DeWitt County, Illinois

DeWitt County is a county located in the U.S. state of Illinois. As of the 2010 census, the population was 16,561. Its county seat is Clinton. The county was formed on March 1, 1839, from Macon and McLean counties. The county was named in honor of the seventh Governor of New York State, DeWitt Clinton.

DeWitt County is included in Bloomington–Normal, IL Metropolitan Statistical Area.

The U.S. Census Bureau and the USGS list the county's name as De Witt, although the county uses the name DeWitt (no space).

History

File:DeWitt County Illinois 1839.png, DeWitt County from its creation in 1839 to the splitting off of Piatt County in 1841
File:DeWitt County Illinois 1841.png, DeWitt County from 1841 to 1845
File:DeWitt County Illinois 1845.png, DeWitt County in 1845, when it was reduced to its current size

Geography

According to the U.S. Census Bureau, the county has a total area of , of which is land and (1.9%) is water.

Climate and weather

In recent years, average temperatures in the county seat of Clinton have ranged from a low of in January to a high of in July, although a record low of was recorded in February 1905 and a record high of was recorded in July 1954. Average monthly precipitation ranged from in February to in July.

Adjacent counties

* McLean County - north
* Piatt County - east
* Macon County - south
* Logan County - west

Major highways

* Interstate 74
* US Route 51
* US Route 150
* Illinois Route 10
* Illinois Route 48
* Illinois Route 54

Demographics

As of the 2010 United States Census, there were 16,561 people, 6,811 households, and 4,618 families residing in the county. The population density was . There were 7,521 housing units at an average density of . The racial makeup of the county was 96.8% white, 0.5% black or African American, 0.4% Asian, 0.2% American Indian, 0.9% from other races, and 1.2% from two or more races. Those of Hispanic or Latino origin made up 2.1% of the population. In terms of ancestry, 31.2% were American, 21.7% were German, 15.8% were English, and 12.3% were Irish.

Of the 6,811 households, 30.1% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 53.0% were married couples living together, 10.0% had a female householder with no husband present, 32.2% were non-families, and 27.5% of all households were made up of individuals. The average household size was 2.39 and the average family size was 2.88. The median age was 41.7 years.

The median income for a household in the county was $45,347 and the median income for a family was $56,806. Males had a median income of $41,649 versus $27,729 for females. The per capita income for the county was $24,320. About 6.4% of families and 8.6% of the population were below the poverty line, including 12.2% of those under age 18 and 6.6% of those age 65 or over.

Communities

Cities

* Clinton (seat)
* Farmer City

Villages

* DeWitt
* Kenney
* Wapella
* Waynesville
* Weldon

Townships

De Witt County is divided into thirteen townships:

* Barnett
* Clintonia
* Creek
* DeWitt
* Harp
* Nixon
* Rutledge
* Santa Anna
* Texas
* Tunbridge
* Wapella
* Waynesville
* Wilson

Unincorporated Communities

* Birkbeck
* Bucks
* Carle Springs
* Fullerton
* Hallsville
* Jenkins
* Lane
* Midland City
* Ospur
* Parnell
* Rowell
* Solomon
* Tabor
* Tunbridge
* Watkins
* Weedman

Politics

DeWitt is frequently a Republican county. It has not been carried by a Democratic presidential candidate since Lyndon Johnson’s 1964 landslide, and even before that it was carried by Democrats only in strong winning elections like 1936, 1932, 1916, 1912 and 1892.

See also

* National Register of Historic Places listings in DeWitt County, Illinois

Notes

References

United States Census Bureau 2007 TIGER/Line Shapefiles

United States Board on Geographic Names (GNIS)

United States National Atlas

External links

{{Coord, 39.377, -90.294, display=title

1839 establishments in Illinois
Illinois counties
Populated places established in 1839