Peoria, city in central Illinois and seat of Peoria County, on the Illinois River. Situated in a productive farming and coal-mining region, it is an important port on the inland waterway system linking the Great Lakes and the Gulf of Mexico. Peoria is a manufacturing, shipping, and cultural center; products include earth-moving and mining equipment, off-road vehicles, steel, and wire. The information technology industry is becoming increasingly important to the city's economy. The city is served by the Greater Peoria Regional Airport.
Bradley University (1897), the College of Medicine (established in 1976) of the University of Illinois, Saint Francis Medical Center College of Nursing (1986), a junior college, and a United States agricultural research center are in the city; a community college is in nearby East Peoria.
