Sherman Village Hall is located at 401 St. John Drive, Sherman, IL 62684.
Phone: 217‑496‑2621.
Neighborhoods
Beginnings [1]
On December 30th, 1959 the Village of Sherman was incorporated following a close vote in which 79 voted yes to incorporate while 57 voters voted no. At the time of incorporation, the Village had a population of 209. Even though the Village of Sherman did not incorporate until 1959, the area known as Sherman was settled much earlier.
Sherman is located about 6 miles northeast of the Illinois State Capitol and owes its existence to the extension of the Springfield & Alton Railroad, now referred to as the Union Pacific Railroad. In 1847, a charter was granted to begin the Chicago and Alton Railroad. The dedication and effort of four men made the extension possible. In 1858, Virgil Hickox, Cornelius Flagg, Joseph Ledlie and David Sherman joined forces to purchase, survey and plat the land later know as "Old Sherman." The original plat consisted of a four-block grid, oriented around the railroad, consisting of 88 lots. The town's name was decided as a result of the four men placing their names in a hat, and by the luck of the draw David Sherman's name was selected.
Many of the people who lived in the area were involved in the coal mining industry. The Peabody Mine was located directly south of the original Sherman plat. The mine thrived for many years until it closed in 1934. The abandoned mine site is now located within the corporate limits of the Village. When the mine closed the town suffered greatly, but with the construction of Route 66 the town managed to survive because of the automobile traffic produced from the newly constructed highway in 1938. In 1962, Sherman was again experiencing change with the construction of Interstate 55. Construction of the interstate began in 1962 and was completed in 1974. The interstate replaced the historic Route 66 and diverted traffic around Sherman instead of through Sherman. Sherman now had an interchange providing access to the interstate and needed to utilize it to their advantage.