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A Gazetteer for the United States and Canada
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Welcome to Pecatonica ...

The village of Pecatonica is located in Winnebago County<1>.

The pronunciation of Pecatonica: PEK-uh-TAHN-i-kuh<2>

While we don't have a date for the founding of Pecatonica, you might consider that their post office opened in 1853.

From the  Census Estimates for 2019, Pecatonica has a population of 2,077 people<3> (see below for details).

Pecatonica is 750 feet [229 m] above sea level.<4>.

Time Zone: Pecatonica lies in the Central Time Zone (CST/CDT) and observes daylight saving time

Area Codes for Pecatonica: 815 & 779<5>

The ZIP code for Pecatonica: 61063<6>

Population Details ...

Taken from the 2019 Census Estimates, Pecatonica had an population of 2,077 people. This is a decrease of 5.38% since the 2010 Census (or an increase of 4.01% since the 2000 Census).

At the time of the 2010 Census, Pecatonica had a population of 2,195 people. This makes Pecatonica the county's 9th most populous community.

The population of Pecatonica represents 0.02% of the total population of Illinois (which has 12,830,632 people), making it the state's 471st most populous community.

With a 2010 count of 2,195 people, the population of Pecatonica increased 9.91% from the 2000 Census (which had a count of 1,997 people).

More information can be found on the Census Page for Pecatonica.

Communities near Pecatonica ...

We have created a list of 10 communities that are near Pecatonica.

  • Rockford
    (14 miles [22.5 km] to the east)
  • Freeport
    (14 miles [22.5 km] to the west)
  • Loves Park
    (18 miles [29 km] to the east)
  • Machesney Park
    (16 miles [25.7 km] to the east)
  • Roscoe
    (19 miles [30.6 km] to the northeast)
    • Roscoe is located in Winnebago County
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Roscoe
    • Population from the 2020 Census: 10,406 people
    • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Roscoe <7>
  • Rockton
    (17 miles [27.4 km] to the northeast)
  • Byron
    (13 miles [20.9 km] to the southeast)
  • Winnebago
    (6 miles [9.7 km] to the southeast)
  • Mount Morris
    (18 miles [29 km] to the south)
  • Davis Junction
    (19 miles [30.6 km] to the southeast)

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 Pecatonica. Our list includes the location of those cemeteries and we provide an overhead view. See our Cemetery List for Pecatonica.

Using the information from an 1895 Atlas, we've created a list of communities that were in the area of Pecatonica. 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 Pecatonica.

We also have a detailed list of newspapers that have been published in the area around Pecatonica. See our Newspapers Page for Pecatonica.

TripAdvisor Tourism Pages for Pecatonica ...

Looking for more information about Pecatonica? 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 Pecatonica, there are neighboring communities that also have Tourism pages. More information about those communities can be found on our TripAdvisor Page for Pecatonica.

Adding Pecatonica to Our Gazetteer ...

We originally found mention of Pecatonica 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 (so far) for Pecatonica was in the document titled List of Post Offices from Cameron Blevins and Richard Helbock.<8>

From that list, the Pecatonica post office opened in 1853.

For more details, see References and Mentions for Pecatonica.

Footnotes ...

<1>If you're interested in how the shape of Illinois' counties, including Winnebago, have changed over time, we recommend the Atlas of Historical County Boundaries.
<2>The pronunciation we've provided is our attempt to give a phonetic pronunciation for Pecatonica. 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.
<3>Population counts have been provided by the U.S. Census Bureau. For more detail, please visit our Census Page for Pecatonica.
<4>The elevation is an estimate for the area around Pecatonica - it will be higher in some places and lower in others.
<5>When there's a risk of an area code running out of phone numbers, an 'Overlay Area Code' is created that has the same geographic boundaries as the existing area code. In this case, the 815 code has been Overlayed with the 779 area code. New phone numbers in the Pecatonica area will be assigned with one of these codes: 815 or 779. As a result, placing a call in the Pecatonica area will require 10-digit dialing (where you enter both the area code and then the phone number).
<6>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 Pecatonica). When looking for a ZIP Code, whether Pecatonica or elsewhere, it's always best to check the website of the United States Postal Service (USPS).
<7>While we're fans and frequent users of TripAdvisor, you should know that we're also members of the TripAdvisor affiliate program.
<8>A copy of the Blevins & Helbock Post Office list with background information can be found at:

      https://cblevins.github.io/us-post-offices/data-biography/