Bushnell

History

The town was founded in 1854 when the Northern Cross Railroad built a line through the area. Nehemiah Bushnell was the president of the railroad, and townspeople honored him by naming their community after him. The railroad later became part of the Chicago, Burlington and Quincy Railroad, which continues to operate through Bushnell under the name Burlington Northern Santa Fe. Bushnell was also served by the Toledo, Peoria and Western Railway, now the Keokuk Junction Railway. Amtrak trains pass through the city but do not stop. The Nagel Brothers of Bushnell were the first to invent a process of making rolled oats without having to steam the oats. Up until this time, the oats were first steamed to separate the groat from the hull. The patent for this new process was later sold to the Quaker Oats Company. Bushnell is home to a Vaughan & Bushnell hammer factory and to Kitchen Cooked Potato Chips.

Geography

Bushnell is located in northeastern McDonough County. Illinois state routes 9 and 41 pass through the city center as Cole Street. Route 9 goes west out of the city on Charles Street, leading to Blandinsville, while to the east it leads to Canton. Route 41 leads north to Galesburg and south to its terminus at U.S. Route 136. Macomb, the McDonough county seat, is southwest of Bushnell. According to the U.S. Census Bureau, Bushnell has a total area of , of which , or 0.38%, are water. The west side of the city drains to a south-flowing tributary of the East Fork of the La Moine River, while the east side drains to Shaw Creek, a southeast-flowing tributary of the Spoon River. The city is part of the Illinois River watershed.

Race & ethnicity

Most-observed species

• Northern Cardinal

  Cardinalis cardinalis (Linnaeus, 1758) · Aves
  777
• House Sparrow

  Passer domesticus (Linnaeus, 1758) · Aves
  605
• Blue Jay

  Cyanocitta cristata (Linnaeus, 1758) · Aves
  529
• Downy Woodpecker

  Dryobates pubescens (Linnaeus, 1766) · Aves
  527
• Mourning Dove

  Zenaida macroura (Linnaeus, 1758) · Aves
  484
• Red-bellied Woodpecker

  Melanerpes carolinus (Linnaeus, 1758) · Aves
  483
• American Robin

  Turdus migratorius Linnaeus, 1766 · Aves
  478
• American Crow

  Corvus brachyrhynchos C.L.Brehm, 1822 · Aves
  460

Largest nearby schools

• Bushnell-Prairie City Elem Sch
  Elementary · Bushnell · 322 students · 10.7:1 ratio
• Bushnell-Prairie City High Sch
  High · Bushnell · 195 students · 8.5:1 ratio
• West Prairie North Elementary Sch
  Elementary · Good Hope · 174 students · 13.4:1 ratio
• Bushnell-Prairie City Jr High Sch
  Middle · Bushnell · 136 students · 12.4:1 ratio