Douglas County is a county located in the U.S. state of Illinois. As of the 2020 United States census, the population was 19,740.

History

Douglas County was formed in 1859 out of Coles County. It was named for Stephen A. Douglas, who was elected to the United States Senate in 1858, following the Lincoln–Douglas debates.

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File:Douglas County Illinois 1859.png|The creation of Douglas and Ford Counties in 1859 resulted in Illinois' current county map.

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Geography

thumb|right|The west face of the Douglas County courthouse

According to the US Census Bureau, the county has a total area of , of which is land and (0.1%) is water.

In recent years, average temperatures in the county seat of Tuscola have ranged from a low of in January to a high of in July, although a record low of was recorded in December 1989 and a record high of was recorded in July 1954. Average monthly precipitation ranged from in February to in July.

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|footnote=US Decennial Census:

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2020 census

As of the 2020 census, the county had a population of 19,740. The median age was 39.6 years, 24.8% of residents were under the age of 18, and 18.8% of residents were 65 years of age or older. For every 100 females there were 97.8 males, and for every 100 females age 18 and over there were 95.1 males age 18 and over.

The racial makeup of the county was 90.5% White, 0.3% Black or African American, 0.3% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.5% Asian, <0.1% Native Hawaiian and Pacific Islander, 3.9% from some other race, and 4.4% from two or more races. Hispanic or Latino residents of any race comprised 7.9% of the population.

25.0% of residents lived in urban areas, while 75.0% lived in rural areas.

There were 7,749 households in the county, of which 31.1% had children under the age of 18 living in them. Of all households, 53.5% were married-couple households, 17.6% were households with a male householder and no spouse or partner present, and 23.1% were households with a female householder and no spouse or partner present. About 27.4% of all households were made up of individuals and 12.6% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older.

!Pop 1990

!Pop 2000

!Pop 2010

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

!% 1980

!% 1990

!% 2000

!% 2010

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

|-

|White alone (NH)

|19,491

|19,102

|18,993

|18,427

|style='background: #ffffe6; |17,420

|98.57%

|98.14%

|95.34%

|92.23%

|style='background: #ffffe6; |88.25%

|-

|Black or African American alone (NH)

|6

|15

|59

|53

|style='background: #ffffe6; |67

|0.03%

|0.08%

|0.30%

|0.27%

|style='background: #ffffe6; |0.34%

|-

|Native American or Alaska Native alone (NH)

|24

|18

|29

|31

|style='background: #ffffe6; |28

|0.12%

|0.09%

|0.15%

|0.16%

|style='background: #ffffe6; |0.14%

|-

|Asian alone (NH)

|34

|37

|49

|82

|style='background: #ffffe6; |103

|0.17%

|0.19%

|0.25%

|0.41%

|style='background: #ffffe6; |0.52%

|-

|Native Hawaiian or Pacific Islander alone (NH)

|x

|x

|2

|0

|style='background: #ffffe6; |6

|x

|x

|0.01%

|0.00%

|style='background: #ffffe6; |0.03%

|-

|Other race alone (NH)

|10

|0

|1

|6

|style='background: #ffffe6; |34

|0.05%

|0.00%

|0.01%

|0.03%

|style='background: #ffffe6; |0.17%

|-

|Mixed race or Multiracial (NH)

|x

|x

|99

|171

|style='background: #ffffe6; |517

|x

|x

|0.50%

|0.86%

|style='background: #ffffe6; |2.62%

|-

|Hispanic or Latino (any race)

|209

|292

|690

|1,210

|style='background: #ffffe6; |1,565

|1.06%

|1.50%

|3.46%

|6.06%

|style='background: #ffffe6; |7.93%

|-

|Total

|19,774

|19,464

|19,922

|19,980

|style='background: #ffffe6; |19,740

|100.00%

|100.00%

|100.00%

|100.00%

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

|}

2010 census

As of the 2010 United States census, there were 19,980&nbsp;people, 7,720&nbsp;households, and 5,377&nbsp;families living in the county. The population density was . There were 8,390 housing units at an average density of . The racial makeup of the county was 95.7% white, 0.4% Asian, 0.3% black or African American, 0.2% American Indian, 2.3% from other races, and 1.2% from two or more races. Those of Hispanic or Latino origin made up 6.1% of the population.

Of the 7,720&nbsp;households, 32.6% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 57.0% were married couples living together, 8.5% had a female householder with no husband present, 30.3% were non-families, and 26.1% of all households were made up of individuals. The average household size was 2.57 and the average family size was 3.11. The median age was 38.7 years.

Communities

thumb|300px|Map of Douglas County, Illinois

Cities

  • Arcola
  • Newman
  • Tuscola (seat)
  • Villa Grove

Villages

  • Arthur (partial)
  • Atwood (partial)
  • Camargo
  • Garrett
  • Hindsboro

Unincorporated communities

  • Bourbon
  • Chesterville
  • Chicken Bristle
  • Fairland
  • Ficklin
  • Filson
  • Galton
  • Hugo
  • Hayes
  • Hillcrest
  • Kemp
  • Murdock
  • North Prairie Acres
  • Patterson Springs
  • West Ridge

Townships

  • Arcola
  • Bourbon
  • Bowdre
  • Camargo
  • Garrett
  • Murdock
  • Newman
  • Sargent
  • Tuscola

Politics

Douglas is a strongly Republican county. Apart from a narrow plurality of thirty-two votes to Bill Clinton in 1992, it has voted Republican in every Presidential election since 1968, and in all but five overall since 1880. Despite its long-time Republican leanings, Hillary Clinton's 2016 performance of gaining a mere 23.8 percent of the county's vote stands over six percent worse than any Democrat since the Civil War.

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See also

  • National Register of Historic Places listings in Douglas County, Illinois

References

  • US Census Bureau 2007 TIGER/Line Shapefiles
  • US Board on Geographic Names (GNIS)
  • US National Atlas
  • Douglas County Fact Sheet