Urbana, Illinois, United States

🇺🇸 Urbana is a city in and the county seat of Champaign County, Illinois, United States. Urbana is the 38th most populous municipality in Illinois. It is included in the Champaign–Urbana metropolitan area. Urbana is notable for sharing the campus of the University of Illinois at Urbana–Champaign with its sister city of Champaign.

History The Urbana area was first settled by Europeans in 1822, when it was called "Big Grove". When the county of Champaign was organized in 1833, the county seat was located on 40 acres of land, 20 acres donated by William T. Webber and 20 acres by M. W. Busey, considered to be the city's founder, and the name "Urbana" was adopted after Urbana, Ohio, the hometown of State Senator John W. Vance, who authored the Enabling Act creating Champaign County. The creation of the new town was celebrated for the first time on July 4, 1833.

Stores began opening in 1834. The first mills were founded in c. 1838-50. The town's first church, the Methodist Episcopal Church, and the parsonage, was built in 1840 by the Rev. A. Bradshaw, with the Baptist Church following in 1855. The Presbyterian Church was founded in 1856. The city's first school was built in 1854.

Urbana suffered a setback when the Chicago branch of the Illinois Central Railroad, which had been expected to pass through town, was instead laid down two miles west, where the land was flatter. The town of West Urbana grew up around the train depot built there in 1854, and in 1861 its name was changed to Champaign. The competition between the two cities provoked Urbana to tear down the ten-year-old County Courthouse and replace it with a much larger and fancier structure, to ensure that the county seat would remain in Urbana.

Champaign-Urbana was selected as the site for a new state agricultural school, thanks to the efforts of Clark Griggs. Illinois Industrial University, which would evolve into the University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign, opened in 1868 with 77 students.

A number of efforts to merge Urbana and Champaign have failed at the polls.

On October 9, 1871 a fire burned much of downtown Urbana. Children playing with matches started the fire. (It is unrelated to the Great Chicago Fire that started the day before, though both fires occurred during severe drought and were spread by high winds.)

Transport Downtown Urbana is located south-west of the intersection of its two busiest streets: U.S. 150 (University Avenue) and U.S. 45 (Vine Street-Cunningham Avenue).

Most of Urbana lies south of I-74. There are three exits (from west to east): Lincoln (I-74 milepost 183), Cunningham (184) and University (185). The Lincoln exit is closest to the University of Illinois, while the Cunningham exit goes to downtown Urbana. The University exit goes to downtown Urbana as well as Illinois Route 130 to Philo.

Local bus service is primarily provided by the Champaign-Urbana Mass Transit District, although limited service is available from Champaign County Area Rural Transit System and Danville Mass Transit, operators which primarily serve Rantoul and Danville respectively.

The Norfolk Southern operates an east to west line through Urbana. The NS line connects industries in eastern Urbana to the Norfolk Southern main line at Mansfield, Illinois, west of Champaign. The line now operated by Norfolk Southern is the former Peoria & Eastern Railway, later operated as part of the Big Four (Cleveland, Cincinnati, Chicago and St. Louis Railway), New York Central, Penn Central, and Conrail systems, being sold by Conrail to Norfolk Southern in 1996. Construction of the line was begun by the Danville, Urbana, Bloomington and Pekin Railroad. This short-lived entity became part of the Indianapolis, Bloomington and Western Railway before the railroad was completed. A branch line of the Norfolk and Western Railway (formerly the Wabash Railroad) used to connect Urbana with the main line from Danville to Decatur at Sidney, Illinois, but this was first rerouted and later closed in the early 1990s.

University of Illinois Willard Airport serves the city.

Government Urbana has Mayor-Council government, of the strong-mayor form. The city council has seven members, each elected from a different ward. The mayor is elected in a citywide vote.

Geography According to the 2021 census gazetteer files, Urbana has a total area of 11.90 square miles (30.82 km²), of which 11.83 square miles (30.64 km²) (or 99.40%) is land and 0.07 square miles (0.18 km²) (or 0.60%) is water.

Urbana borders the city of Champaign. The main campus of the University of Illinois is situated on this border. Together, these two cities are often referred to as Urbana-Champaign (the designation used by the University) or Champaign-Urbana (the more common usage, due to the larger size of Champaign). With the nearby village of Savoy they form the Champaign–Urbana metropolitan area.

Market at the Square The Market at the Square, also known as the Farmers' Market, has been a community event in Urbana since 1979. Every Saturday morning from some time in May to some time in November, dozens of vendors set up shop in the Lincoln Square parking lot in downtown Urbana. They primarily sell local produce (including corn, tomatoes, lettuce and watermelons), but one can also find local crafts, music, kettle corn and booths for various community and political organizations.

