Normal is a town located in McLean County, Illinois. As of the 2000 census, the town had a total population of 45,386. The town, originally known as North Bloomington, took its name from the Illinois Normal College located there, an old name for a college to train teachers (see normal school). It is now a general university called Illinois State University. The first Steak n Shake restaurant was located in Normal. It is adjacent to Bloomington, Illinois, and when mentioned together they are known as the "Twin Cities", "Bloomington-Normal", or simply "B-N." The current mayor of Normal is Chris Koos .
Heartland Community College is also located in north Normal, joining Bloomington's Lincoln College and Illinois Wesleyan University to bring the higher-education facilities of the area to four.
Notable places in Normal include the David Davis Mansion and an open-air theatre where ISU's Shakespeare Festival is held each summer.
The downtown campus area is currently being put through a revitalization, bringing more independent businesses as well as a new Children's Discovery Museum. The district is already home to the historic Normal Theater, which is non-profit and runs classic and independent film.
A large percentage of residents of Normal are employed either by ISU, Bloomington's State Farm Insurance, or the Mitsubishi factory.
Geography
Normal is located at 40°30'44" North, 88°59'19" West (40.512189, -88.988701).
According to the United States Census Bureau, the town has a total area of 35.4 km² (13.7 mi²). 35.3 km² (13.6 mi²) of it is land and 0.2 km² (0.1 mi²) of it is water. The total area is 0.44% water.
Demographics
As of the census2 of 2000, there are 45,386 people, 15,157 households, and 8,184 families residing in the town. The population density is 1,286.6/km² (3,332.6/mi²). There are 15,683 housing units at an average density of 444.6/km² (1,151.6/mi²). The racial makeup of the town is 87.57% White, 7.71% African American, 0.15% Native American, 2.21% Asian, 0.04% Pacific Islander, 0.93% from other races, and 1.40% from two or more races. 2.56% of the population are Hispanic or Latino of any race.
There are 15,157 households out of which 27.3% have children under the age of 18 living with them, 42.4% are married couples living together, 9.3% have a female householder with no husband present, and 46.0% are non-families. 26.6% of all households are made up of individuals and 6.2% have someone living alone who is 65 years of age or older. The average household size is 2.43 and the average family size is 2.96.
In the town the population is spread out with 17.5% under the age of 18, 38.1% from 18 to 24, 23.1% from 25 to 44, 13.7% from 45 to 64, and 7.6% who are 65 years of age or older. The median age is 23 years. For every 100 females there are 88.6 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there are 85.5 males.
The median income for a household in the town is $40,379, and the median income for a family is $60,644. Males have a median income of $41,323 versus $27,486 for females. The per capita income for the town is $17,775. 19.3% of the population and 5.6% of families are below the poverty line. Out of the total population, 9.4% of those under the age of 18 and 3.9% of those 65 and older are living below the poverty line.
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