Knox County, Illinois

Knox County, Illinois
Location in the state of Illinois
Illinois's location in the U.S.
Founded	1825
Seat	Galesburg
Area  - Total  - Land  - Water	719.81 sq mi (1,864 km²) 716.40 sq mi (1,855 km²) 3.42 sq mi (9 km²), 0.48%
Population  - (2010)  - Density	52,919 78/sq mi (30/km²)
Website	www.knoxcountyil.com

Knox County is a county located in the U.S. state of Illinois. According to the 2010 census, it has a population of 52,919, which is a decrease of 5.2% from 55,836 in 2000. Its county seat is Galesburg.

Knox County is part of the Galesburg Micropolitan Statistical Area.

History

Knox County was named in honor of Henry Knox, the first US Secretary of War.

The first "Knox County" in what today is Illinois was unrelated to the modern incarnation. In 1790, the land of the Indiana Territory that was to become Illinois was divided into two counties: St. Clair and Knox. The latter included land in what was to become Indiana. When Knox County, Indiana, was formed from this portion of the county in 1809, the Illinois portions were subdivided into counties that were given other names.

The modern Knox County, Illinois, was organized in 1825, from Fulton County, itself a portion of the original St. Clair County.

Like its neighbor to the south, Fulton County, for its Spoon River Drive, Knox County is also known for a similar scenic drive fall festival the first two weekends in October, the Knox County Drive.

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  Knox County between its creation in 1825 and 1831

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  Knox County between 1831 and 1839

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  Knox County in 1839, when it was reduced slightly to its current size

Geography

According to the 2010 census, the county has a total area of 719.81 square miles (1,864.3 km²), of which 716.40 square miles (1,855.5 km²) (or 99.53%) is land and 3.42 square miles (8.9 km²) (or 0.48%) is water.

Major highways

• Interstate 74
• U.S. Highway 34
• U.S. Highway 150
• Illinois Route 8
• Illinois Route 17
• Illinois Route 41
• Illinois Route 78
• Illinois Route 97
• Illinois Route 164
• Illinois Route 116
• Illinois Route 167
• Illinois Route 180

Adjacent counties

• Henry County - north
• Stark County - east
• Peoria County - southeast
• Fulton County - south
• Warren County - west
• Mercer County - northwest

Cities and towns

• Abingdon
• Altona
• East Galesburg
• Galesburg
• Henderson
• Knoxville
• London Mills (mostly in Fulton County)
• Maquon
• Oneida
• Rio
• St. Augustine
• Victoria
• Wataga
• Williamsfield
• Yates City

Unincorporated communities

• Appleton
• Columbia Heights
• Dahinda
• Delong
• Douglas
• Gilson
• Henderson Grove
• Hermon
• Oak Run
• Ontario
• Rapatee

Townships

Knox County is divided into twenty-one townships:

Cedar Chestnut Copley Elba Galesburg Galesburg City Haw Creek

Henderson Indian Point Knox Lynn Maquon Ontario Orange

Persifer Rio Salem Sparta Truro Victoria Walnut Grove

Demographics

2000 census age pyramid for Knox County.

Historical populations
Census	Pop.		%±
1900	43,612		—
1910	46,159		5.8%
1920	46,727		1.2%
1930	51,336		9.9%
1940	52,250		1.8%
1950	54,366		4.0%
1960	61,280		12.7%
1970	61,280		0%
1980	61,607		0.5%
1990	56,393		−8.5%
2000	55,836		−1.0%
2010	52,919		−5.2%
IL Counties 1900-1990

As of the census of 2000, there were 55,836 people, 22,056 households, and 14,424 families residing in the county. The population density was 78 people per square mile (30/km²). There were 23,717 housing units at an average density of 33 per square mile (13/km²). The racial makeup of the county was 89.86% White, 6.29% Black or African American, 0.19% Native American, 0.69% Asian, 0.01% Pacific Islander, 1.57% from other races, and 1.39% from two or more races. 3.40% of the population were Hispanic or Latino of any race. 19.0% were of German, 14.1% American, 12.5% Swedish, 11.5% Irish and 10.9% English ancestry according to Census 2000. 96.5% spoke English and 2.4% Spanish as their first language.

There were 22,056 households out of which 27.70% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 51.40% were married couples living together, 10.60% had a female householder with no husband present, and 34.60% were non-families. 29.60% of all households were made up of individuals and 14.10% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.33 and the average family size was 2.87.

In the county, the population was spread out with 22.00% under the age of 18, 9.80% from 18 to 24, 26.50% from 25 to 44, 24.10% from 45 to 64, and 17.50% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 39 years. For every 100 females, there were 99.20 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 96.60 males.

The median income for a household in the county was $35,407, and the median income for a family was $44,010. Males had a median income of $32,151 versus $21,662 for females. The per capita income for the county was $17,985. About 7.70% of families and 11.10% of the population were below the poverty line, including 16.80% of those under age 18 and 6.00% of those age 65 or over.

Climate and weather

Galesburg, Illinois
Climate chart (explanation)
J F M A M J J A S O N D     1.4   29 13     1.6   35 19     2.8   48 29     3.8   61 40     4   73 51     4.2   81 61     4.4   85 65     4.1   82 63     3.5   75 55     2.5   63 43     2.7   47 31     2.3   33 19 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     36   -2 -11     39   2 -7     72   9 -2     97   16 4     101   23 11     106   27 16     111   29 18     103   28 17     89   24 13     64   17 6     69   8 -1     58   1 -7 Average max. and min. temperatures in °C Precipitation totals in mm

In recent years, average temperatures in the county seat of Galesburg have ranged from a low of 13 °F (−11 °C) in January to a high of 85 °F (29 °C) in July, although a record low of −25 °F (−32 °C) was recorded in January 1982 and a record high of 102 °F (39 °C) was recorded in July 1983. Average monthly precipitation ranged from 1.41 inches (36 mm) in January to 4.37 inches (111 mm) in July.

See also

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

External links

• "Foxie's Knox Co., IL AHGP"