Rock Island 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 of

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 Rock ...

, bounded on the west by the

Mississippi River The Mississippi River is the List of longest rivers of the United States (by main stem), second-longest river and chief river of the second-largest Drainage system (geomorphology), drainage system in North America, second only to the Hudson B ...

. According to the 2010 census, it had a population of 147,546. 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 ...

is Rock Island; its largest city is neighboring Moline. Rock Island County is one of the four counties that make up the

Davenport Davenport may refer to: Places Australia *Davenport, Northern Territory, a locality *Hundred of Davenport, cadastral unit in South Australia **Davenport, South Australia, suburb of Port Augusta ** District Council of Davenport, former local govern ...

- Moline-Rock Island, IA-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

Rock Island County was formed in 1831 out of

Jo Daviess County Jo Daviess County () is the northwesternmost county in the U.S. state of Illinois. According to the 2010 census, it had a population of 22,678. Its county seat is Galena. Jo Daviess County is part of the Tri-State Area and is located near D ...

. It was named for Rock Island, an island in the

now known as

Arsenal Island An arsenal is a place where arms and ammunition are made, maintained and repaired, stored, or issued, in any combination, whether privately or publicly owned. Arsenal and armoury (British English) or armory (American English) are mostl ...

. The Rock River (which the Sauk and Fox Indians called Sinnissippi meaning "rocky waters") flows from Whiteside County and points further east and north and joins the Mississippi River at Rock Island. The Sinnissippi Mounds, dating from the Hopewell period and on the

National Register of Historic Places The National Register of Historic Places (NRHP) is the United States federal government's official list of districts, sites, buildings, structures and objects deemed worthy of preservation for their historical significance or "great artistic ...

are upriver at Sterling in Whiteside County.

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 (5.2%) is water.

Climate and weather

In recent years, average temperatures in the county seat of Rock Island have ranged from a low of in January to a high of in July, although a record low of was recorded in February 1996 and a record high of was recorded in July 2006. Average monthly precipitation ranged from in January to in June.

Major highways

* Interstate 74 *

Interstate 80 Interstate 80 (I-80) is an east–west transcontinental freeway that crosses the United States from downtown San Francisco, California, to Teaneck, New Jersey, in the New York metropolitan area. The highway was designated in 1956 as one ...

* Interstate 88 * Interstate 280 * U.S. Highway 6 * U.S. Highway 67 * U.S. Highway 150 * Illinois Route 2 (formerly) *

Illinois Route 5 Illinois Route 5 (IL 5) is a four-lane road in Rock Island County, Illinois, United States, that runs from U.S. Route 67 (US 67) in Rock Island to the interchange of Interstate 80 (I-80) and the toll-free portion of I-88, a distanc ...

* Illinois Route 84 * Illinois Route 92 *

Illinois Route 94 Illinois Route 94 is a north–south state highway in western Illinois. It runs from U.S. Route 24 (US 24) just east of Camp Point to U.S. Route 67 just south of Oak Grove, just south of the Quad Cities area. This is a distance of . ...

Illinois Route 110 110 may refer to: *110 (number), natural number *AD 110, a year *110 BC, a year *110 film, a cartridge-based film format used in still photography *110 (MBTA bus), Massachusetts Bay Transportation Authority bus route *110 (song), 2019 song by Capi ...

Illinois Route 192 Illinois Route 192 is a east–west state highway in northwest Illinois. It runs from its western terminus at Illinois Route 92 northwest of Edgington to its eastern terminus at Illinois Route 94 in Taylor Ridge. The route is located entire ...

Transit

Quad Cities MetroLINK The Quad Cities MetroLINK, officially the Rock Island County Metropolitan Mass Transit District, provides mass transportation for the Illinois half of the Quad Cities metro area. Both Iowa cities that make up the region have their own systems, ...

* List of intercity bus stops in Illinois

Adjacent counties

Clinton County Clinton County may refer to: *Counties named for George Clinton, first and third Governor of New York, and later the fourth Vice President of the United States: **Clinton County, New York **Clinton County, Ohio *Counties named for DeWitt Clinton, s ...

Iowa Iowa () is a U.S. state, state in the Midwestern United States, Midwestern region of the United States, bordered by the Mississippi River to the east and the Missouri River and Big Sioux River to the west. It is bordered by six states: Wiscon ...

(north) * Whiteside County (northeast) * Henry County (southeast) * Mercer County (south) * Louisa County,

(southwest) *

Muscatine County Muscatine County is a county located in the U.S. state of Iowa. As of the 2020 census, the population was 43,235. The county seat is Muscatine. The southeastern border is formed by the Mississippi River. Muscatine County comprises the Musca ...

(west) * Scott County,

(northwest)

National protected area

Upper Mississippi River National Wildlife and Fish Refuge The Upper Mississippi River National Wildlife and Fish Refuge is a ,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 serving ...

