Carrier Mills
From the highschool facing north toward downtown.
Country	United States
State	Illinois
County	Saline
Center
- coordinates	37°41′13″N 88°37′45″W / 37.68694, -88.62917Coordinates: 37°41′13″N 88°37′45″W / 37.68694, -88.62917
Founded	1872
Time zone	CST (UTC-6)
- summer (DST)	CDT (UTC-5)
ZIP code	62917
Area code	Area code 618
Location of Carrier Mills within Illinois
Location of Illinois in the United States

Carrier Mills is a village in Saline County, Illinois, United States. The population was 1,886 at the 2000 census. Carrier Mills was named after George Washington Carrier and his saw mill. Image File history File links Ufiles1004. ... Official language(s) English[1] Capital Springfield Largest city Chicago Largest metro area Chicago Metropolitan Area Area  Ranked 25th  - Total 57,918 sq mi (149,998 km²)  - Width 210 miles (340 km)  - Length 390 miles (629 km)  - % water 4. ... Saline County is a county located in the U.S. state of Illinois. ... Map of Earth showing lines of latitude (horizontally) and longitude (vertically), Eckert VI projection; large version (pdf, 1. ...  CST or UTC-6 The Central Time Zone observes standard time by subtracting six hours from UTC during standard time (UTC-6) and five hours during daylight saving time (UTC-5). ... −12 | −11 | −10 | −9:30 | −9 | −8 | −7 | −6 | −5 | −4 | −3:30 | −3 | −2:30 | −2 | −1 | −0:25 | UTC (0) | +0:20 | +0:30 | +1 | +2 | +3 | +3:30 | +4 | +4:30 | +4:51 | +5 | +5:30 | +5:40 | +5:45 | +6 | +6:30 | +7 | +7:20 | +7...  CST or UTC-6 The Central Time Zone observes standard time by subtracting six hours from UTC during standard time (UTC-6) and five hours during daylight saving time (UTC-5). ... -12 | -11 | -10 | -9:30 | -9 | -8 | -7 | -6 | -5 | -4 | -3:30 | -3 | -2:30 | -2 | -1 | -0:25 | UTC (0) | +0:20 | +0:30 | +1 | +2 | +3 | +3:30 | +4 | +4:30 | +4:51 | +5 | +5:30 | +5:40 | +5:45 | +6 | +6:30 | +7 | +7:20 | +7... Area code 618 is the telephone area code serving the state of Illinois. ... Image File history File links No higher resolution available. ... Image File history File links No higher resolution available. ... Image File history File links Map_of_USA_IL.svg‎ File links The following pages on the English Wikipedia link to this file (pages on other projects are not listed): Illinois ... Saline County is a county located in the U.S. state of Illinois. ... Official language(s) English[1] Capital Springfield Largest city Chicago Largest metro area Chicago Metropolitan Area Area  Ranked 25th  - Total 57,918 sq mi (149,998 km²)  - Width 210 miles (340 km)  - Length 390 miles (629 km)  - % water 4. ... This article or section should be merged with Sawmill A saw mill is a machine used in forestry to cut trees into logs. ...

Geography

Carrier Mills is located at 37°41′13″N, 88°37′45″W (37.686923, -88.629149).^GR1

According to the United States Census Bureau, the village has a total area of 3.2 km² (1.2 mi²). 3.2 km² (1.2 mi²) of it is land and 0.81% is water. The United States Census Bureau (officially Bureau of the Census as defined in Title ) is a part of the United States Department of Commerce. ... A square metre (US spelling: square meter) is by definition the area enclosed by a square with sides each 1 metre long. ... A square mile is an English unit of area equal to that of a square with sides each 1 statute mile (≈1,609 m) in length. ...

Most of the southeastern half of Carrier Mills' streets are placed parallel to the old NYC Railroad bed and the old trolley bypass on Carline St. compared to the north and south running streets north of the town. Now that the railroad tracks are gone, this makes a large open corridor of grass running from downtown to the east end of town with Washington St. being the only connecting street between east end and the rest of the village.