Urbana Free Library The Urbana Free Library, one of the first public libraries in Illinois, was founded in 1874 and is located in the downtown area. The historic building which houses the library was built in 1918. A major new addition was opened in 2005.

The library houses historical archives of Champaign County which can be used for genealogical research. Established in 1956, the Champaign County Historical Archives is a department of the Urbana Free Library that maintains a research-level collection on the history and genealogy of Champaign County. In 1987 it was designated the official repository for non-current Champaign County records. Although it focuses on Champaign County, the Archives holds extensive collections of works dealing with the rest of Illinois and those states that document the significant migration routes of the communities that comprise Champaign County. The CCHA is also home to the Local History Online database. Local History Online gives access to holdings (books and journals, Champaign County records, City of Urbana municipal records, newspapers, directories, school yearbooks, images, maps, oral histories, local organization newsletters and other special collections) of the Champaign County Historical Archives, including digital content. The catalog is frequently updated.

The library is publicly funded and receives additional support from about 600 people who have joined the Friends of the Urbana Free Library.

Station Theatre Station Theatre, run by the Celebration Company, hosts live performances.

The Urbana Sweetcorn Festival The Urbana Sweetcorn Festival is an annual festival in Urbana. It was first held in August 1975 in the Busey Bank parking lot in downtown Urbana. It was a community event put on by employees of Busey Bank. Since then the Sweetcorn Festival has continued to grow. The Urbana Business Association is now responsible for the planning of the festival, over the years adding a local car show, an expanded family area, live music on multiple stages, food, vendors, beer, in the heart of downtown Urbana.

In addition to corn and beverages, the festival has offered a range of activities and events, including a display of antique and other collectors' cars and volksmarches, arts events, a dog show, and a book sale organized by the Friends of the Urbana Free Library.

Candlestick Lane Candlestick Lane is the name for a neighborhood in eastern Urbana. This neighborhood consists of Grant Place and adjacent properties on Fairlawn and Eastern Drives. It is called Candlestick Lane because every year the residents decorate their yards for Christmas with a lot of lights and figures. The tradition began in 1961 (maybe 1960) as a house-decorating contest sponsored by the Illinois Power Company. The neighborhood used its prize money to purchase electric candlesticks for each home. The City of Urbana installs special red and green street signs, reading "Candlestick Lane" and "Grant Place" during the Holiday season. The lights are turned on from around 5:00 to 10:00 p.m. from the third Saturday in December through New Years Day.

The Urbana Lincoln Hotel The Urbana Lincoln Hotel is connected to Lincoln Square Mall, an indoor walking mall, in the centre of Urbana. The hotel was designed by famed Urbana architect Joseph Royer in 1923 and opened several rooms on November 1, 1923, to accommodate guests for the University's Homecoming game. The original building was built in the Tudor Revival style. A convention centre was added in the 1970s in the Bavarian style. While being forced to close twice between 1990 and 2009, the hotel was purchased by a private developer in 2010 and underwent major rehabilitation. The hotel opened under new management and with a new name, Urbana Landmark Hotel, on December 1, 2012, but it closed in July 2015 and sold January 2020 for redevelopment as a Hilton Tapestry hotel.

Points of interest • University of Illinois Urbana–Champaign • University of Illinois Arboretum • University of Illinois Conservatory and Plant Collection • Krannert Center for the Performing Arts • Spurlock Museum • Eastern Illinois Foodbank

Education: University of Illinois Most of the University of Illinois Urbana–Champaign campus lies in this city.

Parks Carle Park, established in 1909, is located at Indiana and Garfield, just west of Urbana High School in central Urbana. Measuring 8.3 acres (34,000 m²), it contains a statue entitled Lincoln the Lawyer by Lorado Taft and more than 50 well-established trees that are part of the Hickman Tree Walk. The Lincoln statue was previously sited in front of the Urbana Lincoln Hotel, but was moved after only a few months.

Meadowbrook Park is located south-east of the Race Street and Windsor Road intersection. The park covers 130 acres (0.53 km²), including 80 of recreated Illinois tallgrass prairie. Around the prairie restoration centre of the park loops three miles of wide concrete path suitable for walking, running, and bicycling. In addition, for an off the beaten path experience, the park offers two miles of unpaved trails which wind through the prairie grass. Several small hills make the path unsuitable for inexperienced inline skaters. The path is adorned by about twenty large sculptures from local artists. A playground, shelter, and parking lot are located near the Windsor Road entrance. A community garden, an herbal garden, the Timpone Ornamental Tree Grove and a shelter are located near the Race Street entrance. The park also contains many streams which are among the first tributaries of the Embarras River.

