Heyworth is a village in McLean County, Illinois, United States. It was founded in 1859. As of the 2020 census, Heyworth had a population of 2,791. Before settlement, the locality now known as Heyworth was covered by a heavy growth of timber and underbrush which was inhabited by the Kickapoo Native Americans, and supported a great number of deer, wild turkeys, and packs of large gray wolves.
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As settlers began to move West, families such as the Rutledges, Funks, Passwaters, Bishops, Nobles, Wakefields, and Martens settled in the immediate vicinity of the present village of Heyworth as early as 1824. Campbell Wakefield was the primary founder of Heyworth. In the course of his achievements, Wakefield became the owner of a vast tract of land including what is now Heyworth. He continually added to his original tract until he obtained about in one plot.
As the population of the region increased and industries began to spring up, railroads were becoming a great advantage. In 1852 and 1853, the Illinois Central Railroad was constructed through the Wakefield land. When the line became operational in 1855, the residents hoped to put a train station in the vicinity. Many property owners vied for the station, but Wakefield immediately donated a large tract of land for the station. Additionally he set aside adjacent land for the foundation of a town, a Presbyterian church, and a district school.
The first post office was built in the vicinity under the name Short's Point in 1847 before a subsequent renaming to Independence in 1850. In 1856, when the new railway station was opened, the name "Elmwood" was chosen, but it was soon discovered that this name was already taken by a locality in Peoria County. The president of the Illinois Central Railroad proposed calling the new station "Heyworth", after Lawrence Heyworth, an English director of the railroad, which became official on March 29, 1858.
After the establishment of the station, Campbell Wakefield made several donations to encourage trade and induce businessmen to locate in the new town. He became the proprietor of the new town, and the village of Heyworth was incorporated on March 31, 1869.
Geography
Heyworth is in southern McLean County and is served by two U.S. highways. U.S. Route 51 passes through the west side of Heyworth as a four-lane divided highway, leading north to Bloomington, the county seat, and south the same distance to Clinton. U.S. Route 136 passes through the village center, leading east to Rantoul and west to McLean.
According to the U.S. Census Bureau, Heyworth has a total area of , of which are land and , or 1.86%, are water.
0.0% of residents lived in urban areas, while 100.0% lived in rural areas.
There were 1,028 households in Heyworth, of which 39.5% had children under the age of 18 living in them. Of all households, 58.6% were married-couple households, 12.6% were households with a male householder and no spouse or partner present, and 21.1% were households with a female householder and no spouse or partner present. About 20.4% of all households were made up of individuals and 8.7% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older.
Of all households, 23.4% were non-families. The average household size was 2.71 and the average family size was 3.12.