Tonti, Illinois

Tonti is an unincorporated community in Tonti Township, Marion County, Illinois, United States.[1] The community of Tonti is now little more than a bend in the road and a sign, near where the Illinois Central Railroad tracks cross Interstate 57.[2]

Tonti, Illinois
Unincorporated community
Tonti is located in Illinois
Tonti
Tonti
Tonti is located in the United States
Tonti
Tonti
Coordinates: 38°39′53″N 88°58′42″W[1]
CountryUnited States
StateIllinois
CountyMarion
Elevation
[1]
577 ft (176 m)
Time zoneUTC-6 (CST)
 • Summer (DST)UTC-5 (CDT)
GNIS ID423249[1]

History
Photo of the Tonti derailment

The community of Tonti was named in honor of Henri de Tonti, an early Italian/French explorer of Illinois.[3]

On June 10, 1971, Tonti was the site of the 1971 Salem, Illinois, derailment which was a derailment of Amtrak's City of New Orleans passenger train. It is sometimes referred to as the Tonti derailment. An investigation by the National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB) found that the derailment was caused by a false flange on a flat wheel caused by a seized axle bearing. The crash killed 11 people and injured 163. It was Amtrak's first train crash.[4]

References
  1. U.S. Geological Survey Geographic Names Information System: Tonti, Illinois
  2. Marion County, Illinois-map
  3. 'Brinkerhoff's History Marion County, Illinois,' J.H.G. Brinkerhoff, B.F. & Company, Publishers, Induanapolis, Indiana: 1909, Tonti Township, pg. 158-162
  4. GenDisasters.com.-Salem Il Passenger Trail Derails, June 1971


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