History

Home of the Catskin Days and The Wildcats, Carrier Mills is located seven miles southwest of Harrisburg, Illinois, where most of the town's citizens do their business and shopping. It was platted in November 1872 for William Housely as Morrillsville, named after Mr Morrill the railroad superintendent who sealed a real-estate deal with Mill owner G. W. Carrier. It was commonly known and eventually renamed Carrier Mills after inventor G. Washington Carrier ("Uncle Wash") who helped found the town when he built his elaborate saw mill just to the south of town, near the old Tuller Mansion farming and property site. The mills were used for the making of lumber to construct the business and homes in the town. Carrier and Morrill closed a real-estate deal to build a train depot there. The town was platted adjacent and north of the newly completed Cairo-Vincennes railroad. In 1873 the first postmaster was appointed to Carrier's Mill (the name the railroad had assigned to the new stop). The Village was incorporated in 1894, and with the advent of the railroad and coal mines, the tiny village amidst timber and farms grew quickly. Today in legal documents its name remains Morrillsville. Carrier Mills did not own a single brick building and the sidewalks were of boards. The business district was mainly from the First National Bank west to the Texaco Gas Station, and all of frame construction. A disastrous fire hit in February of 1908 and burned everything on the north side of the street. In the next month, March 1908, fire burned everything on the south side of the street, from Main to Mill, except the Old Woolcoat Mill Exchange. The business men began immediately to rebuild, all of brick construction. Harrisburg is a city in Saline County, Illinois, United States. ... Real estate or immovable property is a legal term (in some jurisdictions) that encompasses land along with anything permanently affixed to the land, such as buildings. ... This article or section should be merged with Sawmill A saw mill is a machine used in forestry to cut trees into logs. ... Timber in storage for later processing at a sawmill Lumber or Timber is a term used to describe wood, either standing or that has been processed for use—from the time trees are felled, to its end product as a material suitable for industrial use—as structural material for construction... This is the top-level page of WikiProject trains Rail tracks Rail transport refers to the land transport of passengers and goods along railways or railroads. ... The Foundation for Ancient Research and Mormon Studies (FARMS) is an informal collaboration of academics devoted to Mormon apologetics. ...

Coal mining also had a great influence on Carrier Mills. Some dozen coal mines privately and publicly owned ran around the town. During the towns heyday some 2,500 people bustled around the busy streets. After the coal mines closed around the state the population dwindled down to nearly 1500 according to the 2000 census. The entire county has suffered dearly from the closing of the coal mines, making Carrier Mills a near ghost town.^[1] Surface coal mining in Wyoming. ... This article does not cite any references or sources. ...

Carrier Mills High School, erected 1940.

Image File history File links No higher resolution available. ... Image File history File links No higher resolution available. ...

Local School History

Location of the first school in Carrier Mills was a large two story wooden structure with a bell tower near the old Sahara Coal Company preparation plant (now abandoned), just northwest of the village build in the early 1820s. The little structure was made of logs and had a chimney of clay. School year began in August and ended in October because of the extreme cold. A typical school in 1850 was a subscription school - a fee of $2.50 was charged for a two-month period. From the Civil War period until 1875, the only formal school was located near Salem. Combatants United States of America (Union) Confederate States of America (Confederacy) Commanders Abraham Lincoln, Ulysses S. Grant Jefferson Davis, Robert E. Lee Strength 2,200,000 1,064,000 Casualties 110,000 killed in action, 360,000 total dead, 275,200 wounded 93,000 killed in action, 258,000 total...

In 1887, the first school building in Carrier Mills Village was purchased for the purpose of being a prescription school at the corner of Walnut and Main St. The first major public school in the town was opened in 1903 on Furlong St. The first regcognized two year high school course was started in 1915. In 1917 the high school becaume a registered three-year high school until 1926 when it was changed to a community high school fully accredited by the state of Illinois. Official language(s) English[1] Capital Springfield Largest city Chicago Largest metro area Chicago Metropolitan Area Area  Ranked 25th  - Total 57,918 sq mi (149,998 km²)  - Width 210 miles (340 km)  - Length 390 miles (629 km)  - % water 4. ...

Circa 1940, the Carrier Mills Public School building burned down after a disastrous fire starting during a Boy Scout meeting in the basement. A much larger second school was rebuilt a year later as a grade school around the frame of the first burnt school. Polish Boy Scouts fighting in the Warsaw Uprising Boy Scouts originally denoted the organization that developed and rapidly grew up during 1908 in the wake of the publication by Lord Robert Baden-Powell of his book Scouting for Boys. ...

On Feb. 4, 1938, the present building was built and occupied, with the gymnasium and auditorium added in 1940. The current enlarged gym was built in 1950-1. At the beginning of 1963 the small town of Stonefort joined the Carrier Mills school district and they became the Carrier Mills-Stonefort Unit 2 School District. Stonefort is a village in Saline County, Illinois, United States. ...

An underground tunnel that runs from the grade school to the high school that was built in the 1950s from fear of a nuclear fallout. It is now partially abandoned--thanks to the tearing down of the old grade school in 2001 and the building of the new one. The old grade school was torn down and replaced in 2002 with a newer building.^[2]

Downtown Demolition

The Oak Street business district facade, a prominent landmark in the city is being torn down.

