ILLINOIS: Almost All White Towns In A Diverse State - This Is What They Look Like

[@trinkatoxic9197]

Currently living in ,Pana. The town is tearing down most of these buildings. The town is working on revitalizing downtown. Pana will be better soon.

[@bondmood]

Glad to hear it. Unfortunately I live in Chicago. Sorry for what this crappy city and it's corrupt politicians are doing to Southern Illinois. Best wishes my fellow Illinoisan.

[@Christoph-sd3zi]

Unless the corrupt pols are run out of office and taxes are massively cut IL is on a downward trajectory. We left 6 years ago.

[@guyincognito320]

Aka chipotle is coming

[@dennischen8887]

and watch the government triple your property taxes and you'll still be living in rural midwest.

[@antiglobaljoel532]

​​@@bondmoodI live in Springfield. I'll be leaving for Texas in a year or two.

[@JessicaJones-yw5qo]

Wow, this is a cool video. I grew up near Pana and now live in Hillsboro. The former used to be much more lively - the building across from Casey’s used to be a Walmart. A lot of the buildings that were downtown have also been torn down to make room for a truck stop. Every time I go there, it makes me sad. Hillsboro, however, is a group effort. Lots of families here are generational (my heritage here dates back centuries) and want to keep the area thriving. It’s more alive now than it has been in the 13 years now that I’ve lived here. Thanks for showcasing our hard work! Hopefully you are able to come back to the area now that it’s warmer and there is even more to see. It’s gorgeous here when all the trees are green.

[@scalegunreplicas2487]

Grew up right by you. Was just in Hillsboro yesterday haha!

[@kentuckypride3802]

I absolutely love driving the backroads. Small town USA usually always has me in a good mood.

[@thirdeyesurvivor3886]

Year it’s beautiful, I feel like the communities could come together and clean/fix up these small towns and make them beautiful amazing places to live. I feel like that wouldn’t be too hard but of course the government needs to take tax money and make it hard to things to get done.

[@maureen4856]

I think you need to interview people who live there. They have their daily life activities, work, hobbies, holidays, social activities etc.

[@FrigginTime26]

I grew up here. Nokomis, specifically. I know all of the towns in this video well - worked at the DQ in Nokomis they drive by, went to the church they drive by.. stepdad was from Pana. Aunt lived in Hillsboro. Had a good friend in Ohlman. Pretty surreal seeing someone taking the time to document all of the stats of these little towns. Sometimes the youtube rabbit hole takes you down some weird paths but never imagined I'd be seeing part of my childhood just laid out there.

[@actionsub]

With regard to the ubiquity of Dollar General stores, the chain has been very aggressive about placing stores in smaller communities too small to sustain a Walmart or Target store. In some cases the Dollar G is literally the only place in these towns to get groceries without having to go a distance to a full grocery.

[@JJ-iq5cv]

Dollar General Stock Price: $209 - MARKET CAP $47.02B It's an amazing company

[@agentofficerthomasa.porter107]

Yes True It Is The Only Place. What Dollar General & Dollar Stores Do Is Come Into A Town With Only 1 Grocery Store Open & Put That Only 1 Grocery Store Out Of Business.

[@DuckOfRubber]

In many cases those towns only lack other options because Dollar General invaded and put them out of business. Then they jack up their prices so they aren’t even cheaper than the mom and pop they replaced, but Wall St takes the money instead of Main St.

[@RDsRCReviews]

This is very true! My hometown of Red Bud has a population of 3k and they have not 1 but 2 DG stores!!

[@tylerjones2695]

@@DuckOfRubber yeah walmart too

[@ericleckey]

In case this has not already been mentioned. Hillsboro does have an all-male Illinois prison called Graham Correctional Center with an average daily population of around 1900. This would without a doubt skew the stats in regard to the male-female ratio as well as "other races" in an otherwise typical small Illinois town. Prison populations are used in the official stats of a community. This is often used by the local communities in IL especially when they are small. They do this to make a case for financial aid in form of grants and money from the state of IL. So, if Hillsboro has a population of about 5,800 people around 1900 are from the Prison.

[@nelsonmcatee3721]

Ina is the same way. Little bitty town but they have a prison which inflates the population stats. And probably the demographics. There are projects in Ina and there has been black people in those projects, but if Ina is anything like it traditionally was, it's no place for black people.

[@johnswanson3741]

Just as I commented earlier that all these stats are BS. Common sense will dispute these numbers. High crime equals high black populous....period!

[@johnnylong6289]

Understanding statistics is huwhite supremacy...

[@johnnylong6289]

Why? What does it lack that blacks requires to thrive?

[@bec7080]

The prison? Prisons are usually highly segregated. If there are only a few Black inmates then they don't have enough of a population to protect each other from any white nationalists groups in the prison

[@dglorious1269]

Just goes to show you that poverty looks the same no matter the color. I get so sick of the bigots saying that it's only one group

[@cherrysmart3500]

​@@almost41632 Not if you count random mass killings.

[@dglorious1269]

@@almost41632 It does not, so that's a lie. It's just that a lot of Wht crime isn't reported that's all. 😒

[@dglorious1269]

@@almost41632 I don't care, go ahead. But I've seen it with my own two eyes. Folks just want to keep believing the stereotypes. And it's usually the bigots.

