ChestnutIL
The town, laid out in 1872, counts 347 residents.
Is Chestnut a good place to live?
17% of residents live below the poverty line in Chestnut, above both the Illinois town median (8.4%) and the median of U.S. towns (9.6%). Chestnut has fewer than 1,000 residents, too few for fair grades; the figures below are still real.
347 people, and everyone knows the way
In a town this size, neighbors are the best guide. Ask them anything.
Moving to Chestnut: who provides what
Chestnut is unincorporated, so Logan County and regional agencies provide most services.
EPA SDWIS (Oct 9, 2026) · HIFLD + EIA-861 2025 · Census 2020 ZCTAs · NCES 2024–25 · registration: vote.gov, updated Sep 12, 2025.
The data
Ordered by what stands out in Chestnut.
Chestnut has 0.1 jobs for every working resident, so most commute out
The typical household income for Chestnut comes to $54,000. The top destinations are Springfield (17%), Lincoln (15%) and Decatur (15%). Half the trips to work are shorter than 20 miles.
| Chestnut | Illinois towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Median household income | $54,000 | $83,000 | $80,000 |
| Average trip to work | 23 minutes | 26 minutes | 25 minutes |
Where working residents work
Census LEHD 2023 · ACS
Chestnut has four seasons and pleasant summers
In July, afternoons reach 86°; in January, nights fall to 18°, and about 19 inches of snow falls in a winter.
Typical low → high °F
NOAA U.S. Climate Normals, 1991–2020
How healthy Chestnut is
Just over a third of Chestnut adults feel lonely. This Illinois town beats the Illinois average on 5 of 32 CDC measures and trails it on 3. Two figures for adults here: 33% sleep under 7 hours, 77% had a checkup this year.
| Chestnut | Illinois towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Binge drink (CDC PLACES) | 20% | 18% | 16% |
| Sleep under 7 hours (CDC PLACES) | 33% | 35% | 36% |
| Yearly checkup (CDC PLACES) | 77% | 78% | 79% |
| Feel lonely (CDC PLACES) | 34% | 33% | 33% |
| What stands out | Chestnut | IL |
|---|---|---|
| Fewer older adults who have lost all their teeth | 6.6% | 10.3% |
| Fewer adults facing housing insecurity | 9.8% | 13.2% |
| More adults with COPD | 7.9% | 6.3% |
CDC PLACES 2025 · modeled estimates for adults · CMS · HRSA
Chestnut faces a moderate natural-hazard risk, led by inland flooding
FEMA puts just over a third of Chestnut’s expected hazard losses down to inland flooding, and 14% to drought. On expected storm and flood damage, Chestnut sits below just over half of U.S. communities.
FEMA National Risk Index · OpenFEMA
| Biggest places to walk | Trails | Acres |
|---|---|---|
| 1. Chestnut Downtown Park | — | 1 |
Trails & parks © OpenStreetMap contributors · Conserved land: USGS PAD-US
Everything we know about Chestnut
Colleges nearby
None within 15 miles of Chestnut; the nearest are
About 0 of every 100 Chestnut residents are enrolled in college, against 6 across Illinois.
100% of working residents leave Chestnut for work
Where Chestnut’s working residents go each day. Line width shows the share.
Census LEHD 2023
About Chestnut
Census-designated place in Illinois, United States
Chestnut is a census-designated place in Aetna Township, Logan County, Illinois. As of the 2020 census, its population was 220. The community is located northwest across the railroad tracks along Illinois Route 54 at Dauphin Street. Its claim to fame, for the sake of town promotion, is that it is the geographic center of the state. A small monument to this effect has been erected in a park near the southwest corner of Melvin Street and East Olive street (in §34 T19N R1W). However, the exact center of Illinois is about eight miles southwest of Chestnut, and on the other side of the town of Mount Pulaski, at 89°18.4'W 40°0.8'N.
From Wikipedia, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0 · facts via Wikidata (CC0)
- Area
- 0.1 sq mi
- Elevation
- 617 ft
- ZIP code
- 62518
- Area code
- 217
Questions about Chestnut
Short answers, built from the data on this page.
Is Chestnut, IL a good place to live?
Chestnut has fewer than 1,000 residents, too few for fair grades; the figures below are still real.