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Canton, Illinois

17 topographic sheets cover this place, the earliest surveyed in 1912 and the latest in 1995. It stands in Canton Township. It lies in ZIP code area 61520. The Survey maps it on the Canton quadrangle. 13,242 people lived here at the 2020 count. It stands 650 feet above sea level.

Research this city

Canton within Fulton County

On record in Canton

Buildings and businesses the archive holds for this place. Each opens its own page, with the source record it came from.

On the National Register 3 records

Population over time

4 figures

Canton grew from 762 to 13,242 between 1840 and 2020. These are the recorded population figures Wikidata holds for this place, reached through the Geographic Names Information System number this page is keyed on rather than by name, so they belong to this place and not to another of the same name. Most are census counts, but not all are: an early figure may be a founding or settlement estimate, and an estimate published within five years of a census is left out. The change column is computed, and is left blank where more than 20 years separate a figure from the one before it, because a gap that long is not a change between two counts.

YearPeople Change
1840762
200015,288
201014,704-584 (-4%)
202013,242-1,462 (-10%)

Topographic sheets covering this place

9 surveys from 17 printed sheets

Matched by testing this settlement's coordinate against the published boundary of every sheet in the United States Geological Survey's historical collection. Each opens the scanned sheet at the Survey.

What happened here

An account from the chapter on Canton township. The inset identifies its exact source book and publication year.

From Canton; Its Pioneers and History : a Continuation to the History of Fulton County, published 1871 - Canton Township

The Westerfield Defeat

IN the spring of 1832 the Black-Hawk War was a source of great alarm to the citizens of Canton. Major Isaiah Stillman, of Canton, in command of a battalion of volunteer infantry, was in the field, and had under him most of the young men of the community. On the 13th of May, 1832, the force under his command met with a defeat above Dixon, in Lee county, on what has since been known as " Stillman's Run," and the news soon reached Canton, coupled with the fact that Bird Ellis, Tyus Childs and John Walter, from the vicinity of Canton, had been killed, and a number of others from here wounded.

Read the rest of this passage

In the county-history sources

88,563 words on this township

Canton; Its Pioneers and History : a Continuation to the History of Fulton County, published 1871 names this settlement in its chapter on Canton Township. These are the passages that mention it, exactly as the scans read.

Sergeant returned to Canton from this unsuccessful wooing, and reported the result to the few young men in this part of the county. They at once determined to get even with the family whose notions were so aristocratic. There was an occasional peddler, named Clark, who came through the county on horseback, carrying needles, thread and other small wares in a sack, dividing his stock into equal portions and balancing it over his saddle. This Clark was the first peddler who visited the county. Clark was not a man of much force of character, and it was determined to send him after the Wentworth girls. He readily acceded to the proposition, and soon visited Mrs. W. In reply to her interrogatories, Clark informed the old lady that he resided in Peoria, and sold goods for a livelihood. This filled the old lady's bill, nnd she at once gave her daughter to Clark in marriage; and Sergeant thinks theirs was the first wedding celebrated in the county. It took place a few weeks prior to Sergeant's wedding.

Passage source: Canton; Its Pioneers and History : a Continuation to the History of Fulton County, published 1871.

George S. McConnell, however, relates an incident connected with the first court held in the county, in the spring or early summer of the same year, which establishes the fact that Clark's could not have been the first wedding, as at that court a couple were divorced, the woman being a sister of the Tottens, and the same night the divorced woman was married to one of the jurors, by the name of Williams, who had tried her cause.

Passage source: Canton; Its Pioneers and History : a Continuation to the History of Fulton County, published 1871.

In 1824, Yelverton Peyton erected a house within the present city limits, on the Coleman tract, near where Hayden Keeling now occupies as a brickyard. Peyton was a large man and a giant in strength. It is said that he cut the logs for his cabin and "backed" them up on his shoulders, carrying logs no two ordinary men could have lifted. Peyton lived here a few years and was taken down with consumption. He went south, finally, for his health, and died. His widow, who is a sister of John McCann, is still living near Utica.

Passage source: Canton; Its Pioneers and History : a Continuation to the History of Fulton County, published 1871.

