Madison County is a

county A county () is a geographic region of a country used for administrative or other purposesL. Brookes (ed.) '' Chambers Dictionary''. Edinburgh: Chambers Harrap Publishers Ltd, 2005. in some nations. The term is derived from the Old French denoti ...

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 so ...

Illinois Illinois ( ) is a U.S. state, state in the Midwestern United States, Midwestern United States. It borders on Lake Michigan to its northeast, the Mississippi River to its west, and the Wabash River, Wabash and Ohio River, Ohio rivers to its ...

. It is a part of the

Metro East The Metro East is an urban area in Southern Illinois, United States that contains the eastern and northern urban, suburban, and exurban areas on the Mississippi River in Greater St. Louis. It encompasses eight Illinois counties and constitutes ...

southern Illinois Southern Illinois is a region of the U.S. state of Illinois comprising the southern third of the state, principally south of Interstate 70. Part of downstate Illinois, it is bordered by the two List of U.S. rivers by discharge, most voluminous ri ...

. According to the 2020 census, it had a population of 264,776, making it the eighth-most populous county in Illinois and the most populous in the southern portion of the state. The

county seat A county seat is an administrative center, seat of government, or capital city of a county or parish (administrative division), civil parish. The term is in use in five countries: Canada, China, Hungary, Romania, and the United States. An equiva ...

is Edwardsville, and the largest city is Granite City. Madison County is part of the

region of Greater St. Louis. The pre-Columbian city of

Cahokia Mounds Cahokia Mounds ( 11 MS 2) is the site of a Native American city (which existed 1050–1350 CE) directly across the Mississippi River from present-day St. Louis. The state archaeology park lies in south-western Illinois between East St. L ...

, a World Heritage Site, was located near Collinsville. Edwardsville is home to

Southern Illinois University Edwardsville Southern Illinois University Edwardsville (SIUE) is a public university in Edwardsville, Illinois, United States. Located within the Metro East of Greater St. Louis, SIUE was established in 1957 as an extension of Southern Illinois University Ca ...

. To the north, Alton is known for its

abolitionist Abolitionism, or the abolitionist movement, is the political movement to end slavery and liberate enslaved individuals around the world. The first country to fully outlaw slavery was Kingdom of France, France in 1315, but it was later used ...

and

American Civil War The American Civil War (April 12, 1861May 26, 1865; also known by Names of the American Civil War, other names) was a civil war in the United States between the Union (American Civil War), Union ("the North") and the Confederate States of A ...

-era history. It is also the home of the Southern Illinois University School of Dental Medicine. Godfrey, the village named for Captain Benjamin Godfrey, offers Lewis and Clark Community College formerly the Monticello Female Seminary.

History

Madison County was established on September 14, 1812. It was formed from parts of Randolph and St. Clair counties and named for President

James Madison James Madison (June 28, 1836) was an American statesman, diplomat, and Founding Fathers of the United States, Founding Father who served as the fourth president of the United States from 1809 to 1817. Madison was popularly acclaimed as the ...

. At the time of its formation, Madison County included all of the modern State of Illinois north of St. Louis, as well as all of Wisconsin, part of Minnesota, and Michigan's

Upper Peninsula The Upper Peninsula of Michigan—also known as Upper Michigan or colloquially the U.P. or Yoop—is the northern and more elevated of the two major landmasses that make up the U.S. state of Michigan; it is separated from the Lower Peninsula b ...

. In the late 19th century, Madison County became an industrial region, and in the 20th century was known first for Graniteware, and later for its steel mills, oil refineries, and other heavy industries. The county had a large working population, and the county and surrounding area was a center of strength for the Democratic Party. Industrial restructuring cost many jobs and reduced the population. The county now is part of the eastern St. Louis metropolitan area (nicknamed "Metro East"), as is neighboring St. Clair County. In 2009, the EPA issued an air pollution report that ranked Madison County as the county with the second-highest cancer risk in the country due to air pollution, second only to Los Angeles County, California. File:Madison County Illinois 1812.png, Madison County between its creation in 1812 and 1815, extending north to Lake Superior and the border with

Rupert's Land Rupert's Land (), or Prince Rupert's Land (), was a territory in British North America which comprised the Hudson Bay drainage basin. The right to "sole trade and commerce" over Rupert's Land was granted to Hudson's Bay Company (HBC), based a ...

File:Madison County Illinois 1815.png, Madison County between 1815 and 1817 File:Madison County Illinois 1817.png, Madison County between 1817 and 1821 File:Madison County Illinois 1821.png, Madison County between 1821 and 1825 File:Madison County Illinois 1825.png, Between 1825 and 1829, Madison included a northern salient that was split off to form part of Macoupin County. File:Madison County Illinois 1829.png, In 1829, Madison returned to its 1821 borders. File:Madison County Illinois 1843.png, In 1843, a small amount of land was transferred to Bond County, reducing Madison to its current size.

