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Tiny town

Living in Forest City, IL

Forest City is a tiny town of 223 people in Mason County, Illinois. It's about 29 miles from Peoria, IL and 122 miles from St. Louis, MO, the nearest major city. Summer highs average 87°F and winter highs 33°F, with about 20 inches of snow a year. The typical home is valued around $86k and rent runs about $937 a month.

223people
$86kTypical home
$937/moRent
87° / 33°Summer / winter
20"Snow
231Sunny days
96Rain/snow days

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Size & setting

  • Tiny town of 223
  • Part of a metro area
  • About 426 people per sq mi
  • 122 mi to St. Louis, MO
  • 29 mi to Peoria, IL
  • 17 mi to the nearest town of 10k+

Money

  • Typical home $86k (≈$544/mo)
  • Median rent $937/mo
  • Median household income $88k
  • Property tax about 2.3% of value
  • 9.0% unemployment

Weather

  • Summer highs around 87°F
  • Winter highs around 33°F
  • Muggy summers (dew point 64°F)
  • 231 sunny days a year (85 totally clear)
  • 134 cloudy days a year
  • 45 of 90 winter days are gray
  • 96 days a year with rain or snow
  • 20" of snow a year
  • 7 days a year with 1"+ of snow
  • Rarely hits 100°F
  • 22 nights a year below 10°F
  • Breezy

Safety

  • High violent crime (820 per 100k), county-wide
  • Low property crime (1,078 per 100k), county-wide

People

  • Median age 36
  • 26% of households have kids
  • 22% are 65 or older
  • 15% have a college degree
  • Not very diverse
  • 3% of residents are college students

Getting around & homes

  • Average commute 32 min
  • 2% walk or take transit to work
  • 21 mi to PIA airport
  • 116 mi to STL (major hub)
  • 41 mi to the nearest Amtrak station
  • 89% single-family homes
  • Typical home built around 1966
  • 90% of homes have broadband

Outdoors

  • Flat, open land
  • Elevation 512 ft
  • 673 mi to the ocean
  • 152 mi to a big lake
  • 16 mi to the nearest trailhead
  • 87 mi to the nearest ski area
  • Campground in town
  • 12 golf courses within 25 mi

Things to do

  • 84 sit-down restaurants within 25 mi
  • 68 bars within 25 mi
  • 17 coffee shops within 25 mi
  • No music venues & clubs within 25 mi
  • 6 museums within 25 mi
  • No breweries & distilleries within 25 mi
  • 28 mi to the nearest farmers market

Everyday

  • Schools in the bottom 34% of Illinois districts (reading)
  • 12 mi to the nearest grocery store
  • 13 mi to the nearest ER hospital
  • 72 mi to a 4–5★ hospital
  • 16 mi to the nearest vet
  • 17 mi to the nearest dog park
  • 14 congregations per 10k people
  • 17 mi to the nearest college

Politics

  • Mason County: R+42 in 2024
  • Illinois: D+11 in 2024

Natural hazards

  • Very low hurricane risk
  • High tornado risk
  • Very low wildfire risk
  • Low earthquake risk
  • Low flood risk
  • Very low drought risk
  • Moderate winter storm risk
  • Moderate heat wave risk
  • Very low volcano risk

Places near Forest City

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