The towns once heavily traveled Main Street (looking south from Babtist Church) has been reduced to just a few buildings. At one time every Empty lot in this photo had a storefront.

Carrier Mills traditional business district with listed buildings.

The traditional downtown business district in Carrier Mills stretched from Route 45 down Main Street to Washington Street, and down Oak and Railroad streets between Main Street and Mill Street, but As of July, 2006 most of the Carrier Mills downtown was deemed condemned and demolished by the city. Citizens of Carrier Mills said it was better to see empty lots than rotten buildings. Most citizens found it sad that it had to come to such a conclusion. Image File history File links News2. ... Image File history File links News2. ... West facade of the Notre-Dame de Strasbourg Cathedral A facade (or façade) (Pronounced fa-sa-de) is generally the exterior of a building — especially the front, but also sometimes the sides and rear. ... Image File history File linksMetadata Download high-resolution version (2560x1712, 2566 KB) Self-made photo of Main St, Carrier Mills. ... Image File history File linksMetadata Download high-resolution version (2560x1712, 2566 KB) Self-made photo of Main St, Carrier Mills. ... Image File history File links Size of this preview: 423 × 599 pixelsFull resolution (1029 × 1457 pixel, file size: 129 KB, MIME type: image/jpeg) Self-drawn downtown map circa 1930 I, the copyright holder of this work, hereby release it into the public domain. ... Image File history File links Size of this preview: 423 × 599 pixelsFull resolution (1029 × 1457 pixel, file size: 129 KB, MIME type: image/jpeg) Self-drawn downtown map circa 1930 I, the copyright holder of this work, hereby release it into the public domain. ... Look up city, City in Wiktionary, the free dictionary. ...

The business district has been in a slow decline at least 25 years. No single big event can be tied to the decline of downtown Carrier Mills. Will Scarlet Mine closed in 1987. Sahara's mines closed in 1993, putting hundreds out of work. Each of those closures reverberated through the local economy. Sahara had a reputation for buying locally -- when their purchasing ceased it was a big blow to local businesses. But the Carrier Mills downtown area was on a slow downhill slide before the big mine closures.

In its heyday, Carrier Mills was home to several hotels, two theaters, The Knox, and the Grand Theater, Opened in 1936, and closed in 1970, two banks, the Dodds Bank and the First National, several stores and markets. Nearly all have been slowly torn or burned down over the past 20 years. This last sweep has been the icing on the cake and quickly finished the job that the private owners would have done eventually.

There were small stores on Friend, Main, East End and Washington streets -- in some instances a small store could be found every few blocks. The small grocery stores gradually shut down as people became more apt to own cars and were therefore more mobile -- something that contributed generally to the decline of small towns like Carrier Mills.^[3]

A new building ordinance was set in July of 2006 for future plans of construction in the vacant downtown area. According to Mayor Louis Shaw, "What we're concerned about is when you walk into town, it doesn't look like a farm." Something that seems to have already started to take place with the demolition of these buildings.^[4] For other uses, see Louis Agassiz Shaw (disambiguation). ...

Carrier Mills Village Board approved entering an agreement with Bob Vancil and Associates to set up a tax increment finance district in an effort to draw new homeowners and businesses in April of 2007. The TIF district is a chance for the village to increase the quality of life with new houses and incentives for improving houses that are in disrepair. Village Board members characterized establishing the TIF district as a roll of the dice. Vancil will set up the TIF for $15,000 with $5,000 paid up front. If the Scarlet Lake annexation does not happen and the board learns the TIF will not be of benefit to the village, they will not owe the additional $10,000. Vancil said the village will be responsible for paying $3,000 in legal requirements for the TIF, which include giving notice to all businesses and legal advertising in newspapers.

The Scarlet Lake subdivision is a series of 52 lots within the old Will Scarlet strip pit mining area. It will be added to the Village limits as part of the TIF/Annexation project.

Lakeview: A link to African American culture

See also: Lakeview, Illinois

Carrier Mills also has a great African American history and influence. Free blacks founded the small early pioneer settlement of Lakeview a mile south of Carrier Mills shortly after the War of 1812. The History of Saline County (1997) states that "LakeView, a colored community south of town (Carrier Mills), is an older settlement than Carrier Mills. It is the oldest black settlement in Illinois. It was first named Pond Settlement because of the swamp land that surrounded it. According to local tradition free blacks living in the Pond Settlement helped runaway slaves and indentured servants escape from the saline works and the Old Slave House near Equality, Illinois.^[5] Lakeview is an unincorporated African American community in Saline County, Illinois, United States. ... An African American (also Afro-American, Black American, or simply black) is a member of an ethnic group in the United States whose ancestors, usually in predominant part, were indigenous to Africa. ... This article does not cite any references or sources. ... The Crenshaw House, better known as the Old Slave House The Crenshaw House, or more commonly The Old Slave House or Hickory Hill, is a historic former residence and alleged haunted house located in Gallatin County, Illinois. ...

