Belleville is a city in St. Clair County, Illinois, United States, and its county seat. It is a southeastern suburb of St. Louis. The population was 42,404 at the 2020 census, making it the most populous city in Greater St. Louis's Metro East region and in all of Southern Illinois south of Springfield. Due to its proximity to Scott Air Force Base, the city has a significant population of military and federal civilian personnel. It is the seat of the Roman Catholic Diocese of Belleville and home to the National Shrine of Our Lady of the Snows.
History
In 1814, George Blair Belleville after the French phrase belle ville, meaning "beautiful city". Because Blair donated an acre of his land for the town square and an additional adjoining the square for the new county seat, the legislature transferred the county seat from the village of Cahokia, which French colonists had established as a mission village in the late 17th century.
Belleville was incorporated as a village in 1819, and became a city in 1850. Major immigration in the mid-19th century to this area occurred following revolutions in Germany, and most of the European-American population is of German ancestry. Many of the educated Germans fled their homeland after the failure of the Revolutions of 1848 in the German states. Belleville was the center of Illinois's first major German settlement. By 1870, an estimated 90% of the city's population was either German-born or of German descent."Labor and Industry Museum", Labor and Industry Museum: Belleville History, accessed December 1, 2010
After the Civil War, Belleville became a manufacturing center, producing nails, printing presses, gray iron castings, agricultural equipment, and stoves. It became known as "The Stove Capital of the World". Illinois's first brewery was established in Belleville. In 1868, Gustav Goelitz founded the candy company known today as "Jelly Belly".
An immense deposit () of bituminous coal was found in St. Clair County. By 1874, some farmers had become coal miners. One hundred shaft mines were in operation in and around Belleville. The coal brought the steam railroad to town, which allowed for the daily shipment of tons of coal from Belleville to St. Louis for use in its industries, homes and businesses. Later, Belleville had the state's first electric trolley.
Belleville's first houses were simple brick cottages, known locally as "German street houses" or "row houses." Architectural styles flourished in greater variety, featuring American Foursquare, French Second Empire, Greek Revival, Gothic Revival, Italianate, Queen Anne, and Victorian. The Belleville Historic District, which was listed on the National Register of Historic Places in 1976, comprises 73 contributing properties.
The Old Belleville Historic District was defined and recognized in 1974 and is the city's first historic district."Village Profile", Village Profile: History and Culture, 1997, accessed 1 December 2010 The city also has designated two more historic districts: Hexenbuckel, established in 1991, and Oakland, established in 1995."Labor and Industry Museum", Labor and Industry Museum: Other Historic Resources, accessed December 1, 2010
Belleville's early German immigrants were educated, most of them having graduated from German universities. They were nicknamed "Latin Farmers" because of this. After 1836, Gustav Koerner contributed to establish the Belleville Public Library, which is the state's oldest, predating the Illinois State Library by three years. The German settlers also founded choirs, theater groups, and literary societies, and established one of the nation's first kindergartens.
In 1990, Belleville surpassed neighboring East St. Louis to become the most populous city in the Metro East and in Southern Illinois.
The National Civic League recognized Belleville in 2011 as one of the ten recipients of the All-America City Award. Belleville is coterminous with the now defunct Belleville Township.
Major employers within the city limits include BJC HealthCare (doing business as Memorial Hospital), Empire Comfort Systems, Peerless Premier Appliance, Allsup, Belleville Boot Company, Illinois American Water (corporate office, quality control and research laboratory), Permobil US, Roesch Inc., Beno J. Gundlach Co., Chelar Tool & Die, International Paper, Triple Sticks Food Inc., Kaskaskia Engineering, and Mathis Marifian & Richter Ltd.
In 2021, Belleville elected Patty Gregory as its first female mayor.
Belleville Police Department The Belleville Police Department was established in 1814 when Belleville was first organized as a village.Nebelsick, Alvin Louis. History of Belleville. Belleville Historical Society, 1908, p. 47. https://libsysdigi.library.illinois.edu/oca/Books2008-06/historyofbellevi00nebe/historyofbellevi00nebe.pdf At the time, the department consisted of a lone constable, who made up the entirety of the department. In 1850, the position of a city marshal was created due to the growth of the community.Nebelsick, Alvin Louis. History of Belleville. Belleville Historical Society, 1908, p. 112. https://libsysdigi.library.illinois.edu/oca/Books2008-06/historyofbellevi00nebe/historyofbellevi00nebe.pdf In 1854, the City Council voted to give the city marshal additional help by appointing a deputy marshal to four different sectors that made up the city.Nebelsick, Alvin Louis. History of Belleville. Belleville Historical Society, 1908, p. 113. https://libsysdigi.library.illinois.edu/oca/Books2008-06/historyofbellevi00nebe/historyofbellevi00nebe.pdf By 1867, the department had a city marshal, chief of police, a captain of the night police, and four policemen.Nebelsick, Alvin Louis. History of Belleville. Belleville Historical Society, 1908, p. 113. https://libsysdigi.library.illinois.edu/oca/Books2008-06/historyofbellevi00nebe/historyofbellevi00nebe.pdf By 1890, there were 12 people in the department- the city marshal, the night police captain, a sergeant, and 9 policemen.Nebelsick, Alvin Louis. History of Belleville. Belleville Historical Society, 1908, p. 113. https://libsysdigi.library.illinois.edu/oca/Books2008-06/historyofbellevi00nebe/historyofbellevi00nebe.pdf In 1913, there were 15 policemen.Nebelsick, Alvin Louis. History of Belleville. Belleville Historical Society, 1908, p. 113. https://libsysdigi.library.illinois.edu/oca/Books2008-06/historyofbellevi00nebe/historyofbellevi00nebe.pdf By 1939, there were 21 members in the department, and by 1951, there were 35 members.Nebelsick, Alvin Louis. History of Belleville. Belleville Historical Society, 1908, p. 113. https://libsysdigi.library.illinois.edu/oca/Books2008-06/historyofbellevi00nebe/historyofbellevi00nebe.pdf As of 2025, there are 75 sworn-in members of the Belleville Police Department, and more than 25 civilian support personnel who make up the department.