Geography

According to the U.S. Census Bureau, the county has a total area of , of which is land and (3.4%) is water. Madison County is on the

Mississippi River The Mississippi River is the main stem, primary river of the largest drainage basin in the United States. It is the second-longest river in the United States, behind only the Missouri River, Missouri. From its traditional source of Lake Ita ...

, while the other major body of water is Horseshoe Lake.

Climate and weather

In recent years, average temperatures in the county seat of Edwardsville have ranged from a low of in January to a high of in July, although a record low of was recorded in January 1977 and a record high of was recorded in July 2012. Average monthly precipitation ranged from in January to in May. Climate Zone 4A per the International Energy Conservation Code.

Adjacent counties and city

* Bond County - east * Clinton County - southeast * Jersey County - northwest * Macoupin County - north * Montgomery County - northeast * St. Charles County,

Missouri Missouri (''see #Etymology and pronunciation, pronunciation'') is a U.S. state, state in the Midwestern United States, Midwestern region of the United States. Ranking List of U.S. states and territories by area, 21st in land area, it border ...

- northwest * St. Clair County - south * St. Louis,

- west * St. Louis County,

- west

Parks and Reserves

* Chouteau Island * Gabaret Island * Horseshoe Lake State Park * Mosenthein Island cahokia mounds state park

Transportation

Madison County Transit serves the county with 25 bus routes and of bike trails. Intercity rail service is provided by

Amtrak The National Railroad Passenger Corporation, Trade name, doing business as Amtrak (; ), is the national Passenger train, passenger railroad company of the United States. It operates intercity rail service in 46 of the 48 contiguous United Stat ...

at Alton station. Trains on the Lincoln Service route travel between Chicago and St. Louis.

Major highways

I-55 *

I-70 *

I-255 *

I-270 *

US 40 *

US 67 *

IL 3 *

IL 4 *

IL 100 *

IL 162 *

IL 140 * * Illinois 160

IL 160 *

IL 143 *

IL 157 *

IL 159 *

IL 111 *

IL 203 *

IL 255 *

IL 267

Demographics

According to the 2020 census, the racial makeup of the county was 81.4% white (80.4% white non-Hispanic), 9.4% black or African American, 1.0% Asian, 0.3% American Indian, 6.3% two or more races, and 1.5% some other race. Those of Hispanic or Latino origin made up 4.1% of the population. According to the 2010 census, there were 269,282 people, 108,094 households, and 71,756 families residing in the county. The population density was . There were 117,106 housing units at an average density of . The racial makeup of the county was 88.2% white, 7.9% black or African American, 0.8% Asian, 0.2% American Indian, 0.9% from other races, and 1.8% from two or more races. Those of Hispanic or Latino origin made up 2.7% of the population. In terms of ancestry, 32.7% were German, 14.9% were Irish, 10.5% were English, 7.5% were American, and 5.7% were

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

. Of the 108,094 households, 31.4% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 49.3% were married couples living together, 12.2% had a female householder with no husband present, 33.6% were non-families, and 26.8% of all households were made up of individuals. The average household size was 2.46 and the average family size was 2.98. The median age was 38.6 years. The median income for a household in the county was $51,941 and the median income for a family was $64,630. Males had a median income of $50,355 versus $35,543 for females. The per capita income for the county was $26,127. About 9.1% of families and 12.9% 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 19.3% of those under age 18 and 6.6% of those age 65 or over.

Communities

Cities

* Alton * Collinsville (partly in St. Clair County) * Edwardsville * Granite City *

Highland Highlands or uplands are areas of high elevation such as a mountainous region, elevated mountainous plateau or high hills. Generally, ''upland'' refers to a range of hills, typically from up to , while ''highland'' is usually reserved for range ...

* Madison *

Troy Troy (/; ; ) or Ilion (; ) was an ancient city located in present-day Hisarlik, Turkey. It is best known as the setting for the Greek mythology, Greek myth of the Trojan War. The archaeological site is open to the public as a tourist destina ...

Venice Venice ( ; ; , formerly ) is a city in northeastern Italy and the capital of the Veneto Regions of Italy, region. It is built on a group of 118 islands that are separated by expanses of open water and by canals; portions of the city are li ...

* Wood River

Villages

Alhambra The Alhambra (, ; ) is a palace and fortress complex located in Granada, Spain. It is one of the most famous monuments of Islamic architecture and one of the best-preserved palaces of the historic Muslim world, Islamic world. Additionally, the ...

* Bethalto * East Alton * Fairmont City * Glen Carbon * Godfrey * Grantfork * Hamel *

Hartford Hartford is the List of capitals in the United States, capital city of the U.S. state of Connecticut. The city, located in Hartford County, Connecticut, Hartford County, had a population of 121,054 as of the 2020 United States census, 2020 ce ...

