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Situated in the Danville, Illinois, Metropolitan Statistical Area, only a couple hours south of Chicago and close to the Illinois and Indiana state border in Vermilion County, lies the small Illinois village of Catlin. As incorporated towns go, Catlin is about as small as they get, with just over 2,000 residents and covering less than a square mile. It would be no surprise then that banking in this area is dependent on providing rural loans to farmers but also construction loans in Catlin, Illinois. Being located near the economic center of Vermilion County, only minutes from its larger neighbor of Danville to the northeast and Champagne Illinois to the west, this community prides itself on being “large enough to serve you but small enough to know you!” That motto reflects the rich farming history of this area, and Caitlin in particular, being a haven for hard-working Midwestern families. Catlin was originally called Butler's Point when James Butler arrived here from Ohio in 1820, built a cabin, put in a crop, and shortly after established a cemetery, which was known as "God's Acre." The first school, also used as a church, was built in 1827 and, most notable for this village, the Potawatomi Trail of Death passed through the town. A marker in Catlin denotes the trail route that was used for the forced removal of 859 Potawatomi Indians in 1838 from Indiana to reservation lands near present-day Osawatomie, Kansas. During this unfortunate journey of approximately 660 miles, more than 40 people died, of whom most were children. Reflecting its nearly two centuries of history, the Caitlin Historical Society is today located in the Woodin house, built around 1827 by Amos Woodin, who worked as a maker and repairer of casks and barrels a little north of the town of Butler’s Point in the 1820s and 1830s. The town remained Butler's Point until some years after the railroad came through, around the 1837 to 1840 time period. The railroad, known as the "Northern Cross Railroad," was one of the first chartered in Illinois. However, almost immediately a feud between the farmers and the railroad began due to the fact that the farmers were angry over having their land divided and the railroad not providing for a station stop in the village. This feud went on for years, during which some of the farmers made multiple attempts to sabotage the tracks and prevent the railroad from coming through town. In March of 1856, the feud was brought to an end when the railroad company agreed to maintain a station stop in the village. The Great Western Railroad President J. M. Catlin was the person responsible for creating the station and the townspeople were so pleased they renamed the village in his honor. Coal deposits throughout Vermillion County resulted in the development of a coal mining industry, with the first shaft being sunk in 1862, not long after the Village of Catlin was platted in 1856. By 1863, the village was incorporated and throughout its long history has been considered more a place where people raised their families rather than create a business or have any building or manufacturing interests. The village today is a bucolic and tranquil little bedroom community surrounded by farmland, where one can still build or buy a house for under $100,000. Given its close proximity of only 35 miles from the major college town of Champaign, Illinois, Catlin is an affordable alternative place to live and commute to Champaign. With the availability of banks offering construction loans in Catlin, Illinois, putting down roots in this quaint village of 2,000 people should be an option for anyone looking to live in the area.
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