Johnson County, Illinois

Johnson County, Illinois
Location in the state of Illinois
Illinois's location in the U.S.
Founded	1812
Seat	Vienna
Largest city	Vienna
Area  - Total  - Land  - Water	348.86 sq mi (904 km²) 343.92 sq mi (891 km²) 4.95 sq mi (13 km²), 1.42%
Population  - (2010)  - Density	12,582 37/sq mi (14/km²)
Time zone	Central: UTC-6/-5

Johnson County is a county located in the U.S. state of Illinois. According to the 2010 census, it has a population of 12,582, which is a decrease of 2.3% from 12,878 in 2000. Its county seat is Vienna.

Geography

According to the 2010 census, the county has a total area of 348.86 square miles (903.5 km²), of which 343.92 square miles (890.7 km²) (or 98.58%) is land and 4.95 square miles (12.8 km²) (or 1.42%) is water.

Major highways

• Interstate 24
• Interstate 57
• U.S. Highway 45
• Illinois Route 37
• Illinois Route 146
• Illinois Route 147

Adjacent counties

• Williamson County - north
• Saline County - northeast
• Pope County - east
• Massac County - southeast
• Pulaski County - southwest
• Union County - west

National protected areas

• Cypress Creek National Wildlife Refuge (part)
• Shawnee National Forest (part)

History

Richard M. Johnson

Johnson County was organized in 1812 out of Randolph County. It was named for Richard M. Johnson, who was then a U.S. Congressman from Kentucky.^{[citation needed]} In 1813, Johnson commanded a Kentucky regiment at the Battle of the Thames, after which he claimed to have killed Tecumseh in hand to hand combat. Johnson went on to be Vice President of the United States.

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  Johnson County at the time of its creation to 1816

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  Johnson County between 1816 and 1818

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  Johnson County between 1818 and 1843

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  Johnson County in 1843, when it was reduced to its present size

Demographics

2000 census age pyramid for Johnson County, skewed toward male because of the Vienna Correctional Center, an Illinois State Prison for men.[1]

Historical populations
Census	Pop.		%±
1900	15,667		—
1910	14,331		−8.5%
1920	12,022		−16.1%
1930	10,203		−15.1%
1940	10,727		5.1%
1950	8,729		−18.6%
1960	6,928		−20.6%
1970	7,550		9.0%
1980	9,624		27.5%
1990	11,347		17.9%
2000	12,878		13.5%
2010	12,582		−2.3%
IL Counties 1900-1990

2010

Whereas according to the 2010 U.S. Census Bureau:

• 89.0% White
• 8.0% Black
• 0.2% Native American
• 0.2% Asian
• 0.0% Native Hawaiian or Pacific Islander
• 1.0% Two or more races
• 1.6% Other races
• 3.0% Hispanic or Latino (of any race)

2000

As of the census of 2000, there were 12,878 people, 4,183 households, and 3,053 families residing in the county. The population density was 37 people per square mile (14/km²). There were 5,046 housing units at an average density of 15 per square mile (6/km²). The racial makeup of the county was 83.52% White, 14.17% Black or African American, 0.27% Native American, 0.13% Asian, 0.04% Pacific Islander, 1.07% from other races, and 0.79% from two or more races. 2.86% of the population were Hispanic or Latino of any race. 27.3% were of American, 18.3% German, 13.3% English and 13.1% Irish ancestry according to Census 2000. 97.8% spoke English and 1.8% Spanish as their first language.

There were 4,183 households out of which 30.60% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 62.30% were married couples living together, 7.10% had a female householder with no husband present, and 27.00% were non-families. 24.20% of all households were made up of individuals and 12.10% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.43 and the average family size was 2.87.

In the county the population was spread out with 18.30% under the age of 18, 11.40% from 18 to 24, 34.00% from 25 to 44, 22.70% from 45 to 64, and 13.60% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 37 years. For every 100 females there were 149.00 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 160.20 males.

The median income for a household in the county was $33,326, and the median income for a family was $40,275. Males had a median income of $29,415 versus $22,844 for females. The per capita income for the county was $17,990. About 8.10% of families and 11.30% of the population were below the poverty line, including 11.30% of those under age 18 and 11.50% of those age 65 or over.

Cities and towns

• Belknap
• Buncombe
• Cypress
• Goreville
• New Burnside
• Simpson
• Vienna

Unincorporated communities

• Boles
• Bloomfield
• Dixon Springs
• Eagle Point Bay
• Elvira
• Ganntown
• Grantsburg
• Lick Creek
• Mermet
• New Columbia
• Ozark
• Pulleys Mill
• Reevesville
• Reynoldsburg
• Robbs
• Samoth
• Tunnel Hill
• Wartrace

Climate and weather

Vienna, Illinois
Climate chart (explanation)
J F M A M J J A S O N D     3.4   43 25     3.4   50 29     4.6   60 38     4.7   71 46     5.2   79 55     4.1   87 63     3.8   90 67     3.6   90 65     3.3   84 58     3.2   73 47     4.7   59 39     4.4   47 29 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     86   6 -4     86   10 -2     117   16 3     120   22 8     131   26 13     104   31 17     95   32 19     91   32 18     83   29 14     80   23 8     120   15 4     112   8 -2 Average max. and min. temperatures in °C Precipitation totals in mm

In recent years, average temperatures in the county seat of Vienna have ranged from a low of 25 °F (−4 °C) in January to a high of 90 °F (32 °C) in July, although a record low of −20 °F (−29 °C) was recorded in January 1977 and a record high of 103 °F (39 °C) was recorded in August 2007. Average monthly precipitation ranged from 3.16 inches (80 mm) in October to 5.16 inches (131 mm) in May.

See also

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

Further reading

• P.T. Chapman, A History of Johnson County, Illinois. Herrin, IL: Press of the Herrin News, 1925.