Carlock, Illinois

Carlock
Village
Country	United States
State	Illinois
County	McLean
Township	White Oak
Elevation	770 ft (235 m)
Coordinates	40°34′55″N 89°7′57″W / 40.58194°N 89.13250°W / 40.58194; -89.13250Coordinates: 40°34′55″N 89°7′57″W / 40.58194°N 89.13250°W / 40.58194; -89.13250
Area	0.41 sq mi (1 km2)
- land	0.41 sq mi (1 km2)
- water	0.00 sq mi (0 km2)
Population	552 (2010)
Density	1,871.8/sq mi (723/km2)
Timezone	CST (UTC-6)
- summer (DST)	CDT (UTC-5)
Postal code	61725
Area code	309
Location of Carlock within Illinois

Carlock is a village in McLean County, Illinois, United States. The population was 552 at the 2010 census. It is part of the Bloomington–Normal Metropolitan Statistical Area.

Carlock was laid out on January 5, 1888 by John Franklin Carlock. Mr. Carlock owned 160 acres of land. One 80 acre tract was used to plat the original town of Carlock. It was located south of the hard road, Route 9, (now named U.S. Route 150) connecting Bloomington and Peoria. It was one of the last towns platted in McLean County. Just northeast of the present location of Carlock the main road from Bloomington to Peoria, which was locally known as the Old Trail passed or the Old Peoria Trail, ascended a low range of wooded hills. This location had long been of interest to townsite developers. The first attempt was made by a local farmer John McGee, who in 1838 laid out the town of Livingston; it consisted of seven blocks and a town square. Livingston was a total failure. McGee was unable to sell a single lot. The second attempt at town founding was more successful. By the 1850s a small cluster of houses and stores had begun to cluster just west of McGee's townsite. In 1866 a post office was established with the name Oak Grove. On July 17, 1879, an official town plat was filed. Soon there were about twenty dwellings, a large town hall, two general stores, a blacksmith shop, a steam-driven mill a harness and shoe shop, and a brass band. One reporter wrote that all the town needed "is a railroad"

By March 1887 it was clear that a railroad would pass nearby and local people were denying rumors that their town would be picked up bodily and carried to the railroad. The people at Oak Grove sent a delegation to Bloomington to explain to the superintendent of the Lake Erie and Western Railroad the reasons for putting a station at Oak Grove; his reply was not encouraging. Then local farmer John Franklin Carlock, who also had a contract to supply the railroad with oak ties, laid out a new town about a mile and a half away. In November 1879 it was announced that the town movers had arrived in Oak Grove. Buildings were placed on skids and hauled down the hill to the site of Carlock. By February 1888 residents were moving into their newly re-located homes. In June 1888 the Oak Grove correspondent of The Pantagraph reported that "nothing is left of our town but pieces". Further west along the same new railroad, other towns were in motion: buildings from Farnisville moved to Congerville and Chaffers Corners went to the new town of Deer Creek.