Cairo, IL
Music connected to Cairo
About Cairo
- • Pulitzer Prize-winning novelist Robert Penn Warren was born in Guthrie, near Cairo.
- • Some argue the culinary delicacy, the horseshoe sandwich, originated near Cairo.
- • Strategic location at the confluence of the Ohio and Mississippi Rivers drove its growth.
- • It was once predicted to rival Chicago in size and importance.
- • The Great Mississippi Flood of 1927 devastated the city and its economy.
- • Named in 1818 after the Egyptian city; incorporated in 1837.
- • Population hovers around 2,000, a steep decline from its peak.
- • Elevation is 315 feet, making it vulnerable to river flooding.
- • Agriculture and related services are the primary sources of employment.
- • There's a feeling of faded grandeur and lingering resilience.
- • The St. Louis Cardinals are the closest MLB team, winning the World Series in 2011.
- • Cairo High School won the Illinois state basketball championship in 1972.