Kankakee County is a

county A county is a geographic region of a country used for administrative or other purposes Chambers Dictionary, L. Brookes (ed.), 2005, Chambers Harrap Publishers Ltd, Edinburgh in certain modern nations. The term is derived from the Old French ...

located in the

U.S. state In the United States, a state is a constituent political entity, of which there are 50. Bound together in a political union, each state holds governmental jurisdiction over a separate and defined geographic territory where it shares its sove ...

Illinois Illinois ( ) is a state in the Midwestern United States. Its largest metropolitan areas include the Chicago metropolitan area, and the Metro East section, of Greater St. Louis. Other smaller metropolitan areas include, Peoria and Rockf ...

. According to the 2010 census, it has a population of 113,449. Its

county seat A county seat is an administrative center, seat of government, or capital city of a county or civil parish. The term is in use in Canada, China, Hungary, Romania, Taiwan, and the United States. The equivalent term shire town is used in the US st ...

is Kankakee. Kankakee County comprises the Kankakee, IL

Metropolitan Statistical Area In the United States, a metropolitan statistical area (MSA) is a geographical region with a relatively high population density at its core and close economic ties throughout the area. Such regions are neither legally incorporated as a city or tow ...

History

Starting in the 1770s, if not earlier, the area that is now Kankakee County was largely populated by the Pottawatami. French Canadian Settlers came to Kankakee County in 1834, after the federal government signed the Treaty of Camp Tippecanoe in 1832. They were soon joined by migrants from New York and

Vermont Vermont () is a state in the northeast New England region of the United States. Vermont is bordered by the states of Massachusetts to the south, New Hampshire to the east, and New York to the west, and the Canadian province of Quebec to ...

, mostly locating in

Momence, Illinois Momence is a city and capital of Momence township, Illinois it is located in Kankakee County, Illinois, United States. The population was 3,171 at the 2000 census, and 3,310 in 2010. It is part of the Kankakee– Bradley Metropolitan Statis ...

. In the 1840s, most of the migrants were French Canadians or

Metis Metis or Métis may refer to: Ethnic groups * Métis, recognized Indigenous communities in Canada and America whose distinct culture and language emerged after early intermarriage between First Nations peoples and early European settlers, prima ...

and they settled in such places as

Bourbonnais Bourbonnais () was a historic province in the centre of France that corresponds to the modern ''département'' of Allier, along with part of the ''département'' of Cher. Its capital was Moulins. History The title of the ruler of Bourbonnais ...

. An act of the Illinois Legislature created Kankakee County out of the north part of Iroquois County and the south part of

Will County Will may refer to: Common meanings * Will and testament, instructions for the disposition of one's property after death * Will (philosophy), or willpower * Will (sociology) * Will, volition (psychology) * Will, a modal verb - see Shall and will ...

in February 1853. The six original townships were Yellowhead, Rockville,

, Momence, Aroma Park, and Limestone. The population of the new county was about 8,000. In 1855 the two western townships (Norton and Essex) were taken from Vermilion County and added to Kankakee County. The county was named for the Kankakee River. File:Kankakee County Illinois 1853.png, Kankakee County at the time of its creation in 1853

Geography

According to the

U.S. Census Bureau The United States Census Bureau (USCB), officially the Bureau of the Census, is a principal agency of the U.S. Federal Statistical System, responsible for producing data about the American people and economy. The Census Bureau is part of the ...

, the county has a total area of , of which is land and (0.7%) is water.

Climate and weather

In recent years, average temperatures in the county seat of Kankakee have ranged from a low of in January to a high of in July, although a record low of was recorded in January 1985 and a record high of was recorded in August 1988. Average monthly precipitation ranged from in February to in May.

Adjacent counties

– north * Lake County,

Indiana Indiana () is a U.S. state in the Midwestern United States. It is the 38th-largest by area and the 17th-most populous of the 50 States. Its capital and largest city is Indianapolis. Indiana was admitted to the United States as the 19th s ...

