Augusta is a village in southeast Hancock County, Illinois, United States. The population was 587 at the 2010 census, down from 657 at the 2000 census. It is located near Weinberg-King State Park. Geography Augusta is located in southeastern Hancock County at (40.230946, -90.950741). Illinois Route 61 passes through the village, leaving to the west as Main Street and to the north as Center Street; Bowen is to the west, and Plymouth is to the north. Augusta's Main Street continues east from the center of town as Illinois Route 101, leading to Weinberg-King State Park and to Littleton. According to the 2010 census, Augusta has a total area of , all land. History Augusta was founded in 1832 by Joel Catlin and W.D. Abernathy, who was the village's first postmaster. Catlin named Augusta after having a memorable visit to Augusta, Georgia. On September 18, 1858, soon-to-be President Abraham Lincoln visited Augusta, where he gave a speech and stayed at the home of Elder James Stark. Previously, Lincoln's opponent in the historic Lincoln–Douglas debates, Stephen A. Douglas, had spoken in Augusta. In 1864, Congressman James Garfield (the future president) spoke in Augusta on behalf of Lincoln. Other notable visitors include William McKinley and Theodore Roosevelt in the fall of 1900. Only Roosevelt gave a short speech on his trip through Augusta during the campaign. Events Every year in July, Augusta plays host to the Hancock County Fair. Education Southeastern High School is located in Augusta. Demographics As of the census of 2000, there were 657 people, 296 households, and 179 families residing in the village. The population density was . There were 330 housing units at an average density of . The racial makeup of the village was 99.70% White, and 0.30% from two or more races. Hispanic or Latino of any race were 0.76% of the population. There were 296 households, out of which 23.0% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 50.3% were married couples living together, 8.1% had a female householder with no husband present, and 39.2% were non-families. 34.5% of all households were made up of individuals, and 20.6% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.22 and the average family size was 2.84. In the village, the population was spread out, with 19.6% under the age of 18, 7.9% from 18 to 24,