Sangamon County, Illinois

Sangamon County is a county located in the U.S. state of Illinois. According to the 2010 census, it had a population of 197,465. Its county seat is Springfield, the state capital.

Sangamon County is included in the Springfield, IL Metropolitan Statistical Area.

History

Sangamon County was formed in 1821 out of Madison and Bond counties. The county was named for the Sangamon River, which runs through it. The origin of the name of the river is unknown; among several explanations is the theory that is comes from the Pottawatomie word Sain-guee-mon (pronounced "sang gä mun") meaning "where there is plenty to eat." Published histories of neighboring Menard County (formed from Sangamon County) suggest that the name was first given to the river by the French explorers of the late 17th century as they passed through the region. The river was named to honor "St. Gamo", or Saint Gamo, an 8th-century French Benedictine monk. The French pronunciation "San-Gamo" is the legacy.

Sangamon (disambiguation)

Sangamon is a county in Illinois. It may also mean:

Streamliners (Illinois Terminal Railroad)

The Streamliners were a fleet of three streamlined electric multiple units built by the St. Louis Car Company for the Illinois Terminal Railroad in 1948–1949. They operated primarily between St. Louis, Missouri and Peoria, Illinois in the late 1940s and early to mid-1950s. They were the last interurban streetcars manufactured in the United States.

Design

The St. Louis Car Company constructed all three sets. Each equipment set comprised three cars. The cars were constructed of fluted aluminum, painted in royal blue. Each car was independently powered by four 140 horsepower (100 kW) traction motors. Top speed was 80 miles per hour (130 km/h).

Service

The streamliners represented a last attempt by the Illinois Terminal to regain lost passenger traffic and were the first new passenger cars the railroad had ordered since 1918. The Illinois Terminal began teasing the new streamliners in 1947, but did not announce the order until May 1948. Its original plan was to place all three in service between St. Louis and Peoria. The first new train in service was the City of Decatur, which began operating between St. Louis, Missouri and Decatur, Illinois (not Peoria) on November 7, 1948. It was the first through service offered by the Illinois Terminal between those two cities.