DeWitt County is a county located in the U.S. state of Illinois. As of the 2020 United States census, the population was 15,516. Its county seat is Clinton. The county was formed as De Witt County on March 1, 1839, from Macon and McLean counties. The county was named in honor of the seventh Governor of New York State, De Witt Clinton.

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

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

History

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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

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Geography

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

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.

|align-fn=center

|footnote=U.S. Decennial Census<br />1790-1960 1900-1990<br />1990-2000 2010

2020 census

{| class="wikitable sortable" style="text-align:center;"

|+De Witt County, Illinois – Racial and ethnic composition<br><small></small>

!Race / Ethnicity <small>(NH = Non-Hispanic)</small>

!Pop 1980

!Pop 1990

!Pop 2000

!Pop 2010

!style="background-color: #ffffb3;" | Pop 2020

!% 1980

!% 1990

!% 2000

!% 2010

!style="background-color: #ffffb3;" |% 2020

|-

|White alone (NH)

|17,932

|16,332

|16,303

|15,855

|style='background: #ffffe6; |14,370

|99.03%

|98.89%

|97.05%

|95.74%

|style='background: #ffffe6; |92.61%

|-

|Black or African American alone (NH)

|26

|25

|81

|82

|style='background: #ffffe6; |108

|0.14%

|0.15%

|0.48%

|0.50%

|style='background: #ffffe6; |0.70%

|-

|Native American or Alaska Native alone (NH)

|15

|36

|27

|23

|style='background: #ffffe6; |19

|0.08%

|0.22%

|0.16%

|0.14%

|style='background: #ffffe6; |0.12%

|-

|Asian alone (NH)

|26

|43

|46

|58

|style='background: #ffffe6; |40

|0.14%

|0.26%

|0.27%

|0.35%

|style='background: #ffffe6; |0.26%

|-

|Native Hawaiian or Pacific Islander alone (NH)

|x

|x

|3

|4

|style='background: #ffffe6; |16

|x

|x

|0.02%

|0.02%

|style='background: #ffffe6; |0.10%

|-

|Other race alone (NH)

|3

|0

|16

|26

|style='background: #ffffe6; |16

|0.02%

|0.00%

|0.10%

|0.16%

|style='background: #ffffe6; |0.10%

|-

|Mixed race or Multiracial (NH)

|x

|x

|109

|159

|style='background: #ffffe6; |437

|x

|x

|0.65%

|0.96%

|style='background: #ffffe6; |2.82%

|-

|Hispanic or Latino (any race)

|106

|80

|213

|354

|style='background: #ffffe6; |510

|0.59%

|0.48%

|1.27%

|2.14%

|style='background: #ffffe6; |3.29%

|-

|Total

|18,108

|16,516

|16,798

|16,561

|style='background: #ffffe6; |15,516

|100.00%

|100.00%

|100.00%

|100.00%

|style='background: #ffffe6; |100.00%

|}

2010 census

As of the 2010 United States census, there were 16,561&nbsp;people, 6,811&nbsp;households, and 4,618&nbsp;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.

Of the 6,811&nbsp;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.

Communities

thumb|right|350px|Map of DeWitt County, Illinois

Cities

  • Clinton (seat)
  • Farmer City

Villages

  • DeWitt
  • Kenney
  • Wapella
  • Waynesville
  • Weldon

Townships

DeWitt County is divided into thirteen townships:

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

Census-designated place

  • Lane

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.

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Education

K-12 school districts include:

  • Argenta-Oreana Community Unit School District 1
  • Blue Ridge Community Unit School District 18
  • Clinton Community Unit School District 15
  • DeLand-Weldon Community Unit School District 57
  • Heyworth Community Unit School District 4
  • Le Roy Community Unit School District 2
  • Maroa-Forsyth Community Unit School District 2
  • Monticello Community Unit School District 25
  • Mount Pulaski Community Unit District 23
  • Olympia Community Unit School District 16

There are also an elementary school district, Chester-East Lincoln Community Csd 61, and a secondary school district, Lincoln Community High School District 404.