[@sarahwinston7828]

@@dglorious1269 How would you know if wht crime wasn't reported? Is it phantom crime you're seeing, or are you delusional?

[@ledzep3692]

Why listen to bigots when you can check ot the data. Plundered groups have generational poverty that just don't go away. They haven't burned all the history books yet.

[@rajeevdeshpande7666]

Hi Lord Spoda Nice video. I appreciate your theme for rural videos. You show downtown, residential, neighborhoods, roads, grocery stores. That gives the correct idea of life and culture in that particular area. Thanks for the video.

[@JoeandNicsRoadTrip]

Thanks, Rajeev!

[@Nemo_IRL]

I grew up in Nokomis. If you've ever seen "That 70's Show", that's about what growing up in the Nokomis was like. I left there a very long time ago and currently living in Florida. Politics and all of our jobs going to other countries is what's causing ghost towns all over America.

[@wawawis]

Florida has their own fair share of problems, and just wait a few year and they will keep getting worse and all hell will eventually break loose. While I tire of Illinois, I certainly wouldn't chose to move to Florida. You can have it! Good luck keeping your opinion of Florida stable over the next several years.

[@Nemo_IRL]

@@wawawis Florida has changed since I moved here in 2016, especially where I live. I think it was said to be the fastest growing county in the state. As much as I love it here I don't plan on staying. Once I retire I won't be able to afford to live here unless I work to supplement my income. That kinda takes the fun of of retirement.

[@mikepotts52]

Grew up in Greenville, live in Donnellson myself now.

[@bondmood]

​@@wawawisAll hell will break loose from what?

[@skivvywaver]

Christmas decorations in small towns are usually put up by older volunteers. Even the Lions club is aging around here. My old ass isn't going to climb around outside until it warms up. I guess theirs isn't either.

[@rickreimann4377]

Most of these town in the video had coal mining as an industry. Mining jobs have almost been abolished in central Illinois. These towns are the result of a flourishing economic time gone by. As mentioned earlier almost all rely on mega agricultural and support functions of that industry.

[@chuckrobinson599]

Yeah, that was a plank in Obama's platform, close all coal mines.

[@nelsonmcatee3721]

They did the same to Southern Illinois too. Where I'm from we don't consider these towns on this video to be Southern Illinois.

[@lorihoop3831]

I live in Coal City. You can guess what the main industry was, and we're right by the river, too.

[@LightoftheMoon]

Thank you very much for remembering the coal mine history of central Illinois!

[@JTR253]

Isn’t Illinois coal bad quality compared to lets say Wyoming or is it just cheaper to import out of state?

[@DM-ll3lw]

What a surprise in my morning newsreel. I grew up in the area, went to school in Pana. It has changed a lot in the last 35yrs. I used to work a summer job in Litchfield when I was in college, mostly because the only jobs in Pana were at the grocery store or pool and there were several kids competing for those limited slots. I drove through all of these little towns on my way to and from. Time has not been kind to small town America.

[@williamauld4083]

Hi, I'm really enjoying your content. I'm Scottish but live in England. When I was young we were inundated with American programs. It made me curious to understand American life styles. You have opened my eyes to how the great American dream is crumbling. I'd rather you were promoting prosperity but you have been so honest about the decline of the American dream.

[@SweetBluebonnet]

When someone only shows degradation, I can see how you would think that. This channel is notorious for that.

[@70stunes71]

Well you are being not honestly represented of facts here.. What is not being told, Is that most of these small towns were dependent upon the local farming community when it came to businesses, And when the small farms eventually got taken over by the huge industrial farming complex, That was the beginning of the end for the small towns. People started having to drive farther to work, To shop, And for pretty much all products across the board. I have lived my whole life in one of these tiny towns... I even lived in England for 3 years, During my military time. Our small town's struggle underneath the extreme taxation that is demanded of us locally, By the state, And by the federal government. The small town could not sustain all of us any longer... In some parts of the country they have degraded, And a lot of the buildings are in ruins but that does not mean the community is. It just means that there's no small farm left there... It has been bought out by the larger industrial farmers. You can go to every single state and see this same thing.. It's sad but the small farms will never come back. It would take a world Cataclysm to make that happen. Many people moved away from these small towns also. The only thing that brings any people back is perhaps the beginning of a business venture... Such as manufacturing or more stores... And this does happen. But for some small towns it's just never going to happen... America is a vast place and like anywhere business can only thrive where there is population to supply demand.

[@lowrider81hd]

Not just the American dream is not crumbling. The entire western world. Wherever there’s not enough ‘muh diversity’, governments are intentionally crumbling the communities. It’s big business. We are just dollar signs to them.

[@lowrider81hd]

@@c.edgerton I mean excuse me, but have you looked around New Zealand, Australia, Europe? I don’t know where you’re from but unless you’re from an African country, you have no right to complain about the USA. All western countries are simultaneously being brought to their knees. Except Russia and look what happens there.

