Fairmont City

Fairmont City. The Road to America. Between 1880 and 1920, nearly 24 million immigrants arrived in the United States. Many found work in the mines, mills, and factories of America's rapidly expanding industrial sector., In 1913 American Zinc, Lead and Smelting Company established an ore processing plant outside East St. Louis, near rail lines south of the National Road. Immigrants from Croatia, Czechoslovakia, Poland, Mexico, Spain, and other nations came to St. Clair County to work in the plant. They were among the first residents of a newly chartered village named Fairmont City., From a common metal and an uncommon array of backgrounds, languages, and beliefs, these immigrants and their families forged a vibrant, culturally diverse community on the Main Street of America. , Carril's Market, From 1925 to 1978, residents of Fairmont City frequented Carril's Market for meats, breads, canned goods and other groceries. John Carril and his sister Neadie were the first generation of Carrils born in America. Their father, Manual Carril, followed the zinc industry from Spain to Cherryvale, Kan., and later relocated to Fairmont City, where he opened Carril's Market., The Nite Spot Café, In the early 1950s, the Nite Spot Café served meals to tourists and truckers around the clock, seven days a week. The café employed 14 waitresses and three full-time cooks. , Owners Adam and Anne Galas stocked the gift counter with toys, jewelry, figurines, and sundries ranging from shoe laces to shaving kits., Truck drivers could order a Lionel Train set on display at the café, then collect the toy on a return trip. The service assured gifts for children of time-pressed truckers and repeat business for the Nite Spot Café., A Road of Dirt, Rock, And Dreams, In 1806, President Thomas Jefferson signed legislation to provide federal funding for a National Road. Surveyed from Cumberland, Md., to the Mississippi River, the National Road was a highway for pioneers eager to settle the West., Today, as US 40, the National Road in Illinois spans 164 miles. From Indiana to East St. Louis, you can still see how the ambitions and accomplishments of early Illinois immigrants shaped our communities. You'll find their influence in our art and architecture, our industry and agriculture, and in our way of life. Enjoy your time on the Road., (photo captions:), ·Immigrants formed social clubs to preserve their culture, language and traditions. The Mexican American Society of Fairmont City hosted fiestas and celebrated Mexican holidays at the Mexican Hall, located on the National Road. The band Honorifica provided dance music., ·In the early 1900s, immigrants to St. Clair County brought brawn, experience, and ingenuity to the zinc ore processing plant that became Fairmont City's anchor industry. , ·Fairmont City resident Dan Clotfelter, Jr., cashed his first paycheck from American Zinc at Kokotovich's Tavern in 1941. , ·Roadside businesses like Thomas Garage, built in 1931, thrived during the heyday of US 40 and Route 66. Both cross-country highways passed through Fairmont City., ·Anne Galas and her husband Adam named the Nite Spot Café after a restaurant in a gangster film.