– northeast * Newton County,

– east * Iroquois County – south * Ford County – southwest * Livingston County – west * Grundy County – northwest

Demographics

As of the

2010 United States Census The United States census of 2010 was the twenty-third United States national census. National Census Day, the reference day used for the census, was April 1, 2010. The census was taken via mail-in citizen self-reporting, with enumerators servi ...

, there were 113,449 people, 41,511 households, and 28,680 families residing in the county. The population density was . There were 45,246 housing units at an average density of . The racial makeup of the county was 77.6% white, 15.1% black or African American, 0.9% Asian, 0.3% Native American, 4.0% from other races, and 2.1% from two or more races. Those of Hispanic or Latino origin made up 9.0% of the population. In terms of ancestry, 26.5% were

German German(s) may refer to: * Germany (of or related to) ** Germania (historical use) * Germans, citizens of Germany, people of German ancestry, or native speakers of the German language ** For citizens of Germany, see also German nationality law **Ge ...

, 14.2% were

Irish Irish may refer to: Common meanings * Someone or something of, from, or related to: ** Ireland, an island situated off the north-western coast of continental Europe ***Éire, Irish language name for the isle ** Northern Ireland, a constituent unit ...

, 7.4% were

English English usually refers to: * English language * English people English may also refer to: Peoples, culture, and language * ''English'', an adjective for something of, from, or related to England ** English national ide ...

, 6.7% were

Italian Italian(s) may refer to: * Anything of, from, or related to the people of Italy over the centuries ** Italians, an ethnic group or simply a citizen of the Italian Republic or Italian Kingdom ** Italian language, a Romance language *** Regional Ita ...

, 5.8% were

Polish Polish may refer to: * Anything from or related to Poland, a country in Europe * Polish language * Poles Poles,, ; singular masculine: ''Polak'', singular feminine: ''Polka'' or Polish people, are a West Slavic nation and ethnic group, w ...

, and 3.6% were American. Of the 41,511 households, 35.2% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 49.1% were married couples living together, 14.7% had a female householder with no husband present, 30.9% were non-families, and 25.5% of all households were made up of individuals. The average household size was 2.61 and the average family size was 3.13. The median age was 36.7 years. The median income for a household in the county was $50,484 and the median income for a family was $59,998. Males had a median income of $49,858 versus $32,247 for females. The per capita income for the county was $22,888. About 10.8% of families and 15.0% of the population were below the

poverty line The poverty threshold, poverty limit, poverty line or breadline is the minimum level of income deemed adequate in a particular country. The poverty line is usually calculated by estimating the total cost of one year's worth of necessities for t ...

, including 20.6% of those under age 18 and 8.4% of those age 65 or over.

Communities

Cities

* Kankakee * Momence

Villages

* Aroma Park * Bonfield *

Bradley Bradley is an English surname derived from a place name meaning "broad wood" or "broad meadow" in Old English. Like many English surnames Bradley can also be used as a given name and as such has become popular. It is also an Anglicisation of t ...

* Buckingham * Chebanse *

Essex Essex () is a county in the East of England. One of the home counties, it borders Suffolk and Cambridgeshire to the north, the North Sea to the east, Hertfordshire to the west, Kent across the estuary of the River Thames to the south, and Grea ...

* Grant Park * Herscher * Hopkins Park *

Irwin Irwin may refer to: Places ;United States * Irwin, California * Irwin, Idaho * Irwin, Illinois * Irwin, Iowa * Irwin, Nebraska * Irwin, Ohio * Irwin, Pennsylvania * Irwin, South Carolina * Irwin County, Georgia * Irwin Township, Venango County ...

Limestone Limestone ( calcium carbonate ) is a type of carbonate sedimentary rock which is the main source of the material lime. It is composed mostly of the minerals calcite and aragonite, which are different crystal forms of . Limestone forms whe ...

* Manteno * St. Anne * Reddick * Sammons Point * Sun River Terrace * Union Hill

Unincorporated Communities

* Ahern *

Altorf Altorf (; german: Altdorf; gsw-FR, Àldorf) is a commune in the Bas-Rhin department in the Grand Est region of northeastern France. The inhabitants of the commune are known as ''Altorfois'' or ''Altorfoises''. The commune has been awarded one ...