Lakeview had its own school and grocery store along with many homes. In 1850, a Union Church was established near Carrier Mills in Saline Co., Ill. Most members were either Baptist or Methodist. An African Methodist Episcopal Church was organized at the home of Irvin Allen, who built a one-room log church building on his property. After the church burned they rebuilt and moved the church to Carrier Mills where it sits today. This congregation is now Baber Chapel AME Church. The Lakeview cemetery has become a state historical landmark. The area of Lakeview is still a nearly 100% black area. After the closing of the Lakeview school in the 1950s, many people moved to the east side of Carrier Mills. There was much felt tension between the whites and blacks in the town.^[6]

Carrier Mills Archaeological Project of 1978

The area, some 143 acres located approximately two miles south of Carrier Mills was inhabited by prehistoric people through out three different archaeological periods. Until the turn of the century, the South Fork of the Saline River was a meandering stream with large areas of swamps and shallow cypress lakes nearby. These areas were rich in plants and animals that prehistoric inhabitants sought for food. Therefore, the locality became a natural focal point for human settlement. In 1978 and 1979, archeologists intensively investigated this area. Excellent preservation conditions permitted the recovery of many tools and animal and plant remains that have provided significant new insights into the prehistory of southern Illinois. The Saline River is a small river located in southeastern Illinois. ... Little Egypt can mean: Little Egypt, a belly dancer. ...

Sporadic use of the area by small groups of hunters and gatherers can be dated to 8000 BC, and the area was used more or less continuously until AD 1400. Settlement activity increased dramatically during the late Middle Archaic Period, 4500 to 3000 BC, when the area was inhibited by larger groups with a more sedentary lifestyle. These occupation produced thick deposits containing many artifacts and burials. The area also saw heavy use during the Middle and Late Woodland periods, 200 BC to AD 900. The peoples of those times increasingly emphasized the collection and storage of plant foods and began to domesticate some native plants. The final prehistoric inhabitants were Mississippian Period Indians (AD 900 to 1400), who lived and scattered farmsteads and cultivated corn and squash.^[7] The name Archaic Period is given by archaeologists to the earliest periods of a culture. ...

Demographics

As of the census^GR2 of 2000, there were 1,886 people, 798 households, and 501 families residing in the village. The population density was 587.2/km² (1,522.9/mi²). There were 942 housing units at an average density of 293.3/km² (760.6/mi²). The racial makeup of the village was 84.84% White, 12.94% African American, 0.32% Native American, 0.16% Asian, 0.48% from other races, and 1.27% from two or more races. Hispanic or Latino of any race were 0.90% of the population. Image:1870 census Lindauer Weber 01. ... The United States Census Bureau uses the federal governments definitions of race when performing a census. ... The United States Census Bureau uses the federal governments definitions of race when performing a census. ... The United States Census Bureau uses the federal governments definitions of race when performing a census. ... The United States Census Bureau uses the federal governments definitions of race when performing a census. ... It has been suggested that Ethnicity (United States Census) be merged into this article or section. ... The United States Census Bureau uses the federal governments definitions of race when performing a census. ... The United States Census Bureau uses the federal governments definitions of race when performing a census. ...

There were 798 households out of which 25.4% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 47.6% were married couples living together, 11.2% had a female householder with no husband present, and 37.2% were non-families. 34.0% of all households were made up of individuals and 18.9% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.24 and the average family size was 2.84. Marriage is an interpersonal relationship with governmental, social, or religious recognition, usually intimate and sexual, and often created as a contract, or through civil process. ...

In the village the population was spread out with 21.2% under the age of 18, 8.9% from 18 to 24, 23.2% from 25 to 44, 22.6% from 45 to 64, and 24.0% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 42 years. For every 100 females there were 84.5 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 81.2 males.

The median income for a household in the village was $25,493, and the median income for a family was $35,037. Males had a median income of $31,458 versus $16,756 for females. The per capita income for the village was $14,314. About 13.2% of families and 17.7% of the population were below the poverty line, including 23.4% of those under age 18 and 16.7% of those age 65 or over. The per capita income for a group of people may be defined as their total personal income, divided by the total population. ... Map of countries showing percentage of population who have an income below the national poverty line The poverty line is the level of income below which one cannot afford to purchase all the resources one requires to live. ...

