Each edition grades its towns against each other only.
Home to 2 places on the National Register of Historic Places.
The best of Petersburg’s subject grades are an A+ for history and an A for civic life; the weakest is a C− for schools. Only 36 of Illinois’ 1,285 towns score higher on history. Petersburg has fewer than 2,500 residents, so it gets subject grades but no overall grade.
Where Petersburg beats most towns.
Petersburg Historic DistrictEach subject compared with towns across the country (schools within Illinois), ordered by how far Petersburg is from typical.
How TownRatings grades towns →
Census counts: 714 in 1850, 2,258 in 2020. The archive holds 12 old photos and papers going back to 1900 and 2 maps from 1933 on.
2 places on the National Register of Historic Places.
Who provides power, water and the rest in Petersburg, and how to reach them.
EPA SDWIS (Oct 9, 2026) · HIFLD + EIA-861 2025 · Census 2020 ZCTAs · NCES 2024–25 · registration: vote.gov, updated Sep 12, 2025.
Ordered by what stands out in Petersburg.
Porta CUSD 202 runs its public schools. One of its 2 schools is below, with the reason it’s listed. The 2 public schools in Petersburg teach 623 students between them.
| School | Level | Students | Letter |
|---|---|---|---|
| Petersburg Elem SchoolLargest public elementary schoolGrades PK–2 | Grades PK–2 | 335 | – |
NCES · EDFacts · graded within IL on state tests and graduation
The share of households in Petersburg who live in a home they own: 61%. Over the 12 months to September 2026, the typical home gained 6.3% in value. On the market in the town: a median 16 days to sell.
| Petersburg | Illinois towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Median rent | $653 a month | $1,129 a month | $1,185 a month |
| Households that own their home | 61% | 75% | 73% |
Census ACS, 2020–24 · Zillow Home Value Index · Redfin Data Center
A winter brings about 18 inches of snow, with January nights at 19° and July afternoons at 86°.
NOAA U.S. Climate Normals, 1991–2020
Just 16% of Petersburg’s working residents have a job in town. In Petersburg, the average commute is 22 minutes, against 26 minutes in Illinois’ towns and 25 minutes across U.S. towns. This Illinois town had 801 jobs in 2023, up 125 from 2013. Also worth knowing: for Petersburg, the median household income is $56,000.
| Petersburg | Illinois towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Below the poverty line | 16% | 8.4% | 9.6% |
| Median household income | $56,000 | $83,000 | $80,000 |
| Working residents who work in town | 16% | 8.3% | 8% |
| Average trip to work | 22 minutes | 26 minutes | 25 minutes |
Census LEHD 2023 · ACS
Four-year graduates: 31% of adults 25 and older here, 38% across Illinois. Adults 18 to 34 are 28% of residents (23% statewide). 19% of residents are under 18 in Petersburg. The Census Bureau’s 2025 estimate puts Petersburg at 2,125 residents, down 4.2% since 2020.
| Petersburg | Illinois towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Under 18 | 19% | 22% | 22% |
| Median age | 38.7 years | 40.7 years | 40.5 years |
53% women, 47% men
That’s an even split within the survey’s margin of ±3.6 points. Across Illinois, 50.6% of residents are women.
| Petersburg | IL | U.S. | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Under 10 | 8.7% | 11.5% | 11.6% |
| 10 to 17 | 9.9% | 10.4% | 10.3% |
| 18 to 24 | 11.7% | 9.1% | 9.1% |
| 25 to 34 | 16.5% | 13.6% | 13.7% |
| 35 to 44 | 12.1% | 13.3% | 13.2% |
| 45 to 54 | 16.5% | 12.4% | 12.2% |
| 55 to 64 | 6.3% | 12.8% | 12.7% |
| 65 to 74 | 10% | 10% | 10.2% |
| 75 and older | 8.4% | 7% | 7% |
| No diploma | 6.2% | 9.5% | 10.4% |
| High school | 29.3% | 25.1% | 26% |
| Some college | 22% | 19.2% | 19.1% |
| Associate’s | 11.9% | 8.3% | 8.8% |
| Bachelor’s | 15.5% | 22.6% | 21.6% |
| Graduate | 15.1% | 15.3% | 14.1% |
Census population estimates, 2025 · U.S. Census Bureau · ACS 2020-2024 5-year estimates · in a town of 2,100, single groups can be off by several points
Petersburg: just over a third of adults sleep under 7 hours. CDC measures, 32 in all: Petersburg beats Illinois on 4 and trails on 3. 18% of adults binge drink in the town, where Illinois’ towns sit at 18% and U.S. towns at 16%.
