Sullivan

History

Sullivan was founded in 1845 as Asa's Point. Two years after Sullivan was founded, the first official courthouse of the county was built. It was a simple two-story brick building with a hipped roof, and the county jail was housed in the basement. The village would come alive with gossip when court was in session. Abraham Lincoln passed through this first courthouse many times from 1849 to 1852, as he practiced law in the Moultrie County circuit court. The present courthouse (the county's third) contains a mural depicting this first courthouse. In the opinion of early local leaders, Sullivan was not a logical site for a county seat. The village of Nelson (which no longer exists) had already been developed, and the prairie on which Sullivan would be built lacked proper drainage and was a breeding ground for malaria-carrying mosquitoes. In 1844, however, it was determined that centrally located Sullivan was to be the county seat. The original village consisted of (25 city blocks) bounded by Jackson Street on the north, Water Street on the south, Douglas (now Worth) Street on the east, and Hamilton Street on the west. Sullivan's first school was built in 1846, with the first church being built in 1848. When Abraham Lincoln was campaigning for the state senate against Stephen A. Douglas, he gave a speech in Freeland Grove (now the Sullivan Civic Center parking lot). Freeland Grove was bounded by Wyman Park, Main Street, Strain Street, and Worth Street. A small monument facing Wyman Park near Main Street commemorates Lincoln's 1858 speech. During this campaign, a riot broke out on the town square between the supporters of Lincoln and the supporters of Douglas. In 1864, a fire destroyed the first courthouse and a second, larger one was built that was in use until 1904,…

Geography

Sullivan is located south of the center of Moultrie County. Illinois Routes 32 and 121 pass through the city center. IL 121 leads northwest to Decatur and southeast to Mattoon, while IL 32 leads north to Lovington and south to Windsor. According to the U.S. Census Bureau, Sullivan has a total area of , of which , or 0.29%, are water. Asa Creek crosses the east side of the city, flowing south to the Kaskaskia River in Lake Shelbyville.

Race & ethnicity