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Edwards, Illinois

19 topographic sheets cover this place, the earliest surveyed in 1905 and the latest in 1996. It stands in Kickapoo Township. It lies in ZIP code area 61528. It stands on Deer Lick Creek. The Survey maps it on the Peoria West quadrangle. It stands 525 feet above sea level.

Edwards within Peoria County

Topographic sheets covering this place

11 surveys from 19 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.

In the county-history sources

15,932 words on this township

The History of Peoria County, Illinois. Containing a History of the Northwest--history of Illinois--history of the County, Its Early Settlement, Growth, Development, Resources, Etc., Etc. .., published 1880 names this settlement in its chapter on Kickapoo Township. These are the passages that mention it, exactly as the scans read.

March 5, 1867 ; George N., born September 15, 1859, died August 5, 1S61 ; Anna, born April 8, i86l, died in infancy; Adaline C, born February 23, 1863, married William Edwards, January 6, 1879; Euphemia B., bom November 27, 1865. Mrs. Jones' grandfather, when she saw him last in 1829, was Ii6 years of age, and her mother lived to be eighty-seven. Mr. Jones' mother lived to be eighty-nine. Protestant in religious sentiment. Mr. J. is a Republican of the liberal type. He owns 1S9 acres of land, valued at $40 an acre. He has held various local offices, such as town assessor, etc.

Passage source: The History of Peoria County, Illinois. Containing a History of the Northwest--history of Illinois--history of the County, Its Early Settlement, Growth, Development, Resources, Etc., Etc. .., published 1880.

VARDEX P.\TRICK, farmer. Sec. 19, P. O. Edwards Station. Mr. Varden and wife were bom in Ireland. He came to .America in 1S50. and engaged as a railroad laborer. March 25. 1852, he married Judith Carroll, and began life with less than fifty dollars. They first kept house in what had been a railroad boarding shanty, and Mrs. Varden said, "It seemed a palace, for it was our first home." For six years he worked on the railroad, or at whatever he could find to do, and in 1858 settled as above, having bought it in 1857. Their united industry and economy has secured them a good home, and all the comforts of life. They are members of the Catholic Church, and Democratic in political faith. Their land is valued at $50 an acre.

Passage source: The History of Peoria County, Illinois. Containing a History of the Northwest--history of Illinois--history of the County, Its Early Settlement, Growth, Development, Resources, Etc., Etc. .., published 1880.

is a son of Thomas and Elenor Edwanls, net Scott, and was born in Hampshire county. Va., Feb. l8, 1527, and came with his parents to Kosefield township in the Spring of 1S35. In 1857, when the Peoria, Oquawka and Burlington, now the C, B. & Q., Railroad, was completed, he removed from the farm to Edwards Station, where he opened a grocery and provision store, and was appointed station agent by the railroad company ; was also appointed the 6rst postmaster in the place. In the Spring of 1862, he removed his family back to the farm and enlisted in Co. K. 77th Illinois. He was elected second lieutenant, and subsequently promoted to first lieutenant, and served three years, fourteen months of which time was spent in the rebel prison at Camp Ford, Texas ; rations were sometimes nothing but a handful of corn a day to each prisoner. After returning home he engaged in farming until February, 1877, when he again removed to Edwards Station and opened a general store. He was appointed postmaster the same year, in which capacity he is still serving. December 18, 1851. he married Miss Mary J., daughter of Rev. Jacob Schamp, who was born May 4, 1825. They have had seven children - Florence Virginia, born Nov. 21, 1852. died Sept. 29, 1853; Thomas Justin, born Dec. 23, 1853; William Henry, born Oct. 6. 1S55; Mary Susan, bom Feb. 23, 1857; Isadorejane, born Aug. Q, 1859; Charles Hamilton, born Dec. 23. 1861; Edward David, born April 17, 1 366, died March 2, 1867. Mr. Edwards is Republican in political failh and practice. Mrs. Edwards is a member of the M. E. Church. Engeike F. coal operator, P.O. Peoria.

Passage source: The History of Peoria County, Illinois. Containing a History of the Northwest--history of Illinois--history of the County, Its Early Settlement, Growth, Development, Resources, Etc., Etc. .., published 1880.

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 Kickapoo Township - it names this place 11 more 11 times.

Fires near this place

7 since 2009

Regional context, not property-specific evidence. The federal wildfire occurrence database lists 7 fires within 5 miles of Edwards between 2009 and 2018, burning about 27 acres in total. None started naturally. None was recorded as arson. Distance is straight-line from the map coordinates, so a fire counted here may appear on a neighbouring settlement's page as well.

Reported cause Fires
Debris and open burning4
Missing data/not specified/undetermined2
Equipment and vehicle use1

The most recent of them, most recent first, with the day each was reported and the service that recorded it.

DateCause SizeReported by Name on the report
23 August 2018Equipment and vehicle useunder an acreIllinois Division of Forestry Resources2018320
19 April 2018Debris and open burning3.0 acresIllinois Division of Forestry Resources2018211
4 March 2018Debris and open burning15 acresIllinois Division of Forestry Resources2018170
21 March 2009Debris and open burning1.0 acresIllinois Division of Forestry Resources9270
21 March 2009Debris and open burning3.0 acresIllinois Division of Forestry ResourcesWORTH
21 March 2009Missing data/not specified/undetermined5.0 acresIllinois Division of Forestry Resources269
20 March 2009Missing data/not specified/undeterminedunder an acreIllinois Division of Forestry Resources261

Settlements close enough to share some of these fires:

Every fire recorded in Peoria County

Mines and quarries near this place

7 within 5 miles

Regional context, not property-specific evidence. The federal mineral resources record lists 7 workings within 5 miles of Edwards: 3 past producers, 2 occurrences, 2 producers. 2 still produce. What was taken out: Sand and Gravel, Construction, Stone, Crushed/Broken. 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
Limestone ProspectStone, Crushed/BrokenOccurrence
Limestone ProspectStone, Crushed/BrokenOccurrence
Giles PropertySand and Gravel, ConstructionPast Producer
Joos Sand PitSand and Gravel, ConstructionPast Producer
Kickapoo Sand & Gravel PitSand and Gravel, ConstructionProducer
Peoria Blacktop Sand PitSand and Gravel, ConstructionPast Producer
Theodore Schaer PitSand and Gravel, ConstructionProducer

Every working recorded in Peoria County

Storms near this place

2 since 2006

Regional context, not property-specific evidence. The National Weather Service names Edwards in 2 storm reports between 2006 and 2023: 1 hail, 1 thunderstorm wind. 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
June 2023Thunderstorm WindEdwards-Numerous tree branches were blown down.
May 2006HailEdwards-no account filed

Every storm recorded in Peoria 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
Olin1.4 miles16
Norwood3.7 miles19
Orange Prairie4.5 miles22
Maxwell4.6 miles19
Hanna City4.6 miles16
Pottstown4.8 miles19
Pioneer5.4 miles22
Bellevue5.4 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 EdwardsAn encyclopaedic summary. Its text is share-alike, so it is linked here rather than copied.
Wikidata item Q5346077The 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 407800. 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.

Wildfire. Short, Karen C. 2022. Spatial wildfire occurrence data for the United States, 1992-2020 [FPA_FOD_20221014]. 6th Edition. Fort Collins, CO: Forest Service Research Data Archive. https://doi.org/10.2737/RDS-2013-0009.6 Collected with United States Government funding and usable without additional permissions or fees.

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.