References

External links

Carrier Mills School System official Website

• Maps and aerial photos for 37°41′13″N 88°37′45″W / 37.686923, -88.629149Coordinates: 37°41′13″N 88°37′45″W / 37.686923, -88.629149
  • Maps from WikiMapia, Google Maps, Live Search Maps, Yahoo! Maps, or MapQuest
  • Topographic maps from TopoZone or TerraServer-USA

v • d • e Municipalities and communities of Saline County, Illinois
County seat: Harrisburg
Cities	Eldorado | Harrisburg Map of Earth showing lines of latitude (horizontally) and longitude (vertically), Eckert VI projection; large version (pdf, 1. ... Saline County is a county located in the U.S. state of Illinois. ... Official language(s) English[1] Capital Springfield Largest city Chicago Largest metro area Chicago Metropolitan Area Area  Ranked 25th  - Total 57,918 sq mi (149,998 km²)  - Width 210 miles (340 km)  - Length 390 miles (629 km)  - % water 4. ... A county seat is a term for an administrative center for a county, primarily used in the United States. ... Harrisburg is a city in Saline County, Illinois, United States. ... Look up city, City in Wiktionary, the free dictionary. ... According to the 1945 Film Daily Yearbook, the 500-seat Grand was one of three movie houses in operation at that time, which also included the Orpheum and the Knox. ... Harrisburg is a city in Saline County, Illinois, United States. ...
Villages	Carrier Mills | Galatia | Muddy | Raleigh | Stonefort Image File history File links Map_of_Illinois_highlighting_Saline_County. ... // The word village has many meanings relating to local government in the United States. ... Galatia is a village located in Saline County, Illinois. ... Muddy is a village located in Saline County, Illinois. ... Raleigh is a village located in Saline County, Illinois. ... Stonefort is a village located in Saline County, Illinois. ...
Townships	Brushy | Carrier Mills | Cottage | East Eldorado | Galatia | Harrisburg | Independence | Long Branch | Mountain | Raleigh | Rector | Stone Fort | Tate A civil township is a widely-used unit of local government in the United States, subordinate to a county. ... , Brushy Township is located in Saline County, Illinois. ... , Carrier Mills Township is located in Saline County, Illinois. ... , Cottage Township is located in Saline County, Illinois. ... , East Eldorado Township is located in Saline County, Illinois. ... , Galatia Township is located in Saline County, Illinois. ... , Harrisburg Township is located in Saline County, Illinois. ... , Long Branch Township is located in Saline County, Illinois. ... , Mountain Township is located in Saline County, Illinois. ... , Raleigh Township is located in Saline County, Illinois. ... , Rector Township is located in Saline County, Illinois. ... , Stone Fort Township is located in Saline County, Illinois. ... , Tate Township is located in Saline County, Illinois. ...
Unincorporated communities	Andersonville | Apple Tree | Banklick | Bankston | Barnum | Battlesford | Beulah Heights | Big Muddy | Blackman Hill | Bolton | Brooklyn | Brushy | Cave Hill | College Park | Cookseyville | Cornersville | Cottage Grove | Curran | Dallasanie | Delta | Derby | Dooley Station | Dorrisville | Douglas | Eagle Mountain | Eagle Valley | Eagle | East Eldorado | Flint Hill | Francis Mills | Garris Ridge | Gaskins City | Grayson | Haley's Hill | Halltown | Hamburg | Harco | Hartford | Hawkeye | Highland Park | Horseshoe | Hull | Independence | Ingram Hill | L'Aigle | Lakeview | Ledford | Little Italy | Little Ridge | Little Saline Grove | Long Branch | Mountain | Mt. Airy | New Castle | New Hope | North Galatia | Old Stonefort | Old Town | Pankeyville | Pick | Prospect Hill | Rathbone Station | Rector | Red Bank | Red Bud | Rileyville | Rudement | Saline City | Somerset | South America | Tanner | Tate | Texas City | Texas Station | Texas | Tison | Wasson | West End | West Harrisburg | Whiteside | Whitesville In United States law, a region of land is unincorporated if it is not a part of any municipality. ... Curran is a township in Sangamon County, Illinois located on Route 36 between Springfield and New Berlin. ... Lakeview is an unincorporated African American community in Saline County, Illinois, United States. ... Ledford is an unincorporated community in Saline County, Illinois, United States. ...