Norris City, Illinois

Norris City
Village
Location of Norris City in White County, Illinois.
Coordinates: 37°58′44″N 88°19′40″W / 37.97889°N 88.32778°W / 37.97889; -88.32778[1]
Country	United States
State	Illinois
County	White
Area [2]
• Total	1.17 sq mi (3.04 km2)
• Land	1.17 sq mi (3.04 km2)
• Water	0.00 sq mi (0.00 km2)
Elevation [1]	427 ft (130 m)
Population  (2020)
• Total	1,145
• Density	976.96/sq mi (377.19/km2)
Time zone	UTC-6 (CST)
• Summer (DST)	UTC-5 (CDT)
ZIP Code(s)	62869
Area code	618
FIPS code	17-53403
GNIS ID	2399506[1]

Norris City is a village in White County, Illinois, United States. The population was 1,145 according to 2020 census data.

Norris City was incorporated in 1901.^[3] The original plat of Norris City was filed in the White County Courthouse in Carmi, Illinois on August 17, 1871. The post office at Norris City was established May 15, 1871, with William A. Johnson appointed as the first Postmaster.

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The name for Norris City had to have been decided prior to the time it was platted and prior to the opening of the Post office. The question of how Norris City got its name has caused many debates throughout the years.

The new community, for a short time in early 1871, was called "Popeye" or "Popeye's Station", after William A. Johnson, the first depot agent at the site, who had been given the nickname of "Popeye" by train crews or local schoolchildren because his eyes protruded. In some accounts trainmen said they were stopping at “Popeye” or "Popeye's Station." (This was long before the days of the Popeye cartoon character, which was created by a native of Chester, Illinois.)

Stories about how Norris City got its name are varied. According to one story, when the people of the new village met to choose a name for their community they decided that the name would come from the person or family having the most land in the area. After the acreages were added up, the Norris family beat out the Johnson family by just a few acres. As the story goes William Norris, the head of the Norris family, went home from the meeting and told his wife, Emaline (White) Norris, who replied she didn't think it was such a big deal to have such a small place named after him.

Another version is that the Springfield and Illinois Southern Railway had been doing business with Norris and decided to name the town after him.

In another account Thomas Ridgway, the President of the Springfield and Illinois Southern Railway, for whom Ridgway, Illinois was named, was on a train going through the settlement. When he asked what the town had been named, John William Norris of Fairfield, Illinois, either the foreman of the construction crew or the train's conductor or engineer, allegedly said the trainmen call it "Popeye" or "Popeye's Station." Mr. Ridgway, so the story goes, said that was no name for a town, to which the trainman supposedly replied, “Why don’t you name it after me?”

Another version of this story is that the engineer of the work train constructing the railroad tracks to the site of Norris City boarded at the home of William Norris and his wife Emaline (White) Norris. In this account he suggested the name for the town because he was fond of Emaline Norris' cooking.

The book, “Illinois, a Descriptive and Historical Guide,” compiled in 1939 by Federal Works Agency, Works Project Administration, states that Norris City, altitude 444, population 1109, a trading center for an agricultural and coal mining district was named in honor of a pioneer settler, William Norris. A reference report of the Illinois State Historical Library states, “No information is available in our records as to the origins of the name, Norris City.”^{[citation needed]}

During World War II, the United States Government built the Big Inch pipeline to move oil from Longview, Texas to the Northeastern part of the country.^[4] The Big Inch pipeline helped relieve pressure on oil tankers in the Atlantic, which were being sunk by German U-boats.^[5]

In 1943, the pipeline had a temporary terminus in Norris City, where the oil was stored before being transferred to railcars; Norris City was selected for this role due to its access to the railroad.^[6] After the end of the war, the government sold the pipeline to private companies, which now use it for natural gas transportation.^[7] An historical marker in Norris City commemorates the Big Inch's role in World War II.^{[citation needed]}

According to the 2010 census, Norris City has a total area of 1.182 square miles (3.06 km²), of which 1.18 square miles (3.06 km²) (or 99.83%) is land and 0.002 square miles (0.01 km²) (or 0.17%) is water.^[8]

As of the census^[10] data from 2020 [1], there were 1,145 people, 606 households, and 296 families residing in the village. The population density was 923.2 inhabitants per square mile (356.4/km²). There were 644 housing units at an average density of 485.6 per square mile (187.5/km²). The racial makeup of the village was 94.2% White, 0.4% Pacific Islander, 0.0008% African American, and 4.9%% from two or more races. Hispanic or Latino of any race were 1.2% of the population.

There were 606 households, out of which 23.6% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 44.2% were married couples living together, 18% had a female householder with no husband present, and 13% were non-families. 34.0% of all households were made up of individuals, and 22.2% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.6 and the average family size was 2.81.

In the village, the population was spread out, with about 23.9% under the age of 18, 55% age 18–64, and 21.1% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 36.2 years. For every 100 females, there were 88.68 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 80.9 males.

The median income for a household in the village was $37,778, and the median income for a family was $55,250. Males had a median income of $25,972 versus $14,868 for females. The per capita income for the village was $13,671. About 9.4% of families and 23.45% of the population were below the poverty line, including 23.9% of those under age 18 and 9.7% of those age 65 or over.

A popular festival known as Dairy Days takes place during the weekend of the fourth Saturday in September each year. Dairy Days has been held annually since 1947. The festival was organized by the Lions Club until 2009, when the Dairy Days Association was formed to coordinate the annual festival.^[11][12]

• Ora Collard, Illinois state representative and businessman; born in Norris City^[13]
• Max Morris, pro football and basketball player; born in Norris City
• Floyd Newkirk, pitcher for the New York Yankees; born in Norris City