Home » Illinois » Plainfield

James W. Loewen (1942-2021)

We mourn the loss of our friend and colleague and remain committed to the work he began.

Plainfield

Illinois

Basic Information

Type of Place
Independent City or Town
Metro Area
Politics c. 1860?
Unions, Organized Labor?

Sundown Town Status

Sundown Town in the Past?
Probable
Was there an ordinance?
Sign?
Year of Greatest Interest
Still Sundown?

Census Information

The available census data from 1860 to the present
Total White Black Asian Native Hispanic Other BHshld
1860
1870
1880
1890
1900
1910
1920
1930
1940
1950
1960
1970
1980
1990
2000
2010
2020

Method of Exclusion

Main Ethnic Group(s)

Group(s) Excluded

  • Black

Comments

Email 1/2008:

I grew up in Joliet in the 70’s and early 80’s. During those years, it was commonly known that Plainfield had a volunteer fire department that would not protect African American homes in the event of fire. The implication was the community would use arson to attack Black families that settled within the city limits.
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One local resident suggests that the town was a meeting place of the KKK. (email, 7/2012)