Fulton, Illinois

City: Fulton

County: Whiteside

State: Illinois

Lat/Long: 41.8667, -90.1500

Formerly known as Bakers Ferry, Fulton is located nearly 140 miles west of Chicago on the banks of the Mississippi River, just across the Illinois border with Iowa. Founded around 1838 and named after Robert Fulton, the town received a U.S. Post Office in March 1838. Its location along the river, abundance of natural resources, and connection to numerous railroads made it a transportation, manufacturing, and commercial hub by the mid-nineteenth century.

Edward Callary, Place Names of Illinois (Urbana and Chicago: University of Illinois Press, 2009), 130; Charles Bent, ed., History of Whiteside County, Illinois, From Its First Settlement to the Present Time (Clinton, IA: L. P. Allen, 1877), 162-63.