[@spaceghost8995]

The stereotypical "American Dream" was really just a brief period in the post war 1950's . If you a straight white Christian non-disabled male things were pretty swell for you. If you weren't ...well...😂

[@williebeamish5879]

Demise of the family farm and rise of big ag in the 80's and 90's pretty much killed many of these small rural farming communities. The young folks had to leave for more urban areas to find work and the older folks stayed in their communities, the only thing they knew. Sad. See same across the country. Be interesting to see if the current "homesteading" movement, organic farming, and the search for affordable housing might revive some of these rural towns. Have to have high speed internet, though, for remote working.

[@sunnyday7843]

Yeah - it will be interesting !

[@Candisa]

I don't live in the USA, but I do live rural because I prefer having a bit of land I can partly live from, so consider me part of the "homesteading movement"... If only looking at the price of land and housing was to be considered, those rural towns would be ideal for the homesteading movement... However, and this is from the Wikipedia page 'Politics of Illinois': "It is considered one of the most Democratic states in the nation and following the 2018 elections, all six statewide elected offices are held by a Democrat.[1] However, there is a sharp division between Democratic cities, college towns, and population centers, and highly conservative rural regions, which continue to be dominated by Republicans". Many people who are seeking a different lifestyle than the 9-to-5 city life are also diverse from the christian straight cis white neurotypical standard. I'm a green-social-liberal-minded autistic LGBTQ atheist myself and I can safely say I would never consider moving there unless I know plenty of diverse/progressive-minded people are moving there approximately at the same time to drown out the conservative population.

[@djtriggamth]

It’s like this in western maryland too

[@Droo75]

@@Candisa’m not American either but your rhetoric is bigoted. ‘Drowning out’. Stay in your lane if you assign others their own.

[@Candisa]

@@Droo75 That's how geodemographics simply work all around the world, I don't say I like it, I don't say anyone should like it, but as long as people see issues in all kinds of cultures living together, you'll get the powergame of numbers.

[@jamey48]

The house in Nokomis is going for 237,500. But there is a small house going for 14,500. Pretty nice. Needs a bathroom remodeling.

[@debbiecowger4422]

Thanks! I was going to look that up.

[@morningcoffee187]

I noticed that all these towns were very clean. No trash on the streets and/or in vacant lots. Most of your videos have a lot of trash everywhere. They may be poor. They may have rundown buildings. At least they have enough pride in their town to pick up trash when they see it.

[@heidikelseyritchey8000]

Town can be restored. It's your mayor who needs to go to Springfield, IL personally and get grants for your building bricks, structure and more repairs from ILLINOIS State. Elderly who are low income can get $10,000 or little more for personal elderly and disabled people help on their home. Vets never forgotten for grants are their to grab too. Go ask your mayor to get grants. Fairfield, IL got big ones.

[@stevenwinebrenner1353]

I grew up in a small town just a few miles to the east of Pana. Tower Hill. My grandparents lived on a farm just outside of Pana until they enlarged the lake either in 1949 or 1950 and flooded the area where their farm was located. You took me back a few years when you went downtown and passed the building where my father worked. That time frame would have been 1953 and '54. I have not been back there since 1970. But, after seeing your video I am going to go back there and see how all that area has changed and what if any remains the same. Thank you for posting this.

[@paulram4210]

I lived in tower hill too...

[@johanconradie2120]

Most lovely, one's childhood surroundings

[@druranium]

just wanted to tell you, your videos and commentary are amazing. thanks for giving us all a tour of current day America from our living rooms.

[@JoeandNicsRoadTrip]

Wow, thank you!

[@LesMorrisracing]

@14:10 the Invisible cat 🐈‍⬛ Found cat #2 😻 Thanks for the ride along you did find some nice homes.

[@poodlegirl55]

I wish you would have come to Mattoon! We aren't that far from where you are and you could see an old Central Illinois town that looks beautiful and is thriving, even the down town area.

[@rosemarythyme8595]

It’s Pana like you say the letter A in the alphabet. What a throwback and a surprise to see this!! That’s where my great grandparents used to live. I lived with my grandma in Rockford Illinois. I would go with my grandma and my great aunt to visit my great grandparents in Pana and oh my gosh I just loved being there. I remember the trains going by. To this day every time I hear a train by my house I smile with fond memories. She made homemade peach ice cream and homemade strawberry ice cream. She had lots of peach trees. It was so awesome when I was a kid to get out of Rockford and go to Pana. I loved being there. I always loved traveling and I still do.❤

[@josephunderwood7877]

The last brown house that you showed in Witt is where my mother grew up, and where my grandmother lived until her death

[@eliasthienpont6330]

Water Tower: There is a smaller pipe inside of the one you are looking at as well structural material. There may be a ladder there also. The base flares out. There may be a work area, bur whole reason for the base chamber is for a furnace to keep the entire system ice free in the winter.

[@dorothyball6003]

Love the cat sightings My parents are from Herrin Illinois, which is about 130 south of Witt. My dad moved us to Oklahoma in the early 50’s and I have lived in Oklahoma all my 67 years. I have visited Illinois. All my relatives lived/ live in small towns Great video,as always. Thanks for sharing. I enjoy your videos, so much!

