Welcome to Rock Island ...
The city of Rock Island is located in Rock Island County<1> and is the County Seat for Rock Island County.
While we don't have a date for the founding of Rock Island, you might consider that their post office opened in 1846.
A typical abbreviation for Rock Island: Rock Is. (in Canada, 'Isld.' is the more common abbreviation.)
From the Census Estimates for 2019, Rock Island has a population of 37,152 people<2> (see below for details).
Rock Island is 600 feet [183 m] above sea level.<3>.
Time Zone: Rock Island lies in the Central Time Zone (CST/CDT) and observes daylight saving time
Rock Island lies within the (309) area code.
The ZIP codes for Rock Island: 61201, 61204, 61299<4>
Population Details ...
Taken from the 2019 Census Estimates, Rock Island had an population of 37,152 people. This is a decrease of 4.78% since the 2010 Census (or a decrease of 6.38% since the 2000 Census).
At the time of the 2010 Census, Rock Island had a population of 39,018 people (which is 26.44% of the total population of Rock Island County). This makes Rock Island the county's 2nd most populous community.
The population of Rock Island represents 0.3% of the total population of Illinois (which has 12,830,632 people), making it the state's 46th most populous community.
With a 2010 count of 39,018 people, the population of Rock Island decreased 1.68% from the 2000 Census (with a count of 39,684 people).
More information can be found on the Census Page for Rock Island.
Communities Also Named Rock Island ...
Using our Gazetteer, we found that there are 21 communities that are also named Rock Island - they are located in Florida (2), Idaho, Indiana, Kansas (2), Manitoba, Massachusetts, Nevada, Oklahoma (2), Quebec, Tennessee, Texas (6), Virginia and Washington.
For more information, see our Tidbits & Trivia Page for Rock Island.
Communities near Rock Island ...
We have created a list of 10 communities that are near Rock Island.
- East Moline
(6 miles [9.7 km] to the east)- Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for East Moline have been provided by the GNIS.<5> The coordinates still need to be verified.
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for East Moline
- East Moline is located in Rock Island County
- Population from the 2020 Census: 20,473 people
- Silvis
(8 miles [12.9 km] to the east)- Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Silvis have been provided by the GNIS.<5> The coordinates still need to be verified.
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Silvis
- Silvis is located in Rock Island County
- Population from the 2020 Census: 7,473 people
- Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Silvis <6>
- Eldridge
(11 miles [17.7 km] to the north)- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Eldridge
- Eldridge is located in Scott County (IA)
- Population from the 2020 Census: 6,864 people
- Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Eldridge <6>
- Colona
(11 miles [17.7 km] to the east)- Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Colona have been provided by the GNIS.<5> The coordinates still need to be verified.
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Colona
- Colona is located in Henry County
- Population from the 2020 Census: 5,049 people
- Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Colona <6>
- Le Claire
(13 miles [20.9 km] to the northeast)- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Le Claire
- Le Claire is located in Scott County (IA)
- Population from the 2020 Census: 3,955 people
- Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Le Claire <6>
- Coal Valley
(6 miles [9.7 km] to the southeast)- Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Coal Valley have been provided by the GNIS.<5> The coordinates still need to be verified.
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Coal Valley
- Coal Valley is located in Rock Island County
- Population from the 2020 Census: 3,719 people
- Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Coal Valley <6>
- Green Rock
(11 miles [17.7 km] to the east)- Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Green Rock have been provided by the GNIS.<5> The coordinates still need to be verified.
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Green Rock
- Green Rock is located in Henry County
- Carbon Cliff
(9 miles [14.5 km] to the east)- Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Carbon Cliff have been provided by the GNIS.<5> The coordinates still need to be verified.
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Carbon Cliff
- Carbon Cliff is located in Rock Island County
- Population from the 2020 Census: 1,932 people
- Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Carbon Cliff <6>
- Durant
(19 miles [30.6 km] to the northwest)- Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Durant have been provided by the GNIS.<5> The coordinates still need to be verified.
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Durant
- Durant is located in Scott County (IA)
- Population from the 2020 Census: 1,857 people
- Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Durant <6>
- Orion
(14 miles [22.5 km] to the southeast)- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Orion
- Orion is located in Henry County
- Population from the 2020 Census: 1,776 people
- Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Orion <6>
To Help With Your Genealogy Research ...
We have a couple of sections for those tracing their genealogy.
We created a list of cemeteries that are in the area around Rock Island. Our list includes the location of those cemeteries and we provide an overhead view. See our Cemetery List for Rock Island.
Using the information from an 1895 Atlas, we've created a list of communities that were in the area of Rock Island. Our list includes information such as whether the 1895 community had a post office or railroad service. See our List of 1890's Communities around Rock Island.
We also have a detailed list of newspapers that have been published in the area around Rock Island. Our list includes 68 papers. See our Newspapers Page for Rock Island.
TripAdvisor Tourism Pages for Rock Island ...
Looking for more information about Rock Island? A wonderful source is the TripAdvisor website. We always start with the TripAdvisor Tourism page, where you can read an overview with links that will help you find lodging, restaurants and attractions.
In addition to the Tourism page for Rock Island, there are neighboring communities that also have Tourism pages. More information about those communities can be found on our TripAdvisor Page for Rock Island.
Adding Rock Island to Our Gazetteer ...
We originally found mention of Rock Island in both the FIPS-55 and the GNIS. For more information, see the FIPS and GNIS Codes sections on our Miscellaneous Page.
From our notes, the earliest published mention we've found for Rock Island was in the book titled U.S. Post Offices (Oct. 1846).
We also found Rock Island in the book titled Table of U.S. Post Offices in the United States (Jan. 1851).
For more details, see References and Mentions for Rock Island.
Off-the-Road Links ...
Unfortunately, we don't know of a website for Rock Island. If you can help, please contact us through our Feedback Page.
The official website for Rock Island County: www.co.rock-island.il.us/
The official website for State of Illinois: https://illinois.gov
Footnotes ...
| <1> | If you're interested in how the shape of Illinois' counties, including Rock Island, have changed over time, we recommend the Atlas of Historical County Boundaries. |
| <2> | Population counts have been provided by the U.S. Census Bureau. For more detail, please visit our Census Page for Rock Island. |
| <3> | The elevation is an estimate for the area around Rock Island - it will be higher in some places and lower in others. |
| <4> | ZIP Codes have been created by the United States Postal Service (USPS) as a way of grouping addresses to make delivery more efficient. The boundaries of the ZIP Code can be changed, re-assigned, eliminated or overlapped with other ZIP Codes. So keep in mind that any given ZIP Code is only 'loosely' associated with a city (such as Rock Island). When looking for a ZIP Code, whether Rock Island or elsewhere, it's always best to check the website of the United States Postal Service (USPS). |
| <5> | The location has been supplied by the Geographic Names Information System - which is maintained by the U.S. Geological Survey (USGS). While these values should be definitive, we found that accuracy can vary and you should double-check the location if accuracy is required. |
| <6> | While we're fans and frequent users of TripAdvisor, you should know that we're also members of the TripAdvisor affiliate program. |