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Minonk has a rich and varied history. Being located at the intersection of two railroads and having one of the first coal mines in the area gave Minonk a headstart in its early growth. Minonk's peak population was 3000 in 1896. Minonk truly was a 'little city' around the turn of the century. Many of Minonk's grand old buildings have disappeared along with other sentimental landmarks such as the "jumbo" north of the city. Minonk has also lost many of its fine businesses for many reasons common to most small towns. The shopping malls, improved transportation and mobility, the decrease in small farms and the number of farmers have all been contributing factors. Many of us can remember when Minonk was the shopping hub of the area. When Saturday nights in Minonk seemed liked Times Square on New Year's eve. People would come up town in the afternoon to park their cars in a strategic spot on Main Street so they could visit easily with the passerbys strolling down the street that night. You could not walk down Main Street in a straight line on Saturday night. Hopefully, this section of the Minonk homepage can rekindle some of those memories Reminding us of Minonk's bustling past can give us hopes that Minonk can again regain its eminence as the 'little city' on the prairie. Minonk is located at [show location on an interactive map] 40°54′8″N, 89°2′10″W (40.902357, -89.035992). According to the United States Census Bureau, the city has a total area of 1.4 square miles (3.5 km²), all of it land. Demographics As of the census of 2000, there were 2,168 people, 841 households, and 587 families residing in the city. The population density was 1,587.6 people per square mile (611.0/km²). There were 885 housing units at an average density of 648.1/sq mi (249.4/km²). The racial makeup of the city was 98.99% White, 0.05% African American, 0.05% Asian, 0.28% from other races, and 0.65% from two or more races. Hispanic or Latino of any race were 1.20% of the population. There were 841 households out of which 31.9% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 57.9% were married couples living together, 9.2% had a female householder with no husband present, and 30.2% were non-families. 26.8% of all households were made up of individuals and 15.6% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.50 and the average family size was 3.02. In the city the population was spread out with 25.9% under the age of 18, 6.9% from 18 to 24, 27.5% from 25 to 44, 19.0% from 45 to 64, and 20.8% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 39 years. For every 100 females there were 91.4 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 86.0 males. The median income for a household in the city was $44,028, and the median income for a family was $50,379. Males had a median income of $35,859 versus $22,500 for females. The per capita income for the city was $17,688. About 7.0% of families and 8.6% of the population were below the poverty line, including 12.9% of those under age 18 and 7.7% of those age 65 or over.
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