Brown County, Illinois

Brown County, Illinois
Location in the state of Illinois
Illinois's location in the U.S.
Founded	1839
Seat	Mount Sterling
Largest city	Mount Sterling
Area  - Total  - Land  - Water	307.20 sq mi (796 km²) 305.61 sq mi (792 km²) 1.60 sq mi (4 km²), 0.52%
Population  - (2000)  - Density	6,937 23/sq mi (9/km²)
Time zone	Central: UTC-6/-5

Brown County is a county located in the U.S. state of Illinois. According to the 2010 census, it has a population of 6,937, which is a decrease of 0.2% from 6,950 in 2000. Its county seat is Mount Sterling. Siloam Springs State Park is located partly in this county.

History

Brown County was formed out of Schuyler County in 1839. It is named in honor of U.S. General Jacob Brown, who defeated the British at the Battle of Sackett's Harbor in 1813.

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  Brown County at the time of its creation in 1839

Geography

According to the 2010 census, the county has a total area of 307.20 square miles (795.6 km²), of which 305.61 square miles (791.5 km²) (or 99.48%) is land and 1.60 square miles (4.1 km²) (or 0.52%) is water. The Illinois River flows along part of the county's eastern border.

Adjacent counties

• Schuyler County - north
• Cass County - east
• Morgan County - southeast
• Pike County - south
• Adams County - west

Major highways

• US Route 24
• Illinois Route 99
• Illinois Route 107

Cities and towns

• Mound Station
• Mount Sterling
• Ripley
• Versailles

Townships

Brown County is divided into these nine townships:

Buckhorn Cooperstown Elkhorn Lee Missouri

Mount Sterling Pea Ridge Ripley Versailles

School districts

• Brown County Community Unit School District 1
• Meredosia-Chambersburg Community Unit School District 11
• Southeastern Community Unit School District 337

Political districts

• Illinois' 18th congressional district
• State House District 93
• State Senate District 47

Demographics

2000 census age pyramid for Brown County

Historical populations
Census	Pop.		%±
1900	11,557		—
1910	10,397		−10.0%
1920	9,336		−10.2%
1930	7,892		−15.5%
1940	8,053		2.0%
1950	7,132		−11.4%
1960	6,210		−12.9%
1970	5,586		−10.0%
1980	5,411		−3.1%
1990	5,836		7.9%
2000	6,950		19.1%
2010	6,937		−0.2%
IL Counties 1900-1990 Census QuickFacts

As of the census of 2000, there were 6,950 people, 2,108 households, and 1,380 families residing in the county. The population density was 23 people per square mile (9/km²). There were 2,456 housing units at an average density of 8 per square mile (3/km²). The racial makeup of the county was 80.29% White, 18.20% Black or African American, 0.09% Native American, 0.13% Asian, 0.07% Pacific Islander, 0.68% from other races, and 0.55% from two or more races. 3.93% of the population were Hispanic or Latino of any race. 31.7% were of German, 22.2% American, 16.3% English and 12.8% Irish ancestry according to Census 2000. 96.4% spoke English and 3.3% Spanish as their first language.

There were 2,108 households out of which 29.10% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 55.30% were married couples living together, 6.80% had a female householder with no husband present, and 34.50% were non-families. 30.80% of all households were made up of individuals and 13.90% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.36 and the average family size was 2.96.

In the county the population was spread out with 17.80% under the age of 18, 12.60% from 18 to 24, 37.50% from 25 to 44, 19.40% from 45 to 64, and 12.70% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 35 years. For every 100 females there were 174.70 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 194.50 males.

The median income for a household in the county was $35,445, and the median income for a family was $43,207. Males had a median income of $24,888 versus $20,558 for females. The per capita income for the county was $14,629. About 4.80% of families and 8.50% of the population were below the poverty line, including 10.00% of those under age 18 and 10.00% of those age 65 or over.

The Illinois state prison, Western Illinois Correctional Center, located south east of Mount Sterling, has an average daily population of 2,066. The all male population and racial makeup of the prison is so large, compared to the rest of the county, that it skews the census demographic data. This is evidenced by the lopsided age pyramid.[1]

Climate and weather

Mount Sterling, Illinois
Climate chart (explanation)
J F M A M J J A S O N D     1.6   32 15     1.9   38 20     3.1   50 30     3.9   63 41     5.1   73 51     3.9   82 61     3.9   87 65     3.5   84 63     3.6   78 54     3.3   66 43     3.2   50 31     2.4   37 20 Average max. and min. temperatures in °F Precipitation totals in inches Source: The Weather Channel
Metric conversion J F M A M J J A S O N D     39   0 -9     48   3 -7     77   10 -1     99   17 5     131   23 11     100   28 16     98   31 18     90   29 17     92   26 12     83   19 6     80   10 -1     62   3 -7 Average max. and min. temperatures in °C Precipitation totals in mm

In recent years, average temperatures in the county seat of Mount Sterling have ranged from a low of 15 °F (−9 °C) in January to a high of 87 °F (31 °C) in July, although a record low of −26 °F (−32 °C) was recorded in February 1905 and a record high of 113 °F (45 °C) was recorded in July 1936. Average monthly precipitation ranged from 1.55 inches (39 mm) in January to 5.14 inches (131 mm) in May.

See also

• National Register of Historic Places listings in Brown County, Illinois

References

• United States Census Bureau 2007 TIGER/Line Shapefiles
• United States Board on Geographic Names (GNIS)
• United States National Atlas