2024 Map of Eliza

About this map

Eliza and Petersville anchor this western Illinois landscape, where the rural topography is defined by a dense network of watercourses flowing toward the Mississippi River basin. The map reveals a deeply dissected terrain shaped by Copperas Creek in the north and the extensive reach of Eliza Creek through the central and southern sections. These waterways are joined by numerous tributaries, including Yankee Branch, Irvin Branch, and Winters Creek, creating a series of ridges and valleys that have historically dictated the placement of roads and homesteads. Local history is preserved in several small burial grounds such as Miller Cem, Leech Cem, and Eliza Creek Cem, which serve as quiet landmarks for genealogists and researchers tracing the early families of this border region between Rock Island and Mercer counties. The land use remains primarily agricultural, with a rectilinear grid of county roads like Co Hwy 26 and 180th Ave cutting across the natural drainage patterns.