* Deselm * Dickeys * Exline * Garden of Eden * Goodrich *

Greenwich Greenwich ( , ,) is a town in south-east London, England, within the ceremonial county of Greater London. It is situated east-southeast of Charing Cross. Greenwich is notable for its maritime history and for giving its name to the Greenwich ...

* Illiana Heights * Illinoi (partial) * Indian Oaks * Leesville * Lehigh * Log Cabin Camp *

Saint George Saint George (Greek: Γεώργιος (Geórgios), Latin: Georgius, Arabic: القديس جرجس; died 23 April 303), also George of Lydda, was a Christian who is venerated as a saint in Christianity. According to tradition he was a soldie ...

* Sherburnville * Sollitt * Sugar Island * Whitaker * Wichert

Townships

Kankakee County is divided into seventeen

townships A township is a kind of human settlement or administrative subdivision, with its meaning varying in different countries. Although the term is occasionally associated with an urban area, that tends to be an exception to the rule. In Australia, C ...

: *

Aroma An odor (American English) or odour ( Commonwealth English; see spelling differences) is caused by one or more volatilized chemical compounds that are generally found in low concentrations that humans and animals can perceive via their se ...

* Ganeer * Kankakee *

* Manteno * Momence *

Norton Norton may refer to: Places Norton, meaning 'north settlement' in Old English, is a common place name. Places named Norton include: Canada * Rural Municipality of Norton No. 69, Saskatchewan *Norton Parish, New Brunswick **Norton, New Brunswick, a ...

Otto Otto is a masculine German given name and a surname. It originates as an Old High German short form (variants ''Audo'', '' Odo'', ''Udo'') of Germanic names beginning in ''aud-'', an element meaning "wealth, prosperity". The name is recorded f ...

* Pembroke *

Pilot An aircraft pilot or aviator is a person who controls the flight of an aircraft by operating its directional flight controls. Some other aircrew members, such as navigators or flight engineers, are also considered aviators, because they a ...

* Rockville * St. Anne * Salina * Sumner * Yellowhead

Politics

Although a typical prosperous

Yankee The term ''Yankee'' and its contracted form ''Yank'' have several interrelated meanings, all referring to people from the United States. Its various senses depend on the context, and may refer to New Englanders, residents of the Northern United S ...

“

collar Collar may refer to: Human neckwear *Clerical collar (informally ''dog collar''), a distinctive collar used by the clergy of some Christian religious denominations *Collar (clothing), the part of a garment that fastens around or frames the neck ...

”-type county in the century following the Civil War, Kankakee County is currently considered a Republican-leaning swing county. In the 2008 Presidential Election, Kankakee County voted 52 percent in favor of Illinois native

Barack Obama Barack Hussein Obama II ( ; born August 4, 1961) is an American politician who served as the 44th president of the United States from 2009 to 2017. A member of the Democratic Party, Obama was the first African-American president of the ...

(D), giving 47 percent to John McCain (R). However, in the 2004 Presidential Election, Kankakee County voted 55 percent in favor of

George W. Bush George Walker Bush (born July 6, 1946) is an American politician who served as the 43rd president of the United States from 2001 to 2009. A member of the Republican Party, Bush family, and son of the 41st president George H. W. Bush, he ...

(R) and 44 percent for

John Kerry John Forbes Kerry (born December 11, 1943) is an American attorney, politician and diplomat who currently serves as the first United States special presidential envoy for climate. A member of the Forbes family and the Democratic Party, he ...

(D). Kankakee County is in

Illinois's 2nd congressional district Illinois's 2nd congressional district is a congressional district in the U.S. state of Illinois. Based in the south suburbs of Chicago, the district includes southern Cook county, eastern Will county, and Kankakee county, as well as the city ...

, represented by Democrat

Robin Kelly Robin Lynne Kelly (born April 30, 1956) is an American politician from Illinois who has served as the U.S. representative from since 2013. A Democrat, Kelly served in the Illinois House of Representatives from 2003 to 2007. She then served as ...

