Mount Sterling is a city in and 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 ...

of Brown County,

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 ...

United States The United States of America (USA), also known as the United States (U.S.) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It is a federal republic of 50 U.S. state, states and a federal capital district, Washington, D.C. The 48 ...

. The population was 2,006 at the 2020 census. Foodservice distributor Dot Foods is based in Mount Sterling.

History

Mount Sterling was organized in 1854. It did not have a courthouse until 1868, although it was designated the county seat from when the county was organized. Mount Sterling was one of several Illinois towns that publicly competed for a new state prison in one of the state's prison sweepstakes competitions. During the 1987 competition, the town of

Flora Flora (: floras or florae) is all the plant life present in a particular region or time, generally the naturally occurring (indigenous (ecology), indigenous) native plant, native plants. The corresponding term for animals is ''fauna'', and for f ...

famously produced the "Is We Is or Is We Isn't/Gonna Get Ourselves A Prison" video. Ultimately, Mount Sterling won the 1987 competition and the state constructed the Western Illinois Correctional Center along State Highway 99 a mile south of town. In 1989 immediately prior to opening, the prison hosted a "Spend a night in prison" event for state and local dignitaries and prominent business-owners, an event that ultimately soured some of its participants on the economic value of prisons to small town economies.

Geography

According to the 2021 census gazetteer files, Mount Sterling has a total area of , all land.

Demographics

As of the 2020 census there were 2,006 people, 956 households, and 481 families residing in the city. The population density was . There were 989 housing units at an average density of . The racial makeup of the city was 93.47%

White White is the lightest color and is achromatic (having no chroma). It is the color of objects such as snow, chalk, and milk, and is the opposite of black. White objects fully (or almost fully) reflect and scatter all the visible wa ...

, 1.25%

African American African Americans, also known as Black Americans and formerly also called Afro-Americans, are an Race and ethnicity in the United States, American racial and ethnic group that consists of Americans who have total or partial ancestry from an ...

, 0.25% Native American, 0.25% Asian, 0.30% from other races, and 4.49% from two or more races.

Hispanic The term Hispanic () are people, Spanish culture, cultures, or countries related to Spain, the Spanish language, or broadly. In some contexts, Hispanic and Latino Americans, especially within the United States, "Hispanic" is used as an Ethnici ...

or Latino people of any race were 1.55% of the population. There were 956 households, out of which 27.0% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 35.46% were married couples living together, 13.60% had a female householder with no husband present, and 49.69% were non-families. 42.26% of all households were made up of individuals, and 14.12% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 3.16 and the average family size was 2.24. The city's age distribution consisted of 27.8% under the age of 18, 7.6% from 18 to 24, 28.1% from 25 to 44, 22.3% from 45 to 64, and 14.2% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 35.0 years. For every 100 females, there were 106.7 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 86.0 males. The median income for a household in the city was $45,536, and the median income for a family was $73,693. Males had a median income of $43,019 versus $31,469 for females. The

per capita income Per capita income (PCI) or average income measures the average income earned per person in a given area (city, region, country, etc.) in a specified year. In many countries, per capita income is determined using regular population surveys, such ...

for the city was $24,433. About 6.4% of families and 12.8% 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 12.6% of those under age 18 and 7.0% of those age 65 or over.

Education

Mount Sterling is home to Brown County School District #1, which contains an elementary school, middle school, and high school. The sports teams for the district are referred to as the "Hornets".

References

External links

City of Mt. Sterling official website
{{authority control Cities in Brown County, Illinois Cities in Illinois County seats in Illinois 1854 establishments in Illinois Populated places established in 1854