The Urbana Dog Park, located on East Perkins Road, is a place to walk one's dog without a leash.

The Anita Purves Nature Center], located on the north end of Crystal Lake Park, offers nature education programs.

The "Art in the Park", just north of the Urbana City Hall (400 S. Vine St.) dedicated October 2012, took 22 years of struggle and efforts of three mayors. The environmental and sculptural artists/curator of the park, John David Mooney designed the plantings, walkways, a 12-foot high fountain sculpture (Falling Leaf), and a 33-foot high light sculpture (Spirit Tree). The Spirit Tree specifically gives new meaning to Urbana's designation as a "Tree City" and to trees as landmarks or beacons. Mooney, an internationally acclaimed artist, is a native to Champaign-Urbana.

Swimming pools The Urbana Indoor Aquatic Center is a public indoor pool operated by the Urbana Park District and Urbana School District. It is located between Urbana High School and Urbana Middle School.

Crystal Lake Pool is a public outdoor pool. It is located on Broadway Street, across from the Anita Purves Nature Center. It was closed after the summer 2008 season due to deteriorating conditions and concomitant safety issues, it was rebuilt and reopened in 2013.

Campus Recreation Center East (CRCE) has an indoor leisure pool with a hot tub. CRCE is owned by the University of Illinois Urbana–Champaign. In Urbana, the pools in Freer Hall, formerly a 25-yard and 6-lane lap pool, and Kenney Gym have been closed and filled, the former redeveloped as research and teaching spaces.

Media: Radio • 88.1 W201CK (Translates 90.7 KHRI) "Air 1", Christian CHR • 88.7 WPCD, College Radio • 89.3 WGNJ, Religious • 90.1 WEFT, Community Radio, Variety • 90.9 WILL-FM, Classical music, Public Radio, (RDS), broadcasting from Urbana • 91.7 WBGL, Christian AC (RDS) • 92.5 WREE "Rewind 92.5", Classic Hits (RDS – Artist/Title) • 93.5 WSJK "ESPN Radio" Sports (RDS) • 94.5 WLRW "Mix 94.5" Hot AC (RDS – Artist/Title) (HD Radio) • 95.3 WJEK "Sunny 95.3" Adult contemporary (RDS) • 96.1 WQQB "Q 96", CHR/Pop (RDS) • 97.5 WHMS-FM "Lite Rock 97.5" Adult Contemporary • 99.1 WYXY "Extra 99.1" Rock (RDS – Artist/Title) • 99.7 WQQB "Hits 99.7"Popular and Hip hop • 100.3 WIXY "WIXY 100.3" Country (RDS – Artist/Title) • 100.9 WHPO "100.9 WHPO" Country • 101.1 W266AF (Translates 90.9 WILL-FM HD2), 24-hour Classical music • 102.5 WGNN, Religious • 103.9 W280DE (Translates 102.5 WGNN), Religious • 104.5 WRFU-LP "Radio Free Urbana", Community/Political Activism(Low-power 100 watts FM) • 105.5 WCZQ "Hot 105.5" Hip Hop and R&B • 105.9 WGKC "Classic Rock 105.9 WGKC" Classic Rock • 107.1 WPGU College Radio Alternative • 107.9 WKIO "Classic Rock 107 9" Classic rock

AM radio • 580 WILL, Public Radio, broadcasting from Urbana • 1400 WDWS, News/Talk (AM Stereo) • 1460 WJCI, Hispanic Analog television • 3 WCIA, CBS • 7 W07DD, Three Angels Network • 12 WILL-TV, PBS • 15 WICD "NewsChannel 15", ABC • 17 WAND, NBC • 23 WBUI, The CW • 27 WCCU "Fox 55/27" • 34 W33AY, Trinity Broadcast Network • 44 WBXC-CA, MTV 2 • 49 WCIX "My WCFN TV", My Network TV • 51 WEIU, PBS

Digital television (DTV) • 9 WILL-DT, PBS • 18 WAND-DT, NBC • 22 WBUI-DT, WB • 26 WCCU-DT, Fox • 41 WICD-DT, ABC • 48 WCIA-DT, CBS • 50 WEIU-DT, PBS

Media: Print • The News-Gazette, daily local newspaper • Daily Illini • Buzz Weekly • The Public I indie media newspaper.