Welcome to Dawson ...
The village of Dawson is located in Sangamon County<1>.
The location of Dawson has been provided by the Geographic Names Information System (ie- the GNIS).<2>
The pronunciation of Dawson: DAW-suhn<3>
While we don't have a date for the founding of Dawson, you might consider that their post office opened in 1854.
When the people of Dawson refer to themselves (known as a demonym), they frequently use Dawsonite<4>
From the Census Estimates for 2019, Dawson has a population of 482 people<5> (see below for details).
Dawson is 600 feet [183 m] above sea level.<6>.
Time Zone: Dawson lies in the Central Time Zone (CST/CDT) and observes daylight saving time
Dawson is within the boundaries of the (217) area code.
The ZIP code for Dawson: 62520<7>
Population Details ...
Taken from the 2019 Census Estimates, Dawson had an population of 482 people. This is a decrease of 5.3% since the 2010 Census (or an increase of 3.43% since the 2000 Census).
At the time of the 2010 Census, Dawson had a population of 509 people. This makes Dawson the county's 21st most populous community.
With a 2010 count of 509 people, the population of Dawson increased 9.23% from the 2000 Census (which had a count of 466 people).
More information can be found on the Census Page for Dawson.
Communities Also Named Dawson ...
Using our Gazetteer, we found that there are 28 communities that are also named Dawson - they are located in Alabama, Georgia, Indiana, Iowa, Kentucky, Manitoba, Maryland, Massachusetts, Michigan, Minnesota, Missouri (2), Montana, Nebraska, New Mexico, North Carolina, North Dakota, Ohio, Oklahoma, Oregon, Pennsylvania (4), Texas, Virginia, West Virginia and Yukon.
For more information, see our Tidbits & Trivia Page for Dawson.
Communities near Dawson ...
We have created a list of 10 communities that are near Dawson.
- Springfield
(11 miles [17.7 km] to the southwest)- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Springfield
- Springfield is located in Sangamon County
- Population from the 2020 Census: 113,671 people
- Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Springfield <8>
- Chatham
(17 miles [27.4 km] to the southwest)- Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Chatham have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Chatham
- Chatham is located in Sangamon County
- Population from the 2020 Census: 13,159 people
- Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Chatham <8>
- Sherman
(8 miles [12.9 km] to the west)- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Sherman
- Sherman is located in Sangamon County
- Population from the 2020 Census: 4,660 people
- Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Sherman <8>
- Rochester
(7 miles [11.3 km] to the southwest)- Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Rochester have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Rochester
- Rochester is located in Sangamon County
- Population from the 2020 Census: 3,715 people
- Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Rochester <8>
- Riverton
(4 miles [6.4 km] to the west)- Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Riverton have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Riverton
- Riverton is located in Sangamon County
- Population from the 2020 Census: 3,430 people
- Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Riverton <8>
- Pawnee
(19 miles [30.6 km] to the south)- Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Pawnee have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Pawnee
- Pawnee is located in Sangamon County
- Population from the 2020 Census: 2,646 people
- Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Pawnee <8>
- Athens
(15 miles [24.1 km] to the northwest)- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Athens
- Athens is located in Menard County
- Population from the 2020 Census: 1,893 people
- Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Athens <8>
- Jerome
(12 miles [19.3 km] to the southwest) - Southern View
(12 miles [19.3 km] to the southwest)- Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Southern View have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Southern View
- Southern View is located in Sangamon County
- Population from the 2020 Census: 1,557 people
- Williamsville
(8 miles [12.9 km] to the northwest)- Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Williamsville have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Williamsville
- Williamsville is located in Sangamon County
- Population from the 2020 Census: 1,490 people
- Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Williamsville <8>
To Help With Your Genealogy Research ...
We have a couple of sections for those tracing their genealogy.
We created a list of cemeteries that are in the area around Dawson. Our list includes the location of those cemeteries and we provide an overhead view. See our Cemetery List for Dawson.
Using the information from an 1895 Atlas, we've created a list of communities that were in the area of Dawson. Our list includes information such as whether the 1895 community had a post office or railroad service. See our List of 1890's Communities around Dawson.
We also have a detailed list of newspapers that have been published in the area around Dawson. See our Newspapers Page for Dawson.
TripAdvisor Tourism Pages for Dawson ...
Looking for more information about Dawson? A wonderful source is the TripAdvisor website. We always start with the TripAdvisor Tourism page, where you can read an overview with links that will help you find lodging, restaurants and attractions.
In addition to the Tourism page for Dawson, there are neighboring communities that also have Tourism pages. More information about those communities can be found on our TripAdvisor Page for Dawson.
Adding Dawson to Our Gazetteer ...
We originally found mention of Dawson in both the FIPS-55 and the GNIS. For more information, see the FIPS and GNIS Codes sections on our Miscellaneous Page.
From our notes, the earliest published mention we've found for Dawson was in the document titled List of Post Offices from Cameron Blevins and Richard Helbock.<9>
From that list, the Dawson post office opened in 1854.
We also found Dawson on a map (with an unknown title) dated 1870.
For more details, see References and Mentions for Dawson.
Off-the-Road Links ...
Unfortunately, we don't know of a website for Dawson. If you can help, please contact us through our Feedback Page.
The official website for Sangamon County: www.co.sangamon.il.us/
The official website for State of Illinois: https://illinois.gov
Footnotes ...
| <1> | If you're interested in how the shape of Illinois' counties, including Sangamon, have changed over time, we recommend the Atlas of Historical County Boundaries. |
| <2> | The location has been supplied by the Geographic Names Information System - which is maintained by the U.S. Geological Survey (USGS). While these values should be definitive, we found that accuracy can vary and you should double-check the location if accuracy is required. |
| <3> | The pronunciation we've provided is our attempt to give a phonetic pronunciation for Dawson. While it might not be exactly right, hopefully it will be close. If we have it wrong or there's a better way to pronounce the name, please contact us through our Feedback Page. |
| <4> | A demonym is the name for a resident of a community which is usually derived from (or is related to) the name of that community. In other words, it's how the residents of Dawson refer to themselves. It's important to note that there aren't any rules for taking a village's name and turning it into a demonym. A demonym is informal and while the majority of Dawson may use one name, keep in mind that others may use something different. |
| <5> | Population counts have been provided by the U.S. Census Bureau. For more detail, please visit our Census Page for Dawson. |
| <6> | The elevation is an estimate for the area around Dawson - it will be higher in some places and lower in others. |
| <7> | ZIP Codes have been created by the United States Postal Service (USPS) as a way of grouping addresses to make delivery more efficient. The boundaries of the ZIP Code can be changed, re-assigned, eliminated or overlapped with other ZIP Codes. So keep in mind that any given ZIP Code is only 'loosely' associated with a village (such as Dawson). When looking for a ZIP Code, whether Dawson or elsewhere, it's always best to check the website of the United States Postal Service (USPS). |
| <8> | While we're fans and frequent users of TripAdvisor, you should know that we're also members of the TripAdvisor affiliate program. |
| <9> | A copy of their list with background information can be found at: https://cblevins.github.io/us-post-offices/data-biography/ |