Community Resources

Erie Community Unit School District #1 provides all the advantages of a small school community, coupled with the resources to supply the benefits typically provided to larger schools. We were the very first Community Unit School District and we will always be Erie 1.

Our student to teacher ratio is 10:1 which allows us to create a tailored learning experience to ensure the success of all students. These small class sizes also help foster citizenship and student engagement in our active sports and music programs and variety of student organizations.

Students also benefit from our innovative learning spaces including the new state of the art STEM lab at the High School. Students grade 1-12 are enabled to succeed in today’s technology driven environment by equipping them with laptops and iPads. These are just a few examples of the many resources that ECUSD #1 provides to our students to ensure that they thrive during their k-12 education.

We strive to give every student the opportunity to excel in a high-quality learning environment, surrounded by outstanding faculty and staff, and incorporating 21st century technology. We take pride in knowing that our faculty and staff work together to put our mission statement into action, we at ECUSD #1 are Growing together, pursuing purpose and finding you.

Heritage Park
Heritage Park is a 5-acre park situated just north of the downtown. The park features a variety of play equipment, swings, a baseball diamond, a volleyball net, and a beautiful pavilion that is available for reservations for community members. 

To reserve the pavilion at Heritage Park, call the Village Office at 309- 659-7740.

GUIDELINES:

• This is a Public Service at no cost.
• Please clean the area when you are finished using it.
• Do NOT overload electrical outlets. You will be charged if Village Employees are called out to reset.
• No alcohol is allowed.
• This is a public park. Others may be using other areas of the park outside the pavilion. Please be respectful of everyone.

Glenn Miller Marina
Located on the Rock River, the Glenn Miller Marina is a beautiful access point for boats, kayaks, and canoes and known by locals for its great catfishing. Also known as the Erie Boat Launch, the marina is located next to the Erie Campground and features a large parking lot with plenty of space to park your boat trailer while you hit the water. 

Latitude – 41 38 18
Longitude – 90 03 58

Big Bend Fish and Wildlife Area

Located just 1 mile outside of Erie across the Rock River, Big Bend is every hunter’s paradise. With 2,376 acres, including 46 acres of water, this public hunting ground is a popular destination for deer, turkey, and duck hunting.

Big Bend is also a popular destination for outdoor enthusiasts to hike as it has many miles of beautifully maintained trails. It is not advised to go walking during hunting seasons without high-visibility clothing.
Vandamme Road, Prophetstown IL 61277
View more information from the IDNR

• The Erie Food Pantry is open to all community members who reside in the Erie School District.
• The pantry is open the 3rd Friday & the preceding Wednesday of each month. Hours on Friday are from 9-10 am, Wednesday hours are 6-7 pm.
• To register, simply complete a short form during their monthly pick-up times. 
• There is always an assortment of produce, meat, canned goods, cleaning supplies, etc
• Watch the ‘Erie Food Pantry‘ Facebook page for further info.
• Any questions can be directed to Gerilyn Pritchard (309-659-2332) or Curt Huizenga (309-236-0282)

2022 Village of Erie Water Report

Printed copies of the 2022 Water Report are available at the Village Office upon request.

SEWER & GARBAGE RATES

Sewer Rate with Water Service = $50.00 Bi-Monthly
Water Rate is $10.00 per 1,000 Gallons of Metered Use.
Sewer Rate without Water Service = $60.00 Bi- Monthly
Garbage Rate for All Users = $19.00 Bi-Monthly

Billing is Bi-Monthly on the first of the month on Odd Months. (January, March, May, July, September, and November.) Payments are due on the 20th of the same month. Make payment to “Village of Erie” at Erie State Bank. Return bar code side of bill with payment.

If using Bill Pay through your bank, your account number must be on the check. Billing address is PO Box 37 Erie, IL 61250-0037.