[@jdrandom8353]

I live in Herrin right now! Lol

[@nknasi]

small world... my grandma (also named Dorothy) was born and raised in Herrin and I visited there several times as a child.

[@markcantemail8018]

@View Bot Our Dodge Caravan Is from Logan County , Ok and moved to Kane County ,Ill . Now it is in Western , N.Y ,small world .

[@nelsonmcatee3721]

My mom's best friend moved from Herrin. I'm going there tomorrow.

[@kirstendieker9798]

Fellow Okie here! My husband and I moved back from the Boston area a few years ago in order to be near my aging parents, especially as my father had begun to decline due to dementia. I wouldn't give up these last few years for all the gold in Ft. Knox! And my children became the fourth generation to graduate from our local high school! Incidentally, my family has an Okiehoma- Illinois connection too! My dad's father grew up in Quincy! And he met my grandma when he came to Spavinaw as part of the team building a massive bridge to span the man- made lake that now supplies water to the city of Tulsa. Fun fact: Before my grandma met my grandfather she dated Bob Wills, the King of Texas Swing. She was in the crowd at a dance where Bob and his Texas Playboys were performing. He had one of his crew go into the crowd and bring her up to the edge of the stage, asking her, "Where can I call you?" He must've been quite taken with her because he wanted her to move to her aunt's home in Texas so they'd be near each enough to have an ongoing relationship. I asked her one time why she didn't go and she said she knew that being with a man like that--heavily drinking, always on the road, and surrounded by all the associated temptations--would ultimately lead to heartbreak and not happiness. My wise Grandma! I hope to someday visit Quincy, but Pryor Creek, Oklahoma will always be "home" to me! If the other Okies among us don't mind sharing: What town do you call home?

[@DonutCrossing]

Go to Arthur, it's very close to Pana & is a tiny Amish village, you'll see all the roads have horse & buggy lanes.

[@sunnyday7843]

Do you remember Rockhome gardens ? I know it’s gone now - but we enjoyed it ! We saw a bluegrass festival there once . Mostly enjoyed how peaceful that area is and the Buggies - the ice Cream shop -

[@Ravenspell3]

Mennonites horse n buggy folk in Ramsey now and Shobonier

[@The1ByTheSea]

Southern Illinois ,Southern Indiana and Southern Ohio are a different world than their cities .People think of Illinois,Indiana and Ohio as highly industrialized:yes .In the North and cities .The south of these states is pretty rural .

[@chubbrock659]

This may sound weird but your voice makes the channel. It’s a good timbre and resonance. Perfect narration voice. 👍

[@JoeandNicsRoadTrip]

Thanks! 😃

[@tomraw4893]

Thanks for your great tour around Illinois. I m in Australia, and love to see these places.

[@toddsmith5715]

Fun fact: In 1988, Pana won the Boys Class A (small schools) state basketball title. They defeated a very good Pinckneyville team, which I believe was favored.

[@TOCC50]

14 88

[@nelsonmcatee3721]

We play ball in these small towns in Illinois. Almost as good as Indiana. Our small town teams would beat the heck out of the small towns in CA, TX, and FL.

[@toddsmith5715]

@@nelsonmcatee3721 Agreed. I'm from a town in the southern part of the state, and we had several teams that had tradition and could flat out play back when I was in high school.

[@davidsuch8942]

Wow.5th rate basketball. Congrats.

[@christopherenge4934]

Yes, Pana had a great team that year. And yes, Pinckneyville was heavily favored. The Pana coach lived next door to us, I think he played at Western Kentucky. He really knew how to get results.

[@stevek4654]

Nokomis looks like a nice place to settle down. I'm addicted to these videos.

[@peach5123]

Looks like the Hood!

[@bradwalz109]

I'm from Raymond, folks still live there. Too funny to see it on your channel! I'm 52, when I was a kid there were two small grocery stores at one time downtown. As well as a bowling alley, newspaper, library & a few other businesses. Not much left as can be seen.

[@grungemetal1996]

I grew up right in this area. I went to high school in Nokomis!!!

[@grungemetal1996]

And yes grandma’s kitchen in Irving is open, but sometimes not too many customers. Good fried chicken and pizza

[@Jenny-of3vb]

At 1 time Pana had lots of green house's for Roses but no longer. The park is so nice with bridge lots of fun in the summer. Like so many small towns people have moved away. Illinois small farm community are dying. When traveling I always look for a Casey's, clean bathrooms.

[@TinkerTailor4303]

And pizza!!

[@maryreynolds8568]

12:15 It's probably the rectory, where the pastor lives. It also houses the parish offices.

[@martingainty9623]

Each of the Hillsboro properties seem to have a unique Architectural Style so it appears each house was hand-crafted by craftsmen that were proud of the houses they constructed Nice to see some towns didnt go 100% stupid putting up Parking Meters which drives customers out-of-town to the local Walmart Keeping businesses and people coming downtown is the key to prevent blight and decay and ghetto-ification

[@JessicaJones-yw5qo]

My house is in that segment of the video and it was constructed for a judge back in the late 1800s! These homes were very much status symbols for a lot of people back in the day. I can’t speak for other residents but I take pride in keeping this house mostly as it was at the time of its construction.