* Livingston * Marine * Maryville * New Douglas * Pontoon Beach * Pierron * Roxana * South Roxana * St. Jacob * Williamson * Worden

Census Designated Places

* Holiday Shores * Mitchell * Moro * Prairietown * Rosewood Heights

Other unincorporated and historic communities

* Binney * Cottage Hills * Donkville * Dorsey * Fosterburg *

Gard Gard () is a department in Southern France, located in the region of Occitanie. It had a population of 748,437 as of 2019;Goshen Settlement * Kaufman * Kuhn Station * LeClaire * Lincoln Place * Lumaghi Heights * Meadowbrook * Midway * Newport * Poag * St. Morgan * State Park Place * Upper Alton * Wanda

Townships

Madison County is divided into twenty-four townships: *

* Alton * Chouteau * Collinsville * Edwardsville * Fort Russell * Foster * Godfrey * Granite City * Hamel *

Helvetia Helvetia () is a national personification of Switzerland, officially , the Swiss Confederation. The allegory is typically pictured in a flowing clothing, with a spear and a shield emblazoned with the Flag of Switzerland, Swiss flag, and commo ...

* Jarvis * Leef * Marine * Moro * Nameoki * New Douglas *

Olive The olive, botanical name ''Olea europaea'' ("European olive"), is a species of Subtropics, subtropical evergreen tree in the Family (biology), family Oleaceae. Originating in Anatolia, Asia Minor, it is abundant throughout the Mediterranean ...

* Omphghent * Pin Oak * Saline * St. Jacob *

* Wood River

Islands

* Chouteau Island * Gabaret Island * Mosenthein Island

Historic Settlements

* Camp Dubois

Population ranking

The population ranking of the following table is based on the 2020 census of Madison County. † ''county seat''

Politics

Like much of southern Illinois, Madison County was a predominantly Democratic area for much of its history, but in recent elections has been moving toward Republican.

Mitt Romney Willard Mitt Romney (born March 12, 1947) is an American businessman and retired politician. He served as a United States Senate, United States senator from Utah from 2019 to 2025 and as the 70th governor of Massachusetts from 2003 to 2007 ...

narrowly carried the county in the 2012 presidential election, becoming the first Republican presidential nominee to do so since 1984. In

2016 2016 was designated as: * International Year of Pulses by the sixty-eighth session of the United Nations General Assembly. * International Year of Global Understanding (IYGU) by the International Council for Science (ICSU), the Internationa ...

Donald Trump Donald John Trump (born June 14, 1946) is an American politician, media personality, and businessman who is the 47th president of the United States. A member of the Republican Party (United States), Republican Party, he served as the 45 ...

carried the largest share of the vote for any Republican presidential candidate since

1972 Within the context of Coordinated Universal Time (UTC) it was the longest year ever, as two leap seconds were added during this 366-day year, an event which has not since been repeated. (If its start and end are defined using Solar time, ...

. The county also supported the Republican candidates for

governor A governor is an politician, administrative leader and head of a polity or Region#Political regions, political region, in some cases, such as governor-general, governors-general, as the head of a state's official representative. Depending on the ...

2010 The year saw a multitude of natural and environmental disasters such as the 2010 Haiti earthquake, the Deepwater Horizon oil spill, and the 2010 Chile earthquake. The 2009 swine flu pandemic, swine flu pandemic which began the previous year ...

2014 The year 2014 was marked by the surge of the Western African Ebola epidemic, West African Ebola epidemic, which began in 2013, becoming the List of Ebola outbreaks, most widespread outbreak of the Ebola, Ebola virus in human history, resul ...

2018 Events January * January 1 – Bulgaria takes over the Presidency of the Council of the European Union, after the Estonian presidency. * January 4 – SPLM-IO rebels loyal to Chan Garang Lual start a raid against Juba, capital of ...

, and

2022 The year began with another wave in the COVID-19 pandemic, with SARS-CoV-2 Omicron variant, Omicron spreading rapidly and becoming the dominant variant of the SARS-CoV-2 virus worldwide. Tracking a decrease in cases and deaths, 2022 saw ...

. As of February 2025, the county is one of 7 that voted to join the state of Indiana.

Education

* Alton Community Unit School District 11 * Bethalto Community Unit School District 8 * Collinsville Community Unit School District 10 * East Alton School District 13 * East Alton-Wood River Community High School District 14 * Edwardsville Community Unit School District 7 * Granite City Community Unit School District 9 * Highland Community Unit School District 5 * Madison Community Unit School District 12 * Roxana Community Unit School District 1 * Triad Community Unit School District 2 * Venice Community Unit School District 3 * Wood River-Hartford Elementary School District 15Illinois State Board of Education, ISBE Education Data Systems, Public School District Lookup
accessed May 26, 2023.

References

External links

Madison County website

A History of Madison County Illinois

Madison Historical: The Online Encyclopedia and Digital Archive for Madison County, Illinois
{{Coord, 38.83, -89.91, display=title, type:adm2nd_region:US-IL_source:UScensus1990 Illinois counties 1812 establishments in Illinois Territory Illinois counties on the Mississippi River Metro East Populated places established in 1812 Pre-statehood history of Illinois