Geography According to the 2010 census, Belleville has a total area of , of which (or 98.83%) is land and (or 1.17%) is water. Richland Creek flows through much of Belleville.
Climate
Demographics
Racial and ethnic composition +Belleville city, Illinois – Racial and ethnic compositionRace / Ethnicity (NH = Non-Hispanic)Pop 2000Pop 2010Pop 2020% 2000% 2010% 2020White alone (NH)33,34130,34524,17180.51%68.22%57.00%Black or African American alone (NH)6,37711,23113,56915.40%25.25%32.00%Native American or Alaska Native alone (NH)92113900.22%0.25%0.21%Asian alone (NH)3284244180.79%0.95%0.99%Native Hawaiian or Pacific Islander alone (NH)2325330.06%0.06%0.08%Other race alone (NH)57721860.14%0.16%0.44%Mixed race or Multiracial (NH)5151,1052,3431.24%2.48%5.53%Hispanic or Latino (any race)6771,1631,5941.63%2.61%3.76%Total41,41044,47842,404 100.00%100.00%100.00%
2020 census As of the 2020 census, Belleville had a population of 42,404. The median age was 38.6 years. 22.5% of residents were under the age of 18 and 15.8% of residents were 65 years of age or older. For every 100 females there were 91.3 males, and for every 100 females age 18 and over there were 88.2 males age 18 and over.
99.6% of residents lived in urban areas, while 0.4% lived in rural areas.
There were 17,993 households in Belleville, of which 27.9% had children under the age of 18 living in them. Of all households, 34.7% were married-couple households, 21.4% were households with a male householder and no spouse or partner present, and 36.7% were households with a female householder and no spouse or partner present. About 36.4% of all households were made up of individuals and 13.3% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older.
There were 20,573 housing units, of which 12.5% were vacant. The homeowner vacancy rate was 3.7% and the rental vacancy rate was 11.5%.
+ Racial composition as of the 2020 census Race Number Percent White 24,579 58.0% Black or African American 13,667 32.2% American Indian and Alaska Native 137 0.3% Asian 431 1.0% Native Hawaiian and Other Pacific Islander 36 0.1% Some other race 596 1.4% Two or more races 2,958 7.0% Hispanic or Latino (of any race) 1,594 3.8%
2010 census As of the 2010 Census, there were 44,478 people, 18,795 households, 11,081 families living in the city. The population density was. The racial makeup of the city was 69.8% White, 25.4% African American, 0.3% Native American, 1.0% Asian, 0.1% Pacific Islander, 0.6% from other races, and 2.8% from two or more races. Hispanic or Latino of any race were 2.6% of the population
Of the 18,795 households 27.7% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 38% were married couples living together, 16.4 had a female householder with no man present, and 41% were non-families. 34.4% of households were one person and 10.8% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age of older. The average household size was 2.3 and the average family size was 2.9.
The age distribution was 23.3% under the age of 18, and 12.9% over the age of 65.
2000 census At the 2000 census there were 41,410 people, 17,603 households, and 10,420 families living in the city. The population density was . There were 19,142 housing units at an average density of . The racial makeup of the city was 81.51% White, 15.51% African American, 0.26% Native American, 0.81% Asian, 0.07% Pacific Islander, 0.41% from other races, and 1.43% from two or more races. Hispanic or Latino of any race were 1.63%.
Of the 17,603 households 28.4% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 42.0% were married couples living together, 13.5% had a female householder with no husband present, and 40.8% were non-families. 35.1% of households were one person and 14.0% were one person aged 65 or older. The average household size was 2.27 and the average family size was 2.95.
The age distribution was 23.4% under the age of 18, 9.0% from 18 to 24, 30.3% from 25 to 44, 20.1% from 45 to 64, and 17.2% 65 or older. The median age was 37 years. For every 100 females, there were 88.9 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 85.0 males.
The median household income was $35,979 and the median family income was $46,426. Males had a median income of $33,361 versus $25,375 for females. The per capita income for the city was $18,990. About 9.3% of families and 11.7% of the population were below the poverty line, including 16.2% of those under age 18 and 9.3% of those age 65 or over.
Arts and culture
The Belleville Philharmonic Society was formed in 1866, making it the second oldest philharmonic orchestra in the country.Belleville Philharmonic Society Symphony Orchestra With the increase in the black population and migrants from the South, musicians developed who played blues and jazz; later rock clubs were added to the scene.
Jay Farrar (now of Son Volt), Mike Heidorn, and Jeff Tweedy (now of Wilco) of the now-defunct alt country group Uncle Tupelo are from Belleville. Another major musician was Neal Doughty, keyboardist for 1970s rock band REO Speedwagon.
Museums