| Petersburg | Illinois towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Binge drink (CDC PLACES) | 18% | 18% | 16% |
| Sleep under 7 hours (CDC PLACES) | 34% | 35% | 36% |
| Obesity (CDC PLACES) | 38% | 37% | 35% |
| Depression (CDC PLACES) | 23% | 22% | 23% |
| What stands out | Petersburg | IL |
|---|---|---|
| Fewer uninsured adults | 7% | 9.9% |
| Fewer adults facing housing insecurity | 10.1% | 13.2% |
| More older adults who have lost all their teeth | 15.2% | 10.3% |
CDC PLACES 2025 · modeled estimates for adults · CMS · HRSA
| Petersburg | Illinois towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Miles of trail per square mile | 0.1 miles per square mile | 0.3 | 0.4 |
| Conserved land | 2.5% | 3.7% | 4.3% |
| Biggest places to walk | Trails | Acres |
|---|---|---|
| 1. Hurie Park | — | 19 |
| 2. Rotary Park | — | 12 |
| 3. Jaycee Park | — | 1 |
Trails & parks © OpenStreetMap contributors · Conserved land: USGS PAD-US
Federal aid has come to Petersburg households in 5 declared disasters; the latest was in 2011. FEMA expects less storm and flood damage here than in 52% of U.S. communities. Paid flood insurance claims in the town since 1979: 13. 46% of the town’s expected losses from natural hazards come from inland flooding, followed by tornadoes at 15%.
FEMA disaster declarations and aid · FEMA National Risk Index · OpenFEMA
Museums, parks, gardens and other places to visit around Petersburg. Close and well known come first.
Big draw17 mi LandmarkLincoln Tomb
3 mi MuseumLincoln's New Salem
18 mi National Historic SiteLincoln Home National Historic Site124K visitors a year18 mi National MonumentSpringfield 1908 Race Riot National Monument
18 mi MuseumOld State Capitol State Historic Site
27 mi MuseumDickson MoundsLincoln Tomb: David Jones, CC BY-SA 2.5 · Lincoln's New Salem: Unknown, CC BY-SA 2.5 · Lincoln Home National Historic Site: Daniel Schwen, CC BY-SA 4.0 · Old State Capitol State Historic Site: Shadow2700 at en.wikipedia, Public domain · Dickson Mounds: MattHucke, CC BY-SA 3.0
None within 15 miles of Petersburg; the nearest are
About 6 of every 100 Petersburg residents are enrolled in college, about the same as Illinois.
2 places in Petersburg on the National Register of Historic Places.
6 notable people were born in Petersburg.
City in Illinois, United States
Petersburg is a city in and the county seat of Menard County, Illinois, United States, on the bluffs and part of the floodplain overlooking the Sangamon River. It is part of the Springfield, Illinois metropolitan area. The population was 2,258 at the 2020 census, nearly unchanged from 2010. Petersburg is located approximately 2 miles (3 km) north of New Salem, the original location where Abraham Lincoln first settled, as he started his career.
From Wikipedia, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0 · facts via Wikidata (CC0)
Short answers, built from the data on this page.
Home to 2 places on the National Register of Historic Places.
Cost of living, which also weighs rents, property taxes and how many households pay 30% or more of their income for housing, grades B.
6 notable people were born here, including William B. McKinley and Edward Laning.
