Illinois state routes 9 and 41 pass through the city center as Cole Street.

Macomb, the McDonough county seat, is 14 miles (23 km) southwest of Bushnell.

[2] The west side of the city drains to a south-flowing tributary of the East Fork of the La Moine River, while the east side drains to Shaw Creek, a southeast-flowing tributary of the Spoon River.

Nehemiah Bushnell was the president of the railroad, and townspeople honored him by naming their community after him.

Beginning in 1908, the Truman Pioneer Stud Farm in Bushnell was home to one of the largest horse shows in the Midwest.

The Bushnell Horse Show features some of the best Belgian and Percheron hitches in the country.

The festival was generally well received by locals,[7] and businesses in the area would typically put up signs welcoming festival-goers to their town.

The festival's 20th anniversary DVD included interviews with local Bushnell citizens and business owners.

Bushnell is home to the Bushnell-Prairie City Community Unit School District 170.