Keep in mind that they send us a check in the mail. Allow at least 7 days for payment to reach us. All payments received after the original due date will be assessed a 10% late charge. All accounts with a negative balance at the end of the billing month will receive a discontinuance letter and final date for delinquent amount due. If not paid IN FULL, by the date and time on letter, a “Red Tag” will be placed on the door as notification of Shut Off. The “Red Tag” also adds $15.00 charge to the account. If notification is sent to Renter, A copy will also be sent to the Owner of the property.

Disconnection/Reconnection of Services costs $150.00. The full amount with all additional fees shall be Paid in Full prior to reconnection.

Garbage and Recycle Toters are provided by Moring Disposal at residence.
Garbage = Brown Lid Recycle = Tan Lid
Please refer to “Rules and Regulations” from Moring Disposal that are attached.

Should any of the below listed holidays occur on a regularly scheduled collection day, the collection for said day shall be rescheduled to the next day, and all subsequent collection days following the holiday shall occur one day behind schedule until the beginning of the next full work week.

New Year’s Day, Memorial Day, Independence Day, Labor Day, Thanksgiving Day, Christmas Day.

Strada Communications is a locally owned and operated Fiber Optic Internet Service provider located in Rapids City, IL. We started with our first customer in 2017 and now service most of the Rapids City, Port Byron and Erie communities. We provide 100% Fiber Optic internet service to our local & rural areas because we know how limited the options are, and wanted to provide the most reliable, affordable, and state-of-the-art internet service out there.

Sign up is easy – visit our website: https://stradacomm.com/erieresidents/ and provide a few pieces of information to get started. There are no installation costs, contracts, data caps or hidden fees. We have plans to fit your home or business and please call our office at 309-496-3737 to speak to a member of our team with any questions. Our team is working hard to get Erie connected and will have our first customers connected before too long. Follow us on Facebook @StradaComm for updates!

King’s Kloset is a non profit organization serving Erie residents in need. It is a second hand store run completely by volunteers. They accept donations and sell a variety of household items, furniture, clothing, shoes, jewelry, and more. The money raised by King’s Kloset is used for individuals and other organizations in need throughout Whiteside County. Residents in need of supplies or assistance are encouraged to stop by the store during their open hours. 

Wednesday and Friday 9:00am-4:00pm
Saturday 9:00am-noon
834 Main Street

• 1839 – The first church established in Erie was the Methodist church. The first regular preaching began in 1839 but even before this time there were occasional services held in homes when one of the circuit rider preachers would pass through. Norris Hobart was the first regular Methodist preacher to hold services. The first meetings were held in a log schoolhouse.
• 1850 – The village of Erie was laid out.  First home built by Orville Brooks. There was also a tavern and schoolhouse. 
• 1852 – Erie Township was organized. The first settlers in Erie township, Lewis and Lafayette Crandall, brothers from Erie County New York, named the lake between Erie and Fenton after a beautiful lake in their native state – Erie. The name was then given to the precinct township and the village. The brother later established a ferry on the rock river to transport stagecoaches, trappers, and pioneers.
• 1855 – The first sawmill was built.
• 1868 – Thirst flour mill was built.
• 1869 – Railroad service to Erie was established. It ran parallel to Main Street, similar to today. The first train entered Erie on January 20th 1869 and had services from Sterling to Barstow and later to Galesburg. 
• Burchell’s General Store opened.
• 1870 – Erie’s population reached 695.
• 1872 – The Village of Erie was incorporated on April 10th. Joseph Grover was elected as the first President of the Board of Trustees on September 17th. 
• 1873 – The first cheese factory opened in Erie. It was owned by JC Hubbart and by 1881 was producing 25,000lbs of cheese! 
• 1875 – The first newspaper was established and called the Erie Bulletin. The subscription cost was $1.00 per year.
• 1877 – Erie has grown throughout the years. Businesses in 1877 included: the sawmill, three general stores, two hardware stores, a furniture store, two hotels, two saloons, a meat market, two harness shops, five dress shops, two grain elevators, a cheese factory, a flour mill, two livery stables, a barber shop, a cooper shop, two blacksmith shops, two wagon shops, three carpenter shops, two paint stores, a windmill factory, an implement store, a photographer, a florist, two layers, and three physicians. 
• 1881 – Long thin wires were extended toward Erie as more people were trying out the newly perfected machine called the telephone. 
• 1892 – First Erie Rock River bridge was built at a cost of $21, 500.00.
• 1896 – First High School was built. Six teachers were employed; 1 primary, 1 intermediate, 1 grammar, 1 music and 2 others.
• 1896 – R.L. Burchell opened an opera house with 400 seats. Traveling companies stopped there for performances and drew in crowds from surrounding communities. 
• 1896 – H.T. Beardsworth opened the Bank of Erie. 
• 1899 – The first electric plant began operation out of the home of William Waite. Private users were supplied with three lights.
• 1902 – A second theater was opened by R.V. Breed. They started the fall season with a magnificent production in the new auditorium titled The Little Princess. The Erie Herald declared that the audience was spellbound. 
• 1903 – Erie Woman’s Club was organized on March 28th.
• 1903 – R.L. Burchell organized the First National Bank of Erie. This was the only bank to survive the great depression of the 30’s. 
• 1905 – A small triangular park was placed in the center of the square by the Erie Woman’s Club and named Margaret Park in honor of founder and the first president, Mrs. Margaret Burchell.
• 1908 – The Erie Woman’s Club donated the historic cast iron fountain which remains as the focal point of the downtown triangle to this day.
• 1920 – American Legion Post 582 received its charter on August 1st. There were 35 original members.
• 1920 – There were five windmills in Erie. Three were individually owned and had elevated wood tanks used to store water for various purposes.
• 1921 – Village water system was finished. 
• 1925 – Village Square paved.

So it began…the Erie Town “square” (which is really a triangle) was originally three Indian foot-paths, later a stage and wagon road and in 1925 was paved and took much of the appearance we see today. The words of Chief Black Hawk, are worth repeating…”Rock River was a beautiful country.  I like my towns and my corn fields, and the home of my people. I fought for it; it is now yours. It will produce you good crops.”

• 1945 – Erie Rotary Club was organized on August 27th. They were very active in civic projects and met each week. 
• 1959 – Erie Lions Club was organized in June. Their group sponsored many civic projects. 
• 1966 – The Erie Fire Protection District was established on April 23rd and served both the village and surrounding rural areas. 
• 1968 – The Erie Public Library was erected on the corner of 8th ave and 8th street as part of a fundraising project by the American Legion post 582. 
• 1972 – The village of Erie held a grand centennial celebration. The events included a historical pageant titled “From Ferry to Freeway” on July 19th. 250 local people took part in the performance which was held on the Erie high school athletic field. They also held a historical parade that was attended by 10,000 people! It included a kazoo band of Boy Scouts, clowns from the Geneseo Fire Department, vintage tractors, the Erie High School Tin Pan Colossal Band, antique cars, a drum and bugle corps, the Centennial Queen, Miss Illinois, stilts walkers, Arabian horses, and much more! 
• 1972 – Erie has …… Stores and businesses included: a dry goods store, a hardware store, two saloons, two grocery stores, a dress shop, two grain elevators, a cheese factory, two barber shops, six carpenters, two implement stores, two florists, two lawyers, two physicians, a drug store, two restaurants, a bank, two dry cleaning shops, a casein plant, a bowling alley, meat processing and locker service, a plumbing shop, a heating shop, an electrician, a dentist, two fertilizer plants, three body shops, five gas stations, three insurance agencies, two drive in restaurants, a men’s clothing store, a television store, a veterinary clinic, bottle gas company, two auctioneers, five trucking firms, stock yards, a newspaper, a funeral home, a feed mill, three bulk petroleum agents, a laundromat, and ten beauty shops.