[@martingainty9623]

@@JessicaJones-yw5qo I have slate roof on my 100 year old house because ALL houses had slate houses 100 years ago...these older tradesman are tough to locate Many Thanks For Sharing

[@christaylor9095]

Pay parking is not a problem unless the cost is too high. So many want everything to be awesome, but then want to melt down when it costs them an extra $1.50.

[@burndog5520]

Can't wait until you visit more of Iowa and Wisconsin...some beautiful areas and interesting ones here.

[@JoeandNicsRoadTrip]

This summer. Looking forward to it!

[@MonarchCorporate]

@@JoeandNicsRoadTrip You should do central Wisconsin. There's some very small towns, some Mennonite, in Marathon county in the vicinity of Wausau. Brokaw, Ringle, Rib Falls, and Irma are some that come to mind off the top of my head.

[@abef.9085]

N.H...has some Great area"s for touring.

[@gordonvincent731]

Traveled many times to Pana doing my genealogy week on my late Dad's side. He grew up in Shelbyville. Both towns look like ghost towns because in between the town towns is a Walmart, hence the sad condition of both towns. Pana with a long first A.

[@JoeandNicsRoadTrip]

To be fair, I thought Pana looked pretty nice.

[@geoffreydonaldson2984]

The church is Romanesque-except for the spire. Note the arch-top windows rather than pointed as in Gothic. The “Pastor’s house” is called a Manse. Great channel.

[@JHeyworth1]

I really really enjoyed this wandering some of the little towns in my state. Thank you!

[@annabelleb.8096]

That hardware store at the end was so cool. I hope they stay open. I felt like going in and taking a look! And I wonder if property taxes are as high in these towns as they are in Crook County. Property taxes doubled over the past three or four years. It's ridiculous.

[@byrdsdoityourselfgarage7330]

Nice, clean little towns. Even the old run down properties

[@CARLOS62B]

Thank you for sharing your adventure. Greetings from York. England.

[@mitchburk5112]

Pain ah Almost every small town in Illinois and most of the midwest grainbelt look basically alike. There is always a large grain elevator and it sits along a railroad or what was once a railroad. The main highway is on the other side. The downtown is along the highway or off side streets near the elevator. The towns are almost always spaced about ten miles apart. That is because when this area was settled that was a distance a farmer could travel in one day by horse and wagon to bring his grain to the elevator. The elevators gathered the grain and then loaded it on to railcars to send to milling centers.

[@billm4330]

The house that comes into view at 3:43 was built around 1900.

[@rebeccadoty-evans4499]

If you get back this way during the summer definitely visit Beecher City for the track events ( mud drags and tractor pulls) , Altamont for one of the best county fairs in the state.

[@allenrmontana]

I enjoy your segments on the neighborhoods in these small towns instead of some development going up on the outskirts...though I know that isnt a problem in most of the towns you go to. You get a real feel for a town by going down the residential streets, where the people actually live. Really looking for forward to where you want to go in Montana.

[@DblOSmith]

I love your channel so much. I love cruising small towns, learning and talking about it, stopping at local greasy spoons just like you do. No one I know is interested in it. I wish I could ride with you! I have a whole list of small towns I'd like to go to just because.

[@JoeandNicsRoadTrip]

Thank you for the kind words. :)

[@SandraSkaggs]

you did not seem to point out that most of these small towns have grain mills, that's because most are just farm communities and a lot of them have lost the youth to move for better paying jobs since big farms have taken over. This has happened all over the US

[@LightoftheMoon]

The miles and miles of June corn blowing in the wind is a sight to see when driving around the area. The Monsanto corn sign's are disturbing to see though ~

[@darrellh1587]

Hillsboro has a large prison. That is what skews its numbers. Prisoners count as population.

[@rosiecatbandit]

I'm tree watching in these videos and you're passing a lovely veteran tree on the left at minute 17:48 ❤

[@mssn3166]

Pana looks like a barren town but one that is still alive, without crime, and surviving through hardships. All these white towns have respectful population and do not do crime to each other. Everyone seem to be hardworking and supporting themselves in their way instead of going around stealing, looting, breaking into ppl's home like Chicago and the ghettos.

[@krazyfan2000]

Keep believing that there's no crime.

[@franciscloutier5387]

I thought the same - the crime stats skew pretty strongly along racial numbers Pretty damning indictment of certain communities

[@UnCannyValley67]

It actually has a slightly higher than avg crime stats, although the majority of the population is aged 60+ years old, as he explains.

[@zeeqq105]

He just said there was crime. You see how bad these towns are and look how you’re trying to spin it because they’re white.😂😂😂 Un-fking believable!

[@Theywaswrong]

Well, I hope it wasn't lost on you at around the 21:00 mark, that building with the motorcycle mural. As you went on past, I noticed that in a town of 300+, middle of nowhere, they don't have much.......BUT they DO have a T-TEEZs Bar! But I also have to wonder what the staff looks like (social security age?) and would you REALLY be that desperate on a Saturday night, to travel to Irving and hit the T-TEEZs bar !!!!!

