The Village of Chatham received its name October 22, 1836.
Chatham is located in what was once open prairie between Lick Creek and Panther Creek in Sangamon County, which at that time was about the center of the new state of Illinois, approximately ten miles south of Springfield.
Farmers and their families settled Chatham. Splendid fields of corn, almost without exception from ten to fifteen feet high sprang up over the area. The high degree of fruitfulness attracted many to settle here.
 | The lives of many Chatham people were interwoven with Abraham Lincoln. In 1837, two state senators and seven representatives from Sangamon County managed to convince the General Assembly to move the State Capitol from Vandalia to Springfield. These legislators called the "Long Nine", included Lincoln and John Dawson. Lincoln was a good friend of Rev. Josiah Porter, minister of the Chatham Presbyterian church. Dr. John Lewis, of Chatham, and Lincoln surveyed and purchased rights to build the railroad from Springfield through Chatham to St. Louis. |
In order to secure the move of the Capitol to Springfield, the town donated land (no less than two acres) and had to pledge $50,000 to commence building the State House. For a small town of 1100 at the time, this proved to be a struggle. Money was borrowed from the State Bank of Illinois. A note for the amount was signed by one hundred local citizens and deposited in the bank to pay the last installment of the loan.
Our leaders, teachers and staff are dedicated to providing a top-tier educational experience to every student, at every level. Chatham's reputation as a great place to raise a family is founded in the Village's commitment to investing in our children's education.
Chatham seeks to establish, maintain and enhance the community's park settings and recreational opportunities. In 2010 the Village initiated the first Public Parks and Recreation Commission. An appointed volunteer commission tasked with promoting and encouraging Chatham Parks and Recreation programs.
In 2010, the Chatham Village Board appointed 15 people to the Village's new volunteer parks and recreation board. The Village ordinance was approved to provide short and long term planning, policy development, volunteer building and fundraising in support of Chatham's Parks and Recreation.
| FACILITY | RESIDENT HOURLY FEE | NON-RESIDENT HOURLY FEE | NOTES |
| Jaycee Park Pavilion | $15 | $30 | Has electric outlets |
| South Park Amplitheatre | $15 | $30 | Has electric outlets |
| South Park Pavilion | $15 | $30 | Has electric outlets |
| Veterans Memorial Pavilion | $15 | $30 | Has electric outlets and water |
CHATHAM AREA |  |
The first railroad through Chatham was the Alton and Sangamon Railroad, chartered by the Illinois General Assembly in 1847 to build a railroad from Alton to Springfield by way of Carlinville and New Berlin where it would connect with the Northern Cross, Illinois' first railroad, using their track to enter Springfield. In 1851 the General Assembly authorized the Alton and Sangamon to construct their railroad using the most direct route from Carlinville to Springfield, thus paving the way for the railroad to go through Chatham.
The first train from Alton to Springfield went through Chatham on September 9, 1852, but by then the railroad's name had been changed to Chicago and Mississippi. It was changed again in 1855 to Chicago, Alton and Mississippi and in 1861 to Chicago and Alton, then in 1931 it became the Alton Railroad. The name changed again in 1947 when it was purchased by the Mobile and Ohio and became the Gulf, Mobile and Ohio.
The current station was built in 1902 to replace an earlier station, just north of the present location, that had burned. An early 1900's timetable lists 12 passenger trains a day through Chatham with 2 in each direction stopping at the station. Western Union Telegraph and United States Express services were both available at the station and local residents could ship and receive freight such as furniture, farm supplies, etc. After 70 years of service, the station was closed with the merger of Illinois Central and the Gulf, Mobile and Ohio in 1972. The railroad is currently owned by Union Pacific and is used for freight and Amtrak passenger trains.
The station is owned by the Village of Chatham and was restored by the Friends of the Depot in 1991. In 1999 the Chicago & Illinois Midland Chapter of the National Railway Historical Society signed an agreement with Chatham to re-restore the station and create the Chatham Railroad Museum. The museum will preserve the station and area railroad history for the benefit of the community.
Schedule of Cemetery Fees (Effective 9/1/2024)
Grave Space $1,000.00
Grave Opening/Closing Fees:
Open/Close Regular Grave Space $800.00 (Effective 9/1/2024)
Open/Close Cremation Ash Burial $125.00
Individual burial lots are available in the Chatham Memorial Cemetery on the North side of Walnut Street. Once grave spaces and cornerstones are completely paid for, there will be a deed issued to the owner(s).
The Village of Chatham offers the option of making payments on contract with the Village. However, if payments are not received on a monthly basis, the lot will be returned back to the village.
Please contact the Village office at (217) 483-2451 to learn which lots are available for purchase.
We will attempt to post here the Covenants for all the Subdivisions in Chatham as well the Subdivisions that have signed annexation agreements with us. Some copies are hard to read as they were printed off of microfiche files from the county. If anyone has a copy of their covenants that are in better shape than what we have posted here we would like to obtain a copy. Also if you have a copy of subdivision covenants that are not listed here we would like to obtain a copy.
Please contact:
Jill Butler
Administrative Assistant
217-697-5801
jbutler@chathamil.net
PDFs Coming Soon.......
To talk with one of our staff directly, please call 217-697-4249.
PAY IN PERSON:
Chatham Utility Office - 116 E Mulberry St, Chatham, IL 62629 | M-F 7:30 a.m. to 4:15 p.m.
Please return to us the following:
Return to : Village of Chatham 116 E. Mulberry Chatham, IL 62629 or by email at: vocuo@chathamil.gov
Bills are due on the 15th of each month. There is a 10% penalty if late. The deposit we will hold until you leave Chatham. Please let us know if you have any other questions.
Village of Chatham 217-483-2451
New Business Commercial Customers new to the Village of Chatham. Please use the forms listed below to sign up for Utility Service for Electric, Water and Sewer.
Please return to us the following:
Return to : Village of Chatham 116 E. Mulberry Chatham, IL 62629 or by email to: vocuo@chathamil.gov
Bills are due on the 15th of each month. There is a 10% penalty if late. The deposit we will hold for 18 months. If you are there through that time, we will apply the deposit to your account. Please let us know if you have any other questions.
Village of Chatham 217-483-2451
New Homeowner Residential Customers new to the Village of Chatham, please use the forms listed below to sign up for Utility Service for Electric, Water and Sewer.
Please return to us the following:
Return to : Village of Chatham 116 E. Mulberry Chatham, IL 62629 or by email to: vocuo@chathamil.gov
Rental Customers new to the Village of Chatham. Please use the forms listed below to sign up for Utility Service for Electric, Water and Sewer.
Budget billing is a program available to Village of Chatham residential utility customers to even out their utility costs by paying the same amount each month. Your budget billing amount will be determined by averaging the bills from your previous 12 months and adding 15%. This 15% is an attempt to cover any fluctuations in the actual cost due to supplier rate changes or unexpected weather extremes.
The new utility bill format as shown in the following illustration has been designed to be easier to read and provide customers with more information about their utility charges. Along with the new bill format customers have been assigned a new account number.
Learn More About Your Home's Energy Use! View useful details about your estimated usage, sasonal factors, and cost saving recommendation. The Home Energy Calculator is free and will take less than 10 minutes to complete. Click Here to get started.
There are all kinds of excuses for not saving energy at home. If we all just did some simple things, we could be more efficient and lower our utility bills too. Please visit www.loseyourexcuse.gov to get your family educated and start saving energy for tomorrow.
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| EXPLORE SITE | HELPFUL LINKS | CONTACT 116 E. Mulberry Street 217-483-2451 | Family. |
Glenwood High School
Ball Elementary School
