Moweaqua

The name of the village is unique in the United States and Moweaqua’s slogan is “the one and only.” Presumably, the name has a Native American origin. The village seal depicts an Indian head in profile, coal mining tools, corn, and a scythe harvesting grain.

Moweaqua was settled in the 1820s by pioneers who arrived with their ox-drawn wagons. They built log houses on the prairie, clearing it so as to farm.

Grain is still important as seen by Moweaqua’s railroad crossing agricultural infrastructure.  

Moweaqua was a small settlement of just a few families until the discovery of coal in 1889. There was a slowly growing interest in the seam by investors. The American Coal Mining and Manufacturing Company was active in Moweaqua at least by 1893. A group of local businessmen later formed the Moweaqua Coal Corporation.

When the Progressive Miners of America union formed in 1932, breaking away from the United Mine Workers of America, Moweaqua’s miners went to the new radical union.

On December 24, 1932 Moweaqua’s mine suffered a terrible disaster in which 54 men were killed. The mine closed three years after the tragedy, in 1935.

Today there is no evidence of the coal mine in Moweaqua, but there is a memorial. In addition, Moweaqua has a coal mine museum with a collection of material related to the mine disaster and other aspects of coal mining in the town. According to the 2013 issue of Illinois History, Moweaqua preserves the generational memory of its defining loss to the community with a ceremony held every Christmas and Memorial Day, during which each lost miner is recalled.  

Moweaqua describes itself as being “defined less by boundaries on a map than by the sense of shared values our residents hold dear. Small town values, guided growth, preservation of historical, cultural, and natural heritage are just a few of the core principles that makes Village of Moweaqua a wonderful place to call home.” The village is attractive, with much of its vernacular townscape intact along its principal street and a significant commitment to recalling and honoring its mining past and those who sacrificed for the industry.