DeKalb County, Illinois

DeKalb County, Illinois
Seal
Location in the state of Illinois
Illinois's location in the U.S.
Founded	1836
Seat	Sycamore
Area  - Total  - Land  - Water	634.66 sq mi (1,644 km²) 631.31 sq mi (1,635 km²) 3.35 sq mi (9 km²), 0.53%
Population  - (2010)  - Density	105,160 140/sq mi (54/km²)
Website	www.dekalbcounty.org

DeKalb County is a county located in the U.S. state of Illinois. According to the 2010 census, it has a population of 105,160, which is an increase of 18.2% from 88,969 in 2000. Its county seat is Sycamore. DeKalb County is part of the Chicago metropolitan statistical area.

History

DeKalb County was formed on March 4, 1837 out of Kane County, Illinois. The County was named in honor of Johanna de Kalb, a German (Bavarian) hero of the American Revolutionary War. DeKalb County is approximately 632.7 square miles, located 63 miles west of Chicago. There are 19 townships in the county with the county seat at Sycamore.

Between 1834 and 1837, early white man began to settle in DeKalb County along the streams and wooded areas because of the fertile soil, wild game, and food and water opportunities. Major growth stemmed from the introduction of the railroad which brought easier methods of transportation and opportunities for industrial growth. Some of the notable industries based in DeKalb County were: Sandwich Manufacturing Company, Marsh Harvester Company, Barbed Wire, Gurler Brothers Pure Milk and many more.

The county has always been noted for agriculture. In 1852 the first Agricultural Fair was held in Sycamore, under the supervision of the DeKalb Agricultural Society. Eventually farmers, businessmen, bankers and newspapermen organized to become the DeKalb County Soil Improvement Association. In later years the DeKalb County Soil Improvement Association would split into two and become DeKalb County Farm Bureau and DeKalb Agricultural Association (DEKALB AgResearch, Inc., Monsanto). DeKalb County is credited with being the birthplace of the Farm Bureau movement.

Education has played an important role in the area with Northern Illinois University located in DeKalb and Kishwaukee Community College located in Malta. A major fair has been held each year since 1887 at the Sandwich Fairgrounds in Sandwich.

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  DeKalb County at the time of its creation in 1837

Pronunciation

Unlike similarly spelled locations, such as DeKalb County, Georgia, DeKalb denizens from Illinois pronounce the county name /dɨˈkælb/ "di-KALB", with an L sound, as opposed to a silent "L."

Geography

According to the 2010 census, the county has a total area of 634.66 square miles (1,643.8 km²), of which 631.31 square miles (1,635.1 km²) (or 99.47%) is land and 3.35 square miles (8.7 km²) (or 0.53%) is water.

Adjacent counties

• Boone County - north
• McHenry County - northeast
• Kane County - east
• Kendall County - southeast
• LaSalle County - south
• Lee County - west
• Ogle County - west
• Winnebago County - northwest

See also: List of counties bordering eight counties

Major highways

• Interstate 88
• US Route 30
• US Route 34
• Illinois Route 23
• Illinois Route 38
• Illinois Route 64
• Illinois Route 72

Townships

DeKalb County's Legislative Center.

DeKalb County is divided into nineteen townships:

Afton Clinton Cortland DeKalb Franklin

Genoa Kingston Malta Mayfield Milan

Paw Paw Pierce Sandwich Shabbona Somonauk

South Grove Squaw Grove Sycamore Victor

Cities and towns

• Cortland
• DeKalb
• Genoa
• Hinckley
• Kingston
• Kirkland
• Lee
• Malta
• Maple Park - Mostly in Kane County, Illinois
• Sandwich (north three-quarters)
• Shabbona
• Somonauk (north three-quarters)
• Sycamore
• Waterman

Political districts

• Illinois' 14th congressional district
• Illinois 16th Congressional District
• State House District 70
• State House District 90
• State Senate District 35
• State Senate District 45

