Home » Illinois » Enfield

James W. Loewen (1942-2021)

We mourn the loss of our friend and colleague and remain committed to the work he began.

Enfield

Illinois

Basic Information

Type of Place
Independent City or Town
Metro Area
Politics c. 1860?
Unions, Organized Labor?

Sundown Town Status

Sundown Town in the Past?
Surely
Was there an ordinance?
Don't Know
Sign?
Yes, Strong Oral Tradition
Year of Greatest Interest
Still Sundown?
Probably Not, Although Still Very Few Black People

Census Information

The available census data from 1860 to the present
Total White Black Asian Native Hispanic Other BHshld
1860
1870
1880
1890
1900
1910
1920
1930 1401 1401 0
1940
1950
1960
1970
1980
1990 683
2000 625 616 1
2010
2020

Method of Exclusion

Main Ethnic Group(s)

Group(s) Excluded

  • Black

Comments

“When I was a kid, they would bring in [black] railroad workers from Harrisburg to make railroad ties,” and they had to carry them back to Harrisburg each night.
There was an unwritten law, and it was, “Don’t let the sun set on your black ass,” perhaps a sign, at Norris City and Eldorado. (From a lifelong resident of Enfield and Norris City in 2003)

” I saw blacks drive thru Enfield but I never saw one stop in town. I heard many folks say that no “niggers” were ever going to spend the night in Enfield.” (From a longtime resident of Enfield, email, 4/2012)