[@lesterbreeze2004]

Thank you for sharing the video. Lived in Pana in the late 1970’s. Was a wonderful area and people. Had forgotten about the towns surrounding the area. ❤ 12:59

[@johngault6261]

I always got a root beer at the drive in on the south of the park. In the 70s

[@noeldelrosario2403]

Watched not skipping the ads. Hello from the Philippines! 🇵🇭

[@Michael-ep7lx]

Many try to divide Americans along racial lines, but these videos show the major distinctions between Americans are class. Lower class, middle class, and upper class. Poor, middle-class, and wealthy. These towns that are nearly all white don't look much different from the towns in the South that are mostly Black or mostly Hispanic. What do they have in common? Money - specifically the lack thereof. Poverty.

[@danielgreer9811]

Some try to divide along political party lines, but these videos show me that usually it is more economic than bad political leadership. Changes in the economy that supported these small towns such as the mine closing, or flooding (like we saw in Cairo, IL) or the freeway bypassing a community can cause decline. Politics can sometimes play a part, but I suspect usually it is macro economics.

[@sergpie]

​@@danielgreer9811 Decisions and policies are made based on economic (and other) indicators; the economy does not exist in a vacuum, and we're not subject to it, as much as it is subject to those whom hold the most stakes within it. IE; Switzerland saw the inflationary storm coming months before American news outlets made a meme of it, and has suffered none of the ill-effects of the economy, because of adequate foresight and policymaking

[@danielgreer9811]

@@sergpie Not sure it was as much foresight and planning as the fact that the Swiss economy is so different. Mean wealth of $696k per adult and a steep cost of living. Zurich and Geneva are sixth and seventh on list of world’s most expensive cities. CNBC. Rich people are generally less impacted by price rises as they tend to spend less on essentials. Swiss France is very stable. They have hydropower and so energy cost increases were only half as high as in other places. The Swiss also employ price controls. The economy is so different everywhere because of unique local circumstances, as we see in the towns we visit with Mr. Spoda. No doubt government policies can play important parts in economic vitality. I was only saying that often politicians point at certain situations and attribute all the good or all the bad to a certain politician or party. It is a lot more complicated than that. Thanks for your thoughts. Be well and take care

[@toomanybears_]

You missed the boat by not stopping in Mattoon, IL and eating at THE Burger King. The place has history including it's somewhat famous lawsuit with Burger King in which they prevailed. It's an old style diner that served good hamburgers and milk shakes. It's well known in the area.

[@sunnyday7843]

We used to like visiting Mattoon and Lake Shelbyville !

[@littlecatfeet9064]

There was a lawsuit in Australia with a local Burger King suing the chain as well. So the Burger King chain is called Hungry Jack’s. Food is the same.

[@geraldstone8396]

These are all farming towns. In the early 1900s you needed help to run farms about ten people to run 500 acres. Now two people can run 1000 acres.

[@jdarst100]

Yep, you nailed it.

[@davidcora2751]

Love this because it’s a direct commentary of the present and how it relates to the past. Amazing and thought provoking. Thanks,and this information is very valuable to create future policy.🙏. After all the responsibility of government should focus on the interests of the working taxpayers as well as the infirm.🙏

[@peggieadamson9330]

I see grain elevators in every town!!!

[@havingfunvids]

No kidding dumb a..

[@Imperfect21stCenturyPioneer]

That's a lot of the rural Midwest for you! Iowa and Indiana at least are the same way.

[@chrispickerel2034]

I was born in Hillsboro. We moved away when I was 1, so I do not remember the town, but I bet I was baptized in that Catholic church you showed. I think maybe the last time I was ever there might have been 1966 or 67.

[@cosettelaplante699]

A lot of the small towns in southern Illinois have families who have been there 3 to 4 generations. Small towns are relatively safe, friendly, and have low cost of living. Jobs aren't always plentiful. However, that's why people drive to the next county to work. Or if they live along the border, they'll go to Indiana, Missouri, Kentucky, Iowa, and Wisconsin to work. A lot of the towns don't have hospitals. As for young people, they'll go to bigger county or another state. As for diversity... bigger towns, like over 6000k do have some minorities. One very White town I lived in has a Black sheriff's deputy. Most towns do have Hispanics and Asian.

[@tim3172]

"Small towns are relatively safe" I *UGE* you to educate yourself on the per capita violent crime and felony rates of small towns.

[@Dylanquinn666]

I love those little single screen movie theatres. They're so charming. We don't really have them in Ireland, only big multiplexes, but when I lived in Toronto I loved going to the Royal and the Revue.

[@yaimavol]

Movie theaters are all gone in the rural areas now, except for maybe the historic ones that a town may try to preserve. There's just not enough business anymore to support a theater, so you have to drive to a larger city.

[@chrisruss9861]

Your stickybeak tours are enjoyable. That's the charm of social media, a nothing story about something.

[@csanant1]

I am just an hour away. You should visit our town, Monticello. Interesting because we have a " Millionaires Row". Beautiful old homes that over a 100 years ago, the ruch from Chicago built as second homes. We also have Allerton Park, an old growth forest. I think Pana has a hard A. like PAYNA. LOVE your videos.

