Bethalto, Illinois


Bethalto is a village located in Madison County, Illinois, United States. Bethalto, like the rest of Madison County, is part of the Illinois Metro East portion of the Greater St. Louis metropolitan area. The population of Bethalto was 9,521 at the 2010 census.

Geography

Bethalto is located at .
According to the 2010 census, Bethalto has a total area of, of which is land and is water.

History

Bethalto was founded in 1834, incorporated April 19, 1869, under a special charter and again in 1873 under the State of Illinois' general law. It is governed by a Village President and six trustees elected at large.
The original name of Bethalto was Bethel. However, when the first post office was established, it was discovered that there was already a Bethel, Illinois. There is a general consensus that the name "Bethalto" came from the first four letters of Bethel and the first four letters of nearby Alton.
The Bethalto Village Hall is listed on the National Register of Historic Places.

Demographics

As of the census of 2000, there were 9,454 people, 3,810 households, and 2,647 families residing in the village. The population density was 1,437.3 people per square mile. There were 4,007 housing units at an average density of 609.2 per square mile. The racial makeup of the village was 97.84% White, 0.76% African American, 0.22% Native American, 0.40% Asian, 0.33% from other races, and 0.44% from two or more races. Hispanic or Latino of any race were 1.00% of the population.
There were 3,810 households out of which 34.1% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 54.2% were married couples living together, 11.7% had a female householder with no husband present, and 30.5% were non-families. 26.8% of all households were made up of individuals and 12.5% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.46 and the average family size was 2.98.
In the village, the population was spread out with 25.7% under the age of 18, 8.5% from 18 to 24, 28.7% from 25 to 44, 22.9% from 45 to 64, and 14.1% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 37 years. For every 100 females, there were 91.3 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 85.0 males.
The median income for a household in the village was $42,201, and the median income for a family was $50,764. Males had a median income of $41,512 versus $22,981 for females. The per capita income for the village was $18,697. About 6.5% of families and 9.2% of the population were below the poverty line, including 13.1% of those under age 18 and 6.4% of those age 65 or over.

Business and industry

As a bedroom community, Bethalto is home to a branch of , North America's largest independent service center for drive-through communication systems; and , an aircraft servicing and manufacturing company located at the St. Louis Regional Airport, and the . Local restaurants include Geno's 140 Club, The Eagle's Nest, El Mezcal, and Roma's Pizza.
In late October 2006, the segment of four-lane, controlled-access Illinois Route 255 between Illinois Route 143 and Fosterburg Road was opened. This highway provides Bethalto residents with convenient access to the area's freeway system and provides greater through traffic to further economic development for the region.

Parks and recreation

Bethalto Municipal Park

The main park in Bethalto consists of a stage amphitheater, lighted tennis courts, baseball fields, skateboard park, and a newly re-modeled basketball court. The Bethalto Homecoming is held at the park every year. The park is located in the center of town, directly adjacent to the village hall.

Bethalto Arboretum

The Bethalto Arboretum is an arboretum on the east end of town that was developed in 1966 after the demise of the railroad era in Bethalto. It is one of the few arboretums in the area. A directory of trees and bushes contained in the arboretum may be viewed in the mayor and clerk's offices. There are also many plaques, in memory of Bethalto's notable persons, placed next to many of the trees in the park. The park is centered on a road truck on top of a short slab of railroad track. The short piece of track remains in its original position as part of the old railroad tracks that existed to transport coal to and from the area.

Steve Bryant Park

Known as Culp Lane Park until 2014, it is on the northwest end of town. Features include a fishing lake, a children's play area, walking paths, pavilions, a playground, and stretches of attractive landscaping. The park was named for former mayor Steve Bryant, who was instrumental in transforming the town lagoon into a family park.

Bethalto Sports Complex

The Bethalto Sports Complex is located on the north side of town just off Culp Lane. The complex was completed in 2006 and is made up of two baseball fields, two softball fields, two soccer fields, a grandstand, and a concession stand. The complex, which is maintained by the Village of Bethalto, replaced the old baseball and soccer fields located at Civic Memorial High School for varsity and junior varsity baseball, softball and soccer teams. The Indians, the Bethalto Legion team, also calls the complex home.

Khoury League Diamonds

The Bethalto Khoury League Diamonds are located on the south side of town in the Chateaux residential area. The complex consists of four lighted diamonds with a concession stand in the center. The fields are primarily set up to handle all of the local Boys & Girls Clubs of America youth baseball and softball games. The fields are also home to a number of private and select league baseball teams that play there every summer.

Schools

Bethalto Unit Schools are the largest employer in Bethalto and have the greatest impact in terms of land area and government spending. The school district, Bethalto Unit School District 8, is made up of two intermediate schools, three primary schools, one middle school, one high school, a special needs school, an administration building, and an industrial complex.
The list of schools and links to their respective website are as follows:
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Two private schools serving kindergarten through eighth grade are in Bethalto:
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Bethalto is home to a number of religious organizations, consisting of both small and large congregations.
The churches in Bethalto are listed here in alphabetical order: