Princeton

Princeton is a city in Bureau County, Illinois, United States. The population was 7,501 at the 2000 census. It is the county seat of Bureau County. Princeton is part of the Ottawa–Streator Micropolitan Statistical Area. Princeton was settled in the 1830s by families from New England and the Mid-Atlantic states. Princeton was a stop on the underground railroad. This was located at the home of Owen Lovejoy. Princeton was supposedly named by the dra... more

Princeton is a city in Bureau County, Illinois, United States. The population was 7,501 at the 2000 census. It is the county seat of Bureau County. Princeton is part of the Ottawa–Streator Micropolitan Statistical Area. Princeton was settled in the 1830s by families from New England and the Mid-Atlantic states. Princeton was a stop on the underground railroad. This was located at the home of Owen Lovejoy. Princeton was supposedly named by the draw from a hat. The story goes as follows: "The naming of the township of Princeton was the privilege of the three trustees, Roland Moseley, John Musgrove and John P. Blake. When these men came together to act upon the subject of christening this new legal division of land, each one had a favorite name to present. It is only natural when one wanders away from the scenes of his early life that he should feel a longing for something that looks or sounds like home, so it was with the school trustees of what is now Princeton. They each presented the... less