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New Salem

Ghost town · Menard County, Illinois

Tallula quadrangle, USGS topographic map (1909, 1:62,500)
Tallula quadrangle, USGS topographic map (1909, 1:62,500) · U.S. Geological Survey, Historical Topographic Map Collection · Public domain

New Salem is a ghost town in Menard County, Illinois. It is the only former community in Menard County recorded on the federal names register, out of 208 across Illinois.

The U.S. Geological Survey lists New Salem as a historical populated place on the Salisbury topographic quadrangle: the name is no longer in official use for a community, whether the settlement was abandoned, absorbed into a neighbouring town or renamed. The recorded location is 39.9789° N, 89.8440° W.

Key facts

USGS quadrangleSalisbury
Elevation605 ft
Nearest living townLake Petersburg, IL
Distance to it0.7 miles
GNIS feature ID1808808
Coordinates39.97894, -89.84400

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What's there now

New Salem is no longer a community in its own right. The nearest living town is Lake Petersburg, IL (population 769), about 0.7 miles away in a straight line, and the site sits at roughly 605 feet above sea level. Much of the land around former townsites is private; check access before you visit.

Nearby places

Sources and licences

Facts marked "approximately" carry an uncertain date in the source. Text on this page is generated from the sources above; no encyclopedia prose is copied. Last updated 2026-11-05.