Genoa is a city in the north-east corner of DeKalb County, Illinois, United States. It is located on the historic Galena-Chicago stagecoach route. At the 2020 census the city had a population of 5,298, up from 5,193 in 2010.

History Genoa was settled in 1836 by Thomas Madison,  Genoa-Kingston Bicentennial Commission. (1976). Genoa-Kingston bicentennial history and program, 1976. G.K. Bicentennial Commission. an American Revolutionary War soldier from Ashtabula County, Ohio. He named Genoa after a town of the same name in New York. Genoa was incorporated as a village in 1876 and as a city on September 9, 1911.

Geography According to the 2010 census, Genoa has a total area of , of which (or 97.93%) is land and (or 2.07%) is water.

Demographics

Racial and ethnic composition +Genoa city, Illinois – Racial and ethnic compositionRace / Ethnicity (NH = Non-Hispanic)Pop 2000Pop 2010Pop 2020% 2000% 2010% 2020White alone (NH)3,6734,2893,99588.10%82.59%75.41%Black or African American alone (NH)636460.14%0.69%0.87%Native American or Alaska Native alone (NH)86100.19%0.12%0.19%Asian alone (NH)1223380.29%0.44%0.72%Native Hawaiian or Pacific Islander alone (NH)0000.00%0.00%0.00%Other race alone (NH)1030.02%0.00%0.06%Mixed race or Multiracial (NH)25552050.60%1.06%3.87%Hispanic or Latino (any race)4447841,00110.65%15.10%18.89%Total4,1695,1935,298 100.00%100.00%100.00%

2020 census As of the 2020 census, Genoa had a population of 5,298, with 1,922 households and 1,251 families residing in the city. The population density was . There were 1,993 housing units at an average density of .

The median age was 36.2 years. 25.9% of residents were under the age of 18 and 11.2% of residents were 65 years of age or older. For every 100 females there were 107.9 males, and for every 100 females age 18 and over there were 104.6 males age 18 and over.

94.8% of residents lived in urban areas, while 5.2% lived in rural areas.

Of the 1,922 households in Genoa, 38.1% had children under the age of 18 living in them. Of all households, 52.2% were married-couple households, 18.2% were households with a male householder and no spouse or partner present, and 20.7% were households with a female householder and no spouse or partner present. About 24.3% of all households were made up of individuals and 9.2% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older.

Of the city's 1,993 housing units, 3.6% were vacant. The homeowner vacancy rate was 1.0% and the rental vacancy rate was 5.3%.

+ Racial composition as of the 2020 census Race Number PercentWhite 4,177 78.8%Black or African American 48 0.9%American Indian and Alaska Native 22 0.4%Asian 38 0.7%Native Hawaiian and Other Pacific Islander 0 0.0%Some other race 355 6.7%Two or more races 658 12.4%

Income and poverty The median income for a household in the city was $72,795, and the median income for a family was $78,625. Males had a median income of $49,523 versus $28,125 for females. The per capita income for the city was $31,563. About 6.8% of families and 8.8% of the population were below the poverty line, including 8.0% of those under age 18 and 2.1% of those age 65 or over.

Government

Genoa is governed by a mayor and eight-member City Council. The city is divided into four wards, with two aldermen representing each ward. The mayor and aldermen serve four-year terms. The terms of the City Council are staggered such that one alderman from each ward is elected every two years.

City Council Members Term expiration indicated in parentheses Mayor: Jonathon Brust (2029) Ward 1: Christopher Pulley (2029) Ward 1: Pam Wesner (2027) Ward 2: Vacant Ward 2: Walter Stage (2027) Ward 3: Kendra Brahen (2027) Ward 3: Courtney Winter (2029) Ward 4: Gary Roca (2027) Ward 4: Dean Gudeman (2029)

A City Clerk is also elected at-large and serves a four-year term. The current city clerk is Becca Stevenson, whose term expires in 2029.

Education Genoa is part of the Genoa-Kingston (GK) School District with nearby village Kingston. The district has four Public Schools: Kingston Elementary School (Grades K–2), Genoa Elementary School (Grades 3–5), Genoa-Kingston Middle School (Grades 6–8) and Genoa-Kingston High School (Grades 9–12). The school district's mascot is a “Cog”, and the school sports teams are the G-K Cogs (Acronym for Community of Genoa Sports) with the colors being royal blue and orange.

Sports Girls athletics include basketball, cheer leading, cross country, dance team, golf, soccer, softball, track and field, and volleyball. Boys athletics include football, baseball, basketball, cross country, golf, soccer, track and field, and wrestling. The town has three state championships to its name: the football team in 1977, the girls track team in 1989, and the girls volleyball team in 2022. Genoa-Kingston High School competes in the Big Northern Conference (BNC), while Genoa-Kingston Middle School competes in the Mid-Northern Conference (MNC).

Notable person Edward D. Shurtleff, Illinois state legislator and jurist, was born in Genoa.

References

External links City website History of Genoa, Illinois