Machine-read from a century-old scan, so expect the errors a machine makes: misspelled names, dropped words, stray characters.

Read the whole chapter on Canton Township - it names this place 141 more 141 times.

Mines and quarries near this place

3 within 5 miles

Regional context, not property-specific evidence. The federal mineral resources record lists 3 workings within 5 miles of Canton: 3 past producers. None of them still produces. What was taken out: Stone. Distance is straight-line from the map coordinates, so a quarry counted here may appear on a neighbouring settlement's page as well.

Where SiteCommodity StatusRecorded
Canton City PitStonePast Producer
Fulton City PitStonePast Producer
Joshua Township PitStonePast Producer

Every working recorded in Fulton County

Storms near this place

60 of 77 shown

Regional context, not property-specific evidence. The National Weather Service names Canton in 77 storm reports between 1993 and 2025: 42 thunderstorm wind, 33 hail, 2 flash flood. No death or injury is recorded in these reports. Each account below is quoted exactly as the forecast office filed it, from the NOAA Storm Events Database, and each date opens the federal record of that event.

WhenEvent Place namedHarm What the report says
April 2017HailCanton$2,000,000Dozens of vehicles and numerous homes sustained significant damage from the hailstorm that impacted the city of Canton and surrounding areas.
July 2008Thunderstorm WindCanton$175,000Widespread wind damage was reported in the town of Canton. Extensive tree damage was noted in the Sycamore Terrace neighborhood, where several 2 to 10 foot diameter trees were broken and/or uprooted. Numerous trees and powerlines were blown down throughout Canton as well. The wind also caused the transmission tower at WBYS radio to fall to the ground.
March 2017Thunderstorm WindCanton$75,000Ten power poles were snapped at the base near the Correctional Center.
June 2009Thunderstorm WindCanton$75,000Several trees and tree branches were blown down on the north side of Canton. A building at Flynn's Auto Parts was heavily damaged.
June 2021Thunderstorm WindCanton$60,000Roof and siding damage occurred due to strong thunderstorm winds.
June 2021Thunderstorm WindCanton$60,000Numerous trees were blown down on the north side of Canton.
March 2009Thunderstorm WindCanton$50,000The roof of the American Red Cross building sustained major wind damage. In addition, numerous trees were blown down across the city of Canton.
August 2009Thunderstorm WindCanton$20,000Several power lines were blown down in Canton. A large tree limb broke off and fell onto a house, causing minor damage.
June 2008Thunderstorm WindCanton$20,000A large tree was blown down onto a van. Numerous power lines were blown down.
August 2020Thunderstorm WindCanton$15,000The roof of a porch was blown off on the west side of Canton.
August 2010Thunderstorm WindCanton$12,000A large tree was blown down on North Main Street in Canton. Numerous tree branches were knocked down around town.
December 2008Thunderstorm WindCanton$12,000Shingles were blown off a roof and several tree limbs fell into power lines.
December 2008Thunderstorm WindCanton$2,000The back window was blown out of a spotter's truck.
August 2007Thunderstorm WindCanton$1,000Numerous tree limbs and one power line were blown down.
August 1993Thunderstorm WindCanton$500A tree 24 inches in diameter was blown down.
March 2025Thunderstorm WindCanton-A metal carport was blown down.
March 2025Thunderstorm WindCanton-Powerlines were blown down and pieces of metal roofing material were blown off from multiple buildings. A decaying tree was also split.
July 2024Thunderstorm WindCanton-Four to six inch tree limbs were blown down and power outages occurred.
May 2023Thunderstorm WindCanton-Two powerlines were blown down and one power pole was leaning.
June 2023Thunderstorm WindCanton-The wind gust was estimated by a trained spotter.
June 2023Thunderstorm WindCanton-A one-foot diameter tree branch was blown down, causing damage to patio furniture.
August 2021Thunderstorm WindCanton-Several two to six-inch diameter tree branches were blown down.
August 2020Thunderstorm WindCanton-A tree was snapped at its base in Canton.
August 2020Thunderstorm WindCanton-Numerous 6-inch diameter tree branches were blown down throughout Canton.
May 2019Thunderstorm WindCanton-A drive-up ATM building was blown over.
August 2019Thunderstorm WindCanton-Several large tree limbs were blown down near 11th and Ash Streets in Canton.
May 2019Thunderstorm WindCanton-A large tree branch was snapped.
November 2015Thunderstorm WindCanton-A large tree limb was blown down.
June 2014HailCanton-The hail was accompanied by wind gusts of up to 40 mph.
May 2013Thunderstorm WindCanton-A 12-inch diameter tree was blown down in Canton.
June 2012Thunderstorm WindCanton-A large tree limb was blown down onto power lines, causing a power outage.
May 2011Thunderstorm WindCanton-Large tree branches were blown down on the north edge of Canton.
September 2008Flash FloodCanton-High water was flowing across Route 78 two miles south of Canton.
July 2008Thunderstorm WindCanton-Several large tree limbs were blown down.
April 2006Thunderstorm WindCanton-Two barns blown down on the north side of Canton. Numerous trees blown down.
June 2005Thunderstorm WindCanton-Numerous large tree limbs blown down.
June 2005Thunderstorm WindCanton-Several trees and power lines blown down.
September 2005HailCanton-Large hail to golf ball size fell for twenty minutes in Canton. Strong winds also blew a few power lines down.
May 2004Flash FloodCanton-Very heavy rain fell in a short amount of time flooding several streets in Canton.
July 2003Thunderstorm WindCanton-Several large tree limbs were blown down.
June 2000Thunderstorm WindCanton-Several trees, tree limbs and power lines were blown down.
June 2000Thunderstorm WindCanton-Thunderstorm winds uprooted an 18 foot tall tree on the south side of Canton.
July 1997Thunderstorm WindCanton-Thunderstorms winds blew down numerous trees in Canton and Cuba. One tree fell onto a garage in Cuba, causing minor damage. No injuries were reported and no damage estimate was available.
July 2024HailCanton-no account filed
March 2023HailCanton-no account filed
April 2023HailCanton-no account filed
April 2023HailCanton-no account filed
August 2022HailCanton-no account filed
June 2021HailCanton-no account filed
May 2019HailCanton-no account filed
May 2019HailCanton-no account filed
May 2017HailCanton-no account filed
May 2017HailCanton-no account filed
April 2017HailCanton-no account filed
April 2017HailCanton-no account filed
April 2017HailCanton-no account filed
April 2016HailCanton-no account filed
June 2015HailCanton-no account filed
June 2015HailCanton-no account filed
May 2011HailCanton-no account filed

