois Central main line from Chicago to Memphis with the Pennsylvania Railroad line from Indianapolis to St. Louis. For this reason, Effingham has a much broader range of restaurants and lodging facilities than typical towns of its size.
Effingham was first settled in 1814, and was known from then until 1859 as Broughton. In 1859, it became the county seat with buildings relocated from nearby (now deserted) Ewington. The community was named after General E. Effingham, a local surveyor.
In the late 1880s, local citizens founded Austin College, which lasted for several decades, and ultimately was purchased to become the Illinois College of Photography, also known as Bissel College. That school closed due to the Great Depression in the 1930s.
On April 4, 1949, St. Anthony's Hospital caught fire and burned to the ground, killing 74 people. As a result, fire codes nationwide were improved. Due to extensive media coverage, including a Life magazine cover story, donations for rebuilding the hospital came from all 48 states and several foreign countries.
Effingham was a sundown town; daytime segregation was enforced until at least the mid-1960s.
29 tornadoes have hit the town, the most powerful tornado up to date happened on June 17, 2026, rated EF-3
The path was 26 miles from north of town to the nearby town of Teutopolis.
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