, there were 147,546 people, 61,303 households, and 38,384 families residing in the county. The population density was . There were 65,756 housing units at an average density of . The racial makeup of the county was 81.6% white, 9.0% black or African American, 1.6% Asian, 0.3% American Indian, 4.4% from other races, and 3.0% from two or more races. Those of Hispanic or Latino origin made up 11.6% of the population. In terms of ancestry, 25.9% 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, 8.7% 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 ...

, 6.8% were Swedish, and 5.2% were

American American(s) may refer to: * American, something of, from, or related to the United States of America, commonly known as the "United States" or "America" ** Americans, citizens and nationals of the United States of America ** American ancestry, pe ...

. Of the 61,303 households, 29.0% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 45.3% were married couples living together, 12.7% had a female householder with no husband present, 37.4% were non-families, and 31.6% of all households were made up of individuals. The average household size was 2.34 and the average family size was 2.93. The median age was 40.0 years. The median income for a household in the county was $46,226 and the median income for a family was $58,962. Males had a median income of $42,548 versus $31,917 for females. The per capita income for the county was $25,071. About 8.7% of families and 12.3% 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 ...

, including 19.0% of those under age 18 and 7.1% of those age 65 or over.

Economy

At one time Mississippi Valley Airlines had its headquarters in Quad City Airport in the county.

John Deere Deere & Company, doing business as John Deere (), is an American corporation that manufactures agricultural machinery, heavy equipment, forestry machinery, diesel engines, drivetrains (axles, transmissions, gearboxes) used in heavy equipment, ...

is headquartered in Moline.

Communities

Cities

* East Moline * Moline * Rock Island * Silvis

Villages

Andalusia Andalusia (, ; es, Andalucía ) is the southernmost autonomous community in Peninsular Spain. It is the most populous and the second-largest autonomous community in the country. It is officially recognised as a "historical nationality". The ...

* Carbon Cliff * Coal Valley (part) * Cordova * Hampton * Hillsdale *

Milan Milan ( , , Lombard: ; it, Milano ) is a city in northern Italy, capital of Lombardy, and the second-most populous city proper in Italy after Rome. The city proper has a population of about 1.4 million, while its metropolitan city ...

* Oak Grove * Port Byron * Rapids City * Reynolds (part)

Census-designated places

* Coyne Center * Rock Island Arsenal

Unincorporated communities

* Barstow * Buffalo Prairie * Campbell's Island * Edgington *

Illinois City Illinois City is an unincorporated community in the U.S. state of Illinois, across the Mississippi River from Muscatine, Iowa. It straddles Buffalo Prairie Township and Drury Township in Rock Island County, Illinois Rock Island County is ...

* Joslin * Taylor Ridge

Townships

Rock Island County is divided into eighteen townships: *

* Blackhawk *

Bowling Bowling is a target sport and recreational activity in which a player rolls a ball toward pins (in pin bowling) or another target (in target bowling). The term ''bowling'' usually refers to pin bowling (most commonly ten-pin bowling), though ...

* Buffalo Prairie * Canoe Creek * Coal Valley * Coe * Cordova * Drury * Edgington * Hampton * Moline * Port Byron * Rock Island *

Rural In general, a rural area or a countryside is a geographic area that is located outside towns and cities. Typical rural areas have a low population density and small settlements. Agricultural areas and areas with forestry typically are de ...

* South Moline * South Rock Island * Zuma

Forts

* Fort Armstrong

Politics

Before 1932, Rock Island County was a Republican stronghold in presidential elections, backing the party's candidate in every election from 1892 to 1928. From 1932 on, it has consistently backed Democratic Party presidential candidates, except for the national Republican landslides of 1952, 1956, 1972, and 1980. In 2016,

Donald Trump Donald John Trump (born June 14, 1946) is an American politician, media personality, and businessman who served as the 45th president of the United States from 2017 to 2021. Trump graduated from the Wharton School of the University of P ...

managed to keep

Hillary Clinton Hillary Diane Rodham Clinton ( Rodham; born October 26, 1947) is an American politician, diplomat, and former lawyer who served as the 67th United States Secretary of State for President Barack Obama from 2009 to 2013, as a United States sen ...

to a single-digit margin of victory, the first Republican to do so since

Ronald Reagan Ronald Wilson Reagan ( ; February 6, 1911June 5, 2004) was an American politician, actor, and union leader who served as the 40th president of the United States from 1981 to 1989. He also served as the 33rd governor of California from 1967 ...

in 1984; in 2020, Joe Biden increased the Democratic margin from 8.3% to 12.1%. Due to the dominance of the Democratic Party in county politics, Rock Island County remains one of the most Democratic counties outside of the Chicago area in Illinois. Since 2010 the Republican Party began making inroads in county politics, gaining a few seats on the Democratic-dominated county board; however, since 2018, the Republican Party influence on the board has begun to decrease as the county resumed heavy Democratic voting.

Footnotes

External links

Official county website

Rock Island County Historical Society
{{Coord, 41.47, -90.57, display=title, type:adm2nd_region:US-IL_source:UScensus1990 Illinois counties 1831 establishments in Illinois Populated places established in 1831 Quad Cities Illinois counties on the Mississippi River