Dixon is a city in Lee County, Illinois, United States. The population was 15,941 at the 2000 census. Named for its founder John Dixon (Dixon's Ferry), it is the county seat of Lee County. Located on the Rock River, Dixon was the boyhood home of former U.S. President Ronald Reagan. Dixon is also the site of the Lincoln Monument State Memorial, marking the spot where Abraham Lincoln joined the Illinois militia at Fort Dixon in 1832 during the Black Hawk War. The memorial is located on the west side of Dixon's main north-south street, Galena Avenue, (U.S. Highway 52 also U.S. 26), just north of the Rock River.

History

Around 1828, Ogee, a man of mixed French and Native American descent, established a ferry and a cabin along the banks of the Rock River. In 1829, an employee of Ogee was named postmaster at the newly constructed post office. John Dixon, the eponymous founder, bought Ogee's Ferry in the spring of 1830. Father Dixon brought his family to his new establishment on April 11th of the same year. Shortly after, the name of the post office was changed to Dixon's Ferry as well.

Located on the Rock River, Dixon was the boyhood home of the 40th president of the USA, Ronald Reagan. In his teen years, Reagan lifeguarded along the banks of the Rock River. His family house is preserved at 816 South Hennepin Avenue, and authorized by Congress to become Ronald Reagan Boyhood Home National Historic Site. (Reagan was born in nearby Tampico, Illinois and moved to Dixon when he was 9 years old.)

Tourism

Every summer Dixon holds the annual Petunia Festival, featuring a parade, carnival, country concert, fireworks show, road race, and other various activities. The Petunia Festival was conceived after the Dutch Elms Disease wiped out the elm along Galena Avenue in the late 1950s. In response to the dramatic change the streetscape underwent, the Dixon Noon Lions Club first started planting petunias to regain some sort of streetscape identity once again to Galena Ave in the early 1960s. Before the festival, volunteers plant petunias all along the main streets, especially along Galena. The flowers are watered and maintained by the combined efforts of city workers and volunteers. Pink petunias are predominant, but purple and white ones, the colors of the local high school teams, the Dixon Dukes and Duchesses, are also planted. The parade features a multitude of floats from surrounding businesses, politicians, and other area groups. A carnival is also held in Dixon during this time, and the festival ends with the Fourth of July fireworks. The city has an arch along Galena Ave., just south of the Rock River, that has the word "Dixon" in neon glasswork. Though commonly referred to as the Dixon Arch, the proper name for the structure is the War Memorial Arch. Dixon is also home to the Jack Mabley Center and the Dixon Correctional Center.