Peoria

About Peoria

Peoria ( pee-OR-ee-ə) is a city in Peoria County, Illinois, United States, and its county seat. Located on the Illinois River, the city had a population of 113,150 as of the 2020 census, making it the eighth-most populous city in Illinois. It is the principal city of the Peoria metropolitan area in Central Illinois, consisting of Fulton, Marshall, Peoria, Stark, Tazewell, and Woodford counties and had a combined population of 402,391 in 2020.

Established in 1691 by the French explorer Henri de Tonti, Peoria is the oldest permanent European settlement in Illinois, according to the Illinois State Archaeological Survey. The city received its current name when the County of Peoria was organized in 1825 and was named after the Peoria people, a member of the Illinois Confederation. On October 16, 1854, Abraham Lincoln made his Peoria speech against the Kansas–Nebraska Act. Before the onset of Prohibition in 1920, Peoria was a major center of the American whiskey industry, with more than a dozen distilleries operating in the city by the late 19th century—a greater concentration than in any other U.S. city at that time.

A major port on the Illinois River, Peoria is a trading and shipping center for a large agricultural area that produces corn, soybeans, and livestock. While Peoria’s economy is diversified, manufacturing—including heavy machinery, agricultural equipment, metal products, and chemical production—continues to play an important role. Until 2018, Peoria was the global and national headquarters for heavy equipment and engine manufacturer Caterpillar Inc., one of the 30 companies composing the Dow Jones Industrial Average, and listed on the Fortune 100; the company relocated its headquarters to Deerfield, Illinois, in 2018, and then Irving, Texas, in 2022.

The city is associated with the phrase "Will it play in Peoria?", which may have originated from the vaudeville era and is often spuriously attributed to Groucho Marx. Museums in the city include the Peoria Riverfront Museum, the Pettengill–Morron House and the John C. Flanagan House (both of which are managed by the Peoria Historical Society), and the Peoria Playhouse Children's Museum. Wheels o' Time Museum is near Peoria.

Text: Wikipedia · CC BY-SA 4.0

Peoria weather: 7-day forecast

Source: National Weather Service (NOAA).

Live webcams in Peoria

Webcams: Windy.com

Living in Peoria

Median household income

$59,410

Median home value

$156,200

Median rent

$1,005/mo

Median age

35.5

Map of Peoria

Tap any street on the map to see it in Street View below. Map: © OpenStreetMap contributors.

Peoria Street View

Drag the image to look around and tap the arrows on the ground to move. If it says there is no imagery, tap a nearby street on the map above.

Peoria, IL population

Peoria had 113,150 residents in the 2020 Census.

Source: U.S. Census Bureau, Decennial Census.

Peoria at a glance

Sources: U.S. Census Bureau (Gazetteer, ZCTA), USGS GNIS, Wikidata.

Towns near Peoria

• Peoria Heights2.5 mi E
• West Peoria4.0 mi S
• Mossville5.1 mi NE
• Norwood5.3 mi SW
• Bellevue5.3 mi SW
• Bay View Gardens6.1 mi NE
• Spring Bay6.6 mi NE
• East Peoria6.7 mi SE
• Dunlap7.2 mi NW
• Creve Coeur7.5 mi S
• Bartonville7.9 mi S
• Germantown Hills8.2 mi E

Straight-line distance between town centers.

Frequently asked questions about Peoria