Collinsville, Illinois facts for kids

Quick facts for kids Collinsville, Illinois
City
Collinsville in 2017
Motto(s):  "Horseradish Capital of the World"
Location in Madison County, Illinois
Collinsville, Illinois Location in the United States
Country	United States
State	Illinois
Counties	Madison, St. Clair
Townships	Collinsville, Nameoki, Caseyville, Canteen
Government
• Type	Council–manager government
Area
• Total	15.26 sq mi (39.53 km2)
• Land	15.08 sq mi (39.05 km2)
• Water	0.19 sq mi (0.48 km2)
Elevation	525 ft (160 m)
Population  (2020)
• Total	24,366
• Density	1,616.10/sq mi (624.00/km2)
Time zone	UTC−6 (CST)
• Summer (DST)	UTC−5 (CDT)
ZIP code	62234
Area code(s)	618
FIPS code	17-15599
GNIS feature ID	2393598

Collinsville is a city in Illinois, United States. Most of it is in Madison County, with a small part in St. Clair County, Illinois. In 2020, about 24,366 people lived there. Collinsville is located about 14 miles east of St. Louis, Missouri. It is part of the Metro East area, which is near St. Louis.

Collinsville is home to the Cahokia Mounds State Historic Site. This is a very old city built by Native Americans long ago. It is a National Historic Landmark and a UNESCO World Heritage Site. The city is also famous for the Brooks Catsup Bottle Water Tower, which is the world's largest ketchup bottle. Collinsville also calls itself the "Horseradish Capital of the World."

History of Collinsville

A view of Collinsville in 1938

Collinsville is where Cahokia was located. Cahokia was the largest city north of Mexico before Christopher Columbus arrived. It was built by the Mississippian culture. Around the year 1200 CE, Cahokia had a huge population of 20,000 to 30,000 people. This was more than any city in the United States until after the 1800s!

Cahokia has Monks Mound, which is the biggest ancient earthwork in North and South America. It is even larger at its base than the Great Pyramid of Giza in Egypt. There are also more than 70 smaller mounds still standing.

Later, during the time when France controlled this area, some French Catholic monks lived on Monks Mound. They grew crops there. They also traded with the Illini people. The Illini had moved into the area after the Mississippian culture declined.

Collinsville was settled by the Cook family and German-American families in 1812. These settlers came from Pennsylvania. They started the Holy Cross Lutheran Church and a hardware store. Most of them were farmers. Over the next few years, more settlers arrived. They worked to officially form the town. Many of these early settlers are buried in local cemeteries.

Several old buildings in Collinsville are still standing today.

• The City Hall was built in 1885 and is still used. It has a special Italianate architecture style.
• The old State Bank of Collinsville was designed in 1916. It has a beautiful limestone outside and marble walls inside.
• The Collinsville Public Library is a brick building in a colonial style. The first part was finished in 1937, and more sections were added later.

Geography of Collinsville

Collinsville is mostly in southern Madison County. It is about 14 miles east of downtown St. Louis. A couple of parts of the city reach south into St. Clair County. Nearby towns include Maryville to the north and Caseyville to the south.

The city covers about 15.26 square miles. Most of this area is land, and a small part is water. Water from the city flows into the Mississippi River valley.

Population and People

In 2010, Collinsville had 25,579 people living there. Most of the people were White (87.4%), and 11.2% were African American.

About 23.2% of the people were under 18 years old. The average age in the city was 37 years.

Getting Around Collinsville

Roads

Major highways run through Collinsville.

• Interstate 55 and Interstate 70 go through the north side of the city.
• Interstate 255 passes through the west side.
• Illinois Route 159 goes through the center of Collinsville.
• The famous U.S. Route 66 in Illinois also used to pass through Collinsville.

Fun Things to Do and See

Horseradish Capital

Collinsville calls itself the "Horseradish Capital of the World." This area grows about 85% of the world's horseradish. It's so good that countries like Germany and China buy it for special dishes.

Every year, Collinsville hosts an annual Horseradish Festival in early June. It's held on Main Street. The festival has lots of fun activities for everyone, like:

• A 5K run
• Live music
• A beauty pageant
• Demonstrations of how horseradish roots are ground

Italian Fest

Collinsville has many people whose families came from Italy. Because of this, the city has an annual Italian Fest in the fall. This festival started in 1983 and is also held on Main Street.

The Italian Fest lasts for two days and features:

• Live music
• Vendors selling delicious Italian food like spedini, spumoni, and cannoli.
• A parade
• A midnight bike ride
• A 5K Run/Walk
• A Bocce Ball Tournament
• A grape stomp

Catsup Bottle Water Tower

The Brooks Catsup Bottle Water Tower, a water tower in Collinsville

Collinsville is home to the Brooks Catsup Bottle Water Tower. This is a 170-foot-tall water tower shaped like a ketchup bottle! It is listed on the National Register of Historic Places. To celebrate this unique landmark, Collinsville has an annual World's Largest Catsup Bottle Festival in July.

Fairmount Park Racetrack

The Fairmount Park Racetrack is in Collinsville. This is a place where horse races happen. It is one of only five racetracks in Illinois. The track has a one-mile oval dirt track and opened in 1925. Visitors can watch live races and eat at one of the three restaurants there.

Cahokia Mounds State Historic Site

The Cahokia Mounds State Historic Site is located right in Collinsville. This large park is a National Historic Landmark and a UNESCO World Heritage Sites. It was one of the first eight places in the United States to get this special title.

At the site, there is a museum and a visitors' center. You can watch a movie and see displays that show what life was like for the ancient people who lived there.

Famous People from Collinsville

Many notable people have connections to Collinsville:

• Michelle Bartsch-Hackley: An Olympic volleyball player for Team USA.
• Irving Dilliard: A journalist and writer who lived in Collinsville his whole life.
• Art Fletcher: A shortstop for the New York Giants baseball team.
• Tanner Houck: A pitcher drafted by the Boston Red Sox baseball team.
• Tom Jager: An Olympic gold medalist in swimming.
• Terry Moore (baseball)|Terry Moore: A center fielder for the St. Louis Cardinals baseball team.
• George Musso: A Football Hall of Fame player for the Chicago Bears.
• Ken Oberkfell: A former infielder for the St. Louis Cardinals, who won the World Series in 1982.
• Michael Stipe: The lead singer of the band R.E.M..

See also

In Spanish: Collinsville (Illinois) para niños