(D-Matteson). Kankakee County has produced three governors:

Len Small Lennington "Len" Small (June 16, 1862 – May 17, 1936) was an American politician who served as the 26th Governor of Illinois from 1921 to 1929. He previously was a member of the Illinois state senate from the 16th District from 1901 to 1903 a ...

(R), Samuel H. Shapiro (D), and George H. Ryan (R). In December 2016, Kankakee County became the only county in Illinois to have a Libertarian county board member when Jim Byrne of Bradley left the Republican Party to join the Libertarian Party. In the 2020 general election, Byrne lost reelection to Democratic candidate Heather Bryan, while Libertarian Jacob Collins was elected unopposed on the Libertarian line continuing Kankakee County's distinction of being the only county with a Libertarian board member.

Education

The county is home to

Olivet Nazarene University Olivet Nazarene University (ONU) is a private Nazarene university in Bourbonnais, Illinois. Named for its founding location, Olivet, Illinois, ONU was originally established as a grammar school in east-central Illinois in 1907. In the late 1930 ...

and Kankakee Community College.

Transportation

Kankakee County is served by the Greater Kankakee Airport.

Amtrak The National Railroad Passenger Corporation, doing business as Amtrak () , is the national passenger railroad company of the United States. It operates inter-city rail service in 46 of the 48 contiguous U.S. States and nine cities in Canada ...

runs train service through the city via Kankakee station.

Major Highways

Interstate 57 Interstate 57 (I-57) is a north–south Interstate Highway in Missouri and Illinois that parallels the old Illinois Central Railroad for much of its route. It runs from Sikeston, Missouri, at I-55 to Chicago, Illinois, at I-94. I-57 ess ...

* U.S. Highway 45 * U.S. Highway 52 *

Illinois Route 1 Illinois Route 1 (IL 1) is a state highway in the U.S. state of Illinois. Running parallel to the Indiana border, the highway starts at the free ferry crossing to Kentucky at Cave-in-Rock on the Ohio River and runs north to the south sid ...

Illinois Route 17 Illinois Route 17 (IL 17) is a rural, arterial east–west state highway that runs east from a former ferry crossing in New Boston along the banks of the Mississippi RiverIllinois Highway EndsIllinois 17. Retrieved April 21, 2006. to State R ...

Illinois Route 50 Illinois Route 50 (IL 50) is a north–south state road in northeastern Illinois. It runs from the junction with U.S. Route 45 (US 45) and U.S. Route 52 (US 52) in West Kankakee north to US 41 in Skokie. In Chicago and the sub ...

Illinois Route 102 Illinois Route 102 (IL 102) is a state route in northeast Illinois. It runs from IL 53 in Wilmington to the concurrency of U.S. Route 45 (US 45) and US 52 in Bourbonnais, just north of Kankakee. This is a distance of . ...

Illinois Route 113 Illinois Route 113 (IL 113) is a two-lane state route that runs east from IL 47 north of Mazon and east of Seneca to IL 17 in western Kankakee, just across the Kankakee River from U.S. Route 45 (US 45) and US 52. Route description Route ...

Illinois Route 114 Illinois Route 114 is a rural east–west state route that connects State Road 10 in Indiana, USA, with Illinois Route 1 and Illinois Route 17 (Dixie Highway Dixie Highway was a United States auto trail first planned in 1914 to connect t ...

Illinois Route 115 Illinois Route 115 is a minor north–south state route in northeastern Illinois. It runs from Illinois Route 9 near Perdueville to the concurrent U.S. Routes 45/ 52 in Kankakee. This is a distance of . Route description Illinois 115 i ...

References

;Specific ;General *

External links

*
Atlas of Kankakee County from 1883
{{Coord, 41.14, -87.86, display=title, type:adm2nd_region:US-IL_source:UScensus1990 Illinois counties Illinois placenames of Native American origin 1853 establishments in Illinois Populated places established in 1853