Every storm recorded in Fulton County

Nearest settlements

The eight closest, with where each one stands in the county. Distances are straight-line, computed from the Geographic Names Information System coordinates.

Map PlaceDistance Sheets
East Lawndale0.8 miles17
Prospect Heights Addition0.8 miles17
Westview Acres0.9 miles17
Village Square1.1 miles17
Rawalts2.9 miles14
Brereton3.7 miles17
Civer (historical)4.5 miles17
Saint David4.5 miles19

Elsewhere

Matched on this settlement's Geographic Names Information System number rather than its name, so it cannot be a different place of the same name in another state.

Wikipedia article on CantonAn encyclopaedic summary. Its text is share-alike, so it is linked here rather than copied.
Wikidata item Q578911The structured record the population and elevation above come from. Public domain (CC0).

Provenance

This settlement is recorded in the Geographic Names Information System as feature 405560. The sheet list is computed by point-in-boundary test against the United States Geological Survey's historical topographic inventory. Both are works of the United States government and carry no copyright under 17 U.S.C. 105.

Mines and quarries. USGS Mineral Resources Data System (MRDS) https://mrdata.usgs.gov/mrds/ A work of the United States government, no copyright under 17 U.S.C. 105.

Storms. NOAA National Centers for Environmental Information, Storm Events Database https://www.ncei.noaa.gov/stormevents/ A work of the United States government, no copyright under 17 U.S.C. 105. Narratives are quoted verbatim from the National Weather Service report and are not edited or summarised.