[@Jenny-of3vb]

Allerton park is so nice for a hike

[@JoeandNicsRoadTrip]

We plan on visiting Monticello/Champaign/Decatur area this summer. :)

[@sunnyday7843]

I lived in Champaign for a long time and we loved going to Lodge Park out in Monticello as well. Nicks park was nice for the kids - so peaceful compared to Champaign urbana . I loved the old fashioned parks we could still find back then with teeter totters and fall swings and slides !

[@danielbackley9301]

Also has a railroad museum.

[@chiplikestoparty]

Monticello is the best small town in IL. Probably in the US. :)

[@katiemoyer8679]

Ask about anyone in THE True Southern area of Illinois….. Pana is in CENTRAL Illinois. &… The True MOST Southern part of Illinois has terrain more suggestive of Ozarks, not the stereotypical Illinois prairie. Nevertheless….Your channel is very interesting, ty.

[@brettphillips3091]

I drive through Pana a few times a year, sad little city. They have cleaned it up this last year.

[@janesmith2182]

Your channel is awesome ! Watching from Canada. Makes me wanna visit all these places !

[@CaseyBlake-n8o]

I LOVE your video's! Nice job ❤

[@JoeandNicsRoadTrip]

Thank you!

[@Vassilika1]

1:38 thanks for mentioning the Celsius temperature. Cheers from Canada and the rest of the world. 😎

[@Ravenspell3]

Hit up Vandalia too. You were about a week too soon for the annual 60th something Lions club ,Ramsey townwide auction yard sale and vendor fair. But it was unseasonably cold this year. Ramsey is a small town Past Oconee on route 51. Go a little further and then you have Vandalia, Illinois which was the Is location of 1st state capital building in Illinois. And you can tour there are 2 other museums in Vandalia. And a wonderful Thai food restaurant called Bann Thai. There are several state parks in the area Lake Shelby, Ramsey State Park , Which has a nice driving tour through it. Lake Vandalia and more.

[@ShelbySquatch]

I reside in shelbyville which is about 15min east of pana (pronounced payna) and my wife is from pana. Although pana is dying more and more each year and has issues with drugs etc. Since pana's Walmart closed a few years ago then shelbyville's crime has risen. Pana was once a great little town but that was years ago.

[@nellberry3769]

I love watching you, loved seeing Illinois! Is possible for you to do something in Rock Island? The towns surrounding there. I'll be waiting and watching.

[@seanhayes1965]

I’ve driven through a few of these towns. It’s like the world forgot about them. It reinforces the importance of the railroads.

[@badapple65]

Christmas decorations are not still up, they just went up early😝, back to school sales just begun, early as well. If a medium to large manufacturer opened in each of these towns there would be a resurgence. Should be tax advantages offered to try to make that happen even on the federal tax break level, but, there is not.

[@larrycearlock2320]

You didn't say anything about Rosemond,il you went through

[@davidmartell1525]

The absence of people in these videos I've seen so far is striking. Lovely houses or not (in some places), there is a soulless character that is truly depressing. Wisconsin Deathtrip anyone......anyone?

[@kathrinekerns8398]

When I see all the grain elevators, I think of the time when America was the bread basket of the world. I wonder if agriculture is still a viable asset for these towns? I love the adventure and seeing all the great older homes. 🤗🤗🤗

[@ardiris2715]

Yes, agriculture in southern Illinois is booming. Modernization wiped out the need for these small towns. (:

[@listenhere1623]

​@@ardiris2715 yep but the tax from those farms and few businesses that support them is pretty much the only thing keeping many towns around

[@ardiris2715]

@@listenhere1623 I doubt the towns are getting much in taxes from farms outside their town limits.

[@listenhere1623]

@@ardiris2715hillsboro has its city limits extended past the town proper to get more of it and anything outside goes to the county. So yeah the majority if taxes come from farms

[@ardiris2715]

@@listenhere1623 That has a political consequence as it gives those farmers the right to represent themselves by running for local office. (:

[@Mudhen2020]

A college buddy was from Morrisonville. We went to their fair and had a good ol time. They have the large bullfrog jump every year.

[@catfeline1530]

Watching this made me think of John Cougar's Jack and Diane song lol

[@CharlottePrattWilson]

I like the Victorian style houses too. Probably because they are so intricate, they are hard and expensive to maintain. That’s why you don’t see them much anymore.

[@annfoster6116]

This is fun watching from Toronto canada

[@MrLa1983]

It’s spelled like PAY NA 1:28 Store on right wit red trim paint on corner is free store Wit $2 donate tip To help out 2:40 Blue car nex to bricks is my buddy car & dats his church wit pew out front 4:45 On right side Is now a gas station Called jack flash 4:50 Da painting I think Dey took it off Or repaint over it

[@emzywillrich7243]

There were over 5,000 students in the UT Arlington's School of Business where I received my marketing degree.

[@robertdrews5532]

Is it always overcast in Illinois?

[@brokeish]

i think it would be cool if you did a video every now and then in each state that is opposite of the small town but a bigger town like Schumburg illinois or northbrook or barrington somewhere with a higher with amedian of 100k to see the contrast between these smaller town and bigger town. Could be interesting view for some viewers especially ones outside of the US

[@JoeandNicsRoadTrip]

I've started doing that. I visited Paducah, Kentucky in one series of videos, and Metropolis, Illinois in another. It's a good idea, and I'll probably start doing it more.

[@billnoakes42]

I am always amazed at how many homes still have TV antennas

[@JR-playlists]

I can tell you what happened; factory farming displaced small farmers and manufacturing jobs moved overseas due to corporate greed

[@zoidmo3388]

Luv this vid. Once again such a pleasure NO graffiti/tagging. So respectful. You mention the crime rate which kind of shocked me in some of these towns you tour. No ppl walking or sitting on porch but some mighty fine older homes. I'd love to live in a nice quiet, no graffiti. small populace town for my remaining days. I hate the City I'm trapped in. Canada has changed 'that'!!! much. Oh pardon, me CanChinastan.

[@5amH45lam]

I'd be more worried about your white Premier than the racial breakdown of your country. Way more worried... Not that the two factors aren't linked in some way, I might add...

[@ladybirdlee3058]

The median population age of these towns is between 35 and 60. Not exactly the age for graffiti.

[@zoidmo3388]

@@ladybirdlee3058 The comment I made regarding graffiti - I've made in comparison to my hood & my city. There are 40yr -60yr old angry persons & their methedone dose has been reduced. The illegals that arrive by the hundreds roam the streets, steal & get caught become angry bec they've been informed the city gives you everything for free. They vent by graffiti . In your towns, only those under 35 use graffiti to vent. High crime rates but respectable for taxpayers property. How fortunate.

[@georgerowe9166]

I grew up in Girard and now live in Springfield. When I was a kid, Girard's square had a grocery store, a pharmacy, a retail store, a TV/electronics store, barber shops, hair salons, lumber yard, two video game arcades, a pizza joint and a hardware store. Now almost all are gone. One poster said big Ag was the demise of small towns. For Girard, it was big Ag and the closing of the coal mines. I'm not saying its losing its population, it's still a great place to live but it was a completely different community.

[@RBS.2]

We are from Brasil 🇧🇷 Por gentileza, coloque opção de traduzir nos comentários... Deus abençoe América.

[@cynthialindsey6975]

Great videos! I love all the interesting numbers! It’s crazy how some of these towns have so many widows! By the way, I’m in Urbana Illinois and I’m about to order a Casey’s breakfast pizza! Lol! Casey’s has excellent breakfast pizza! Next time you are near a Casey’s in the morning grab a slice! The bacon one is the best! Also, gas is way cheaper where I am! Walmart is only 3.32. But around town 3.30+

[@JoeandNicsRoadTrip]

Those Casey's are pretty awesome.

[@nozzledrich]

My Dad grew up in Urbana!!!. Left in 1939 after graduating HS and went into the Army.

[@BillboBirsay]

The thing I always find weird is the lack of pavements in the residential areas in small towns

[@jakestarr4718]

its not a concrete jungle... its a small town

[@anne-marieberk]

Yep we just walked down the streets back in the day lol

[@1L6E6VHF]

Us US people call them "sidewalks":)

[@charleshoang566]

Maybe nobody walk around here.

[@tim3172]

Nothing is within walking distance so everything is set up for point-to-point driving.

[@monkeymanstones1]

What would be great to know is how police department budgets are decided. Most places like here in Massachusetts those budgets are based on the number of arrests a department makes (convictions from those arrests play zero role). This means to increase a department's budget chiefs often instruct officers to go out and arrest all people they can. Here in Massachusetts if someone begins punching you, if police arrive you and the person hitting you are both arrested and charged. That way the department shows 2 arrests when only 1 should have been so. It causes the department budget to increase... So in a large portion of the country crime stats are unreasonably biased based on those arrests. So, stating if department budgets are based on arrests rather than convictions would be an excellent statistic to provide.

[@erickingsbury7193]

I like your videos....I especially like seeing the "old downtowns".....I only wish you would connect with some of the building owners or renters so that we could see the inside of some of these buildings...

[@actionjacksonsg]

Doing a great job, very interesting thanks buddy 😊

[@JoeandNicsRoadTrip]

Thanks, Aaron!

[@Kolibrito_art]

there is a famous saying in small towns in Mexico. "pueblo chico, infierno grande" it means "small town, big hell"

[@petenicholls718]

It's PAna, these towns are pretty nice to live in. Peaceful, low crime and safe. Keep your crime ridden chicago attitude .

[@havingfunvids]

😂

[@Psychodermia]

I live in a town of 200+ people in Washington State. You cannot judge the people by the appearance of the town. When I first moved here from the city, I thought that most people that lived here were a bunch of backward rubes. But after living here for 11 years, I've found that there are many people here that have NO issues with not having money, they just don't make it obvious. Most of it is through hard work and ingenuity. Many of he kids (25-30 y.o.) who started mining here have moved out to take other mining jobs making $150k+. Not many ever went to college, but they own their own homes and drive new vehicles. They come home during their days off to camp, fish and enjoy the lives they've always known. This beats the city by a mile! 😁

[@jadapinkett1656]

Matrix drones.