• Note: Illinois was redistricted in 2011 as a result of the loss of a Congressional seat (IL went from holding 19 to 18). Prior to redistricting DeKalb was represented by House Districts: 69 and 70; Senate District: 35; and Congressional District: 14

Demographics

DeKalb County Population by year

2010 - 105,160 2000 - 88,969 1990 - 77,932 1980 - 74,624 1970 - 71,654 1960 - 51,714 1950 - 40,781 1940 - 34,388 1930 - 32,644 1920 - 31,339 1910 - 33,457 1900 - 31,756 1890 - 27,066 1880 - 26,768 1870 - 23,265 1860 - 19,086 1850 - 7,540 1840 - 1,697

2000 census age pyramid for DeKalb County.

As of the census of 2000, there were 88,969 people, 31,674 households, and 19,954 families residing in the county. The population density was 140 people per square mile (54/km²). There were 32,988 housing units at an average density of 52 per square mile (20/km²). The racial makeup of the county was 88.46% White, 4.59% Black or African American, 0.22% Native American, 2.35% Asian, 0.07% Pacific Islander, 2.74% from other races, and 1.57% from two or more races. 6.55% of the population were Hispanic or Latino of any race. 25.6% were of German, 10.8% Irish, 7.2% English, 5.9% American and 5.0% Norwegian ancestry according to Census 2000. 90.8% spoke English and 5.7% Spanish as their first language.

There were 31,674 households out of which 32.50% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 50.90% were married couples living together, 8.50% had a female householder with no husband present, and 37.00% were non-families. 25.50% of all households were made up of individuals and 7.90% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.56 and the average family size was 3.11.

In the county the population was spread out with 23.10% under the age of 18, 22.00% from 18 to 24, 27.60% from 25 to 44, 17.40% from 45 to 64, and 9.80% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 28 years. For every 100 females there were 98.20 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 96.50 males.

The median income for a household in the county was $45,828, and the median income for a family was $58,194. Males had a median income of $41,111 versus $26,690 for females. The per capita income for the county was $19,462. About 5.10% of families and 11.40% of the population were below the poverty line, including 7.10% of those under age 18 and 4.50% of those age 65 or over.

Climate and weather

Sycamore, Illinois
Climate chart (explanation)
J F M A M J J A S O N D     1.5   27 10     1.4   32 16     2.5   44 26     3.5   58 37     4.2   70 48     4.5   80 58     4.2   84 63     4.5   81 61     3.5   74 51     2.6   62 40     2.8   45 28     2.1   32 17 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   -3 -12     36   0 -9     62   7 -3     89   14 3     107   21 9     114   27 14     107   29 17     114   27 16     89   23 11     66   17 4     72   7 -2     54   0 -8 Average max. and min. temperatures in °C Precipitation totals in mm

In recent years, average temperatures in the county seat of Sycamore have ranged from a low of 10 °F (−12 °C) in January to a high of 84 °F (29 °C) in July, although a record low of −27 °F (−33 °C) was recorded in January 1985 and a record high of 103 °F (39 °C) was recorded in August 1988. Average monthly precipitation ranged from 1.40 inches (36 mm) in February to 4.49 inches (114 mm) in June.

See also

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

References

• Forstall, Richard L. (editor) (1996). Population of states and counties of the United States: 1790 to 1990 : from the twenty-one decennial censuses. United States Department of Commerce, Bureau of the Census, Population Division. ISBN 0-934213-48-8. 
• United States Census Bureau 2007 TIGER/Line Shapefiles
• United States Board on Geographic Names (GNIS)
• United States National Atlas

Further reading

• Eric W. Mogren. Native Soil: A History of the DeKalb County Farm Bureau (DeKalb: Northern Illinois University Press, 2005), 288 pp.

External links

• History pages for DeKalb County towns and cities
• De Kalb County at the Open Directory Project
• DeKalb County Youth Service Bureau
• Taming the Wild Prairie: A History of DeKalb County, Illinois, 1837-1900, Illinois Historical Digitization Projects at Northern Illinois University Libraries
• DeKalb County Online Newspaper