Union County, Illinois

Union County is a county located in the U.S. state of Illinois. According to the 2020 United States census, it had a population of 17,244. Its county seat is Jonesboro. It is located in the southern portion of Illinois known locally as "Little Egypt".

History

Union County was formed out of Johnson County, nearly a year before the Illinois Territory gained statehood. It was named for a joint revival meeting of the Baptists and Dunkards, called a "union meeting". The county seal depicts the leaders of these two groups shaking hands.

File:Union County Illinois 1818.png|For its first year of existence, Union County included an area of unorganized territory temporarily attached to it.

File:Union County Illinois 1819.png|In 1819, the additional territory became Alexander County, reducing Union to its current borders.

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Geography

According to the US Census Bureau, the county has a total area of , of which is land and (2.1%) is water.

In recent years, average temperatures in the county seat of Jonesboro have ranged from a low of in January to a high of in July, although a record low of was recorded in January 1918 and a record high of was recorded in July 1901. Average monthly precipitation ranged from in September to in May.

Crab Orchard National Wildlife Refuge (partial)
Cypress Creek National Wildlife Refuge (partial)
Lincoln Memorial Picnic Grounds
Giant City State Park (partial)
McClure Shale Glade Nature Preserve
Trail of Tears State Forest
Shawnee National Forest (partial)
Union County State Fish and Wildlife Area

Demographics

2020 census

As of the 2020 census, the county had a population of 17,244. The median age was 44.9 years. 20.4% of residents were under the age of 18 and 22.3% of residents were 65 years of age or older. For every 100 females there were 101.0 males, and for every 100 females age 18 and over there were 100.7 males age 18 and over.

The racial makeup of the county was 90.0% White, 1.3% Black or African American, 0.5% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.4% Asian, 0.1% Native Hawaiian and Pacific Islander, 1.7% from some other race, and 6.1% from two or more races. Hispanic or Latino residents of any race comprised 5.0% of the population.

There were 6,983 households in the county, of which 27.4% had children under the age of 18 living in them. Of all households, 47.7% were married-couple households, 18.0% were households with a male householder and no spouse or partner present, and 27.5% were households with a female householder and no spouse or partner present. About 30.8% of all households were made up of individuals and 15.6% 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)

|17,563

|17,243

|17,407

|16,454

|style='background: #ffffe6; |15,331

|98.86%

|97.87%

|95.16%

|92.40%

|style='background: #ffffe6; |88.91%

|Black or African American alone (NH)

|68

|122

|149

|151

|style='background: #ffffe6; |226

|0.38%

|0.69%

|0.81%

|0.85%

|style='background: #ffffe6; |1.31%

|Native American or Alaska Native alone (NH)

|19

|22

|62

|59

|style='background: #ffffe6; |46

|0.11%

|0.12%

|0.34%

|0.33%

|style='background: #ffffe6; |0.27%

|Asian alone (NH)

|16

|50

|48

|52

|style='background: #ffffe6; |67

|0.09%

|0.28%

|0.26%

|0.29%

|style='background: #ffffe6; |0.39%

|Native Hawaiian or Pacific Islander alone (NH)

|style='background: #ffffe6; |11

|0.01%

|0.03%

|style='background: #ffffe6; |0.06%

|Other race alone (NH)

|style='background: #ffffe6; |28

|0.05%

|0.00%

|0.03%

|0.04%

|style='background: #ffffe6; |0.16%

|Mixed race or Multiracial (NH)

|138

|216

|style='background: #ffffe6; |668

|0.75%

|1.21%

|style='background: #ffffe6; |3.87%

|Hispanic or Latino (any race)

|91

|182

|481

|863

|style='background: #ffffe6; |867

|0.51%

|1.03%

|2.63%

|4.85%

|style='background: #ffffe6; |5.03%

|Total

|17,765

|17,619

|18,293

|17,808

|style='background: #ffffe6; |17,244

|100.00%

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

2010 census

As of the 2010 United States census, there were 17,808 people, 7,167 households, and 4,837 families residing in the county. The population density was . There were 7,924 housing units at an average density of . The racial makeup of the county was 94.8% white, 0.9% black or African American, 0.5% American Indian, 0.3% Asian, 2.0% from other races, and 1.5% from two or more races. Those of Hispanic or Latino origin made up 4.8% of the population.

Of the 7,167 households, 29.7% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 52.6% were married couples living together, 10.6% had a female householder with no husband present, 32.5% were non-families, and 28.4% of all households were made up of individuals. The average household size was 2.41 and the average family size was 2.92. The median age was 42.9 years.

Communities

Cities

Anna
Jonesboro (seat)

Villages

Alto Pass
Cobden
Dongola
Mill Creek

Unincorporated communities

Balcom
La Rue
Reynoldsville
Ware
Wolf Lake

Politics

Like much of Southern Illinois, Union County has shifted toward the Republican Party over the past couple decades, with the Republican candidate for president winning the county since 2000.

Education

School districts include:

K-12:

Cobden School Unit District 17
Dongola School Unit District 66
Goreville Community Unit School District 1
Shawnee Community Unit School District 84

Secondary:

Anna Jonesboro Community High School District 81
Vienna High School District 133

Elementary:

Anna Community Consolidated School District 37
Buncombe Consolidated School District 43
Cypress School District 64
Jonesboro Community Consolidated School District 43
Lick Creek Community Consolidated School District 16

References

Bibliography

External links

Union County Official Website
Union County State's Attorney
Union